Phonak EON vs Infinio: The Upgrade That Stays Switched On

TL;DR: EON's upgrade lives in noisy rooms. Its automatic program holds onto speech mode instead of dropping out every time the table goes quiet, it runs Phonak's newer speech-clarity software on a more efficient chip, and it adds Auracast. Buy EON if restaurants and broadcasts matter to you. Infinio Ultra Sphere I70 is the value pick.

Picture dinner out with friends. The table is loud, then for a few seconds it isn't, because someone is reaching for the bread and the couple next to you paused to read the dessert menu. Weighing Phonak EON vs Infinio comes down to what your hearing aid does in those few seconds, and it is the difference you would notice long before you noticed anything else about these Phonak hearing aids.

What Happens When the Room Goes Quiet for a Second

EON keeps helping you through the lulls, and Infinio sometimes stops. Both generations have an automatic program Phonak calls AutoSense, which listens to the room and decides when you need the heavy-duty help for speech in loud noise. The trouble with a busy restaurant is that it is never loud at a steady level. It rises, dips, rises again, and a hearing aid that switches its noise help off at every dip spends the evening flickering between modes, usually right as someone starts talking.

AutoSense OS AI 8.0, the version inside EON, fixes that with one change: it is now harder to leave speech-in-loud-noise mode than to enter it. Think of a thermostat that no longer clicks off every time someone opens the front door. In Phonak's own testing, the company recorded 30 minutes of a real lunch conversation and played the identical recording through both generations:

• Infinio Ultra kept its noise help on most of the time but dropped out during the softer stretches.

• EON stayed in speech-in-loud-noise mode for the whole half hour, about 20 percent more time with the help switched on.

• Your licensed hearing care provider can also set how loud a room has to get before that mode kicks in, so a quieter-restaurant person and a sports-bar person can each get the timing they want.

A Sharper Voice in the Clatter

When that help is switched on, EON's version does more with the same job. Every Sphere model carries a second chip dedicated to pulling voices out of noise, a tiny brain whose only interest is your dinner companion. EON moves to Phonak's HYPERSONIC chip running Spheric Speech Clarity 3.0, where Infinio Ultra Sphere runs version 2.0. Phonak credits version 3.0 with up to a 44 percent improvement in speech understanding in busy, noisy places, and says the new chip runs it 37 percent more efficiently than Infinio Ultra ran the old one.

That efficiency shows up in your day, not just in a lab:

• A normal day with conversation in it gets about 22 hours from EON against 18 from Infinio Ultra Sphere, enough to get through a wedding reception and the drive home.

• Infinio Ultra Sphere claims a bigger ceiling, up to 56 hours against EON's 38, but that figure comes from quiet days when the chip has little to do.

• A full charge takes two and a half hours on EON, an hour less than Infinio Ultra Sphere.

Everyone's ears respond differently, and better hearing in noise is a process rather than a switch. Wearing EON to your own loudest restaurant during the 60-day trial is the fairest test there is.

Broadcasts Your Old Hearing Aids Can't Hear

Auracast is the one feature here Infinio Ultra simply cannot match. Phonak lists Auracast broadcast and Bluetooth LE Audio for EON, while Infinio Ultra lists classic Bluetooth only. Auracast lets a theater, airport, gym or lecture hall send its sound straight into your hearing aids, so the gate announcement that used to be mush arrives clean. Venues have to install the equipment, and more of them are doing so. If you travel, go to shows or sit through meetings in echoey rooms, this one matters more than any number on the box.

• Phone calls and streaming work on both generations.

• Venue broadcasts through Auracast work only on EON.

• LE Audio, the newer Bluetooth standard behind Auracast, comes only with EON.

Yes, It Is Also Smaller

Phonak says EON Sphere is 25 percent smaller and 20 percent lighter than the previous Sphere generation, and that holds up: 2.4 grams against 3.0 for Infinio Ultra Sphere, with a shorter, slimmer shell. Nice, though nobody at dinner is weighing your ears. It matters most if the older Sphere always felt a little chunky behind your ear, or if you wear glasses and the space back there is crowded.

Where Each One Makes Sense

Every level the two share costs more in EON, so the question is whether the upgrades above are worth the gap for your week. Channels, the number of adjustment points your provider can use to shape sound to your hearing, are the same 20 at Premium and Advanced in both generations.

Who Should Buy Which

Buy EON when:

• Restaurants, family gatherings or group dinners are a weekly thing, and noise help that stays on through the lulls is worth paying for.

• You travel, go to shows or want your hearing aids ready as more venues switch on Auracast.

• Long days regularly run your current hearing aids flat before bedtime.

Keep the change with Infinio Ultra Sphere when:

• Your budget points to EON E50 Sphere, because Infinio Ultra Sphere I70 costs less right now and gives your provider 20 channels to E50's 16.

• Broadcasts are not part of your life and your evenings are mostly quiet.

• You would rather put the difference toward a higher level than a newer generation.

Current prices sit on our Phonak Audéo EON Sphere hearing aids and Phonak Audéo Infinio Ultra pages. Not sure which level your hearing calls for? Upload your audiogram and our team will tell you.

Already Wearing Infinio Ultra Sphere?

Upgrade if the lulls are where you lose conversations, if you want Auracast, or if the size has always bugged you. Otherwise, the pair you own still has the same noise chip family, the same channels and the same power.

• Noise help cutting in and out at dinner is the clearest sign EON would change your evenings.

• Broadcast audio at airports, theaters or church is something only EON can give you.

• Bought your pair from us? Ask your provider for a remote adjustment first. It costs nothing and sometimes fixes what you were about to replace.

What Stayed the Same

Plenty did not change, which keeps it from being a reason to switch either way:

• Maximum power is the same, so neither one reaches further into severe hearing loss.

• Both use Phonak's 6.0 receivers, and both carry an IP68 rating for rain, sweat and the odd dunk.

• In a silent room they are equally quiet, with no extra hiss from either.

Our guide to what the EON platform changes covers the rest of the new generation.

What Comes with Either One

We program your devices to your hearing profile before they ship, then fit and fine-tune them with you by phone or video, and one licensed hearing care provider stays with you through your first 60 days. That profile comes from your audiogram or our free online hearing test, which takes about 5 to 10 minutes and is a screening, not a clinical diagnosis. The first couple of weeks can feel a little bumpy while your brain catches up.

• A 60-day trial with a full refund, long enough to take EON to your loudest restaurant twice.

• The 4-year manufacturer warranty, plus 3-year loss and damage coverage on most models.

• Unlimited remote adjustments, no time limits, no session caps.

The hearing aids are identical to what any clinic sells. The professional care is identical. The price is not. That's the Injoy difference.

Still deciding between the newer generation and the better deal? Talk to one of our hearing care experts. They will tell you when the older one is the better hearing aid for your ears, and they won't be shy about it.

More on Phonak EON vs Infinio

Is Phonak EON better than Infinio in noisy restaurants?

Phonak's own testing says yes. EON's automatic program stays in speech-in-loud-noise mode through the quieter moments that switch Infinio Ultra off, and its newer speech-clarity software runs on a more efficient chip. How much you notice depends on your hearing, which is why we suggest testing it in your own favorite noisy spot during the trial.

Does the Phonak EON come in an R version?

It does, and we stock EON R at four levels, E90 through E30. The R models skip the dedicated noise chip, so they cost less, and they share the same smaller shell as EON Sphere.

Do Phonak EON and Infinio use the same receivers?

Both run Phonak's 6.0 receivers in standard, medium, MAV, power and ultra power. We pick your receiver from your audiogram before your hearing aids ship, so your power needs, not the generation, decide which one you get.

Can I swim with a Phonak EON?

Laps stay a hearing-aid-free activity. EON carries an IP68 rating, which covers rain, sweat and an accidental dunk, but it is not a swimming rating.

Can I charge a Phonak EON on my Infinio charger?

Plan on an EON charger. Phonak lists the Charger RIC E and the ChargerGo RIC I E for EON, and the charger made for Infinio Ultra Sphere is not on that list, so an upgrade from Sphere means a charger swap too.