Audien Hearing Atom X vs. Phonak Audéo EON

A clever touchscreen charging case and long battery life modernize Audien's budget lineup—but speech clarity (especially in noise) still trails many OTC rivals.

The EON Sphere is one of the strongest hearing aids I’ve seen for speech performance, with exceptional results in background noise and a much smaller, more comfortable design than its predecessor.

Audien Atom X achieved a SoundScore of 3.3/5 and a SoundGrade of B in HearAdvisor lab testing. It ranked #54 of 65 OTC Hearing Aid devices tested. The OTC Hearing Aid category average SoundScore was 3.68/5.

Phonak Audéo EON Sphere achieved a SoundScore of 5.0/5 and a SoundGrade of A in HearAdvisor lab testing. It ranked #1 of 39 Prescription Hearing Aid devices tested. The Prescription Hearing Aid category average SoundScore was 4.19/5.

Audien Atom X hearing aids lack an IP rating, so they might not be the best against moisture or dust. While using them they feel decently built and they do come with an excellent portable charging case.

Phonak Audéo E90 Sphere have an excellent build quality with a robust, portable charging case and a high ingress rating of IP68.

Atom X offer up to 12 hours of battery life, which is less than many of Audien's hearing aids. Recharging will take roughly 3-4 hours, with the case offering several additional full charges.

Audéo EON offer around 38 hours of use per change, which is a decrease compared to the previous firmware-upgraded Sphere Ultra. Regardless, the battery life should span your entire day and a full recharge takes 3 to 4 hours, or 30-minute quick charge can provide an additional 6 hours of use.

Atom X offer wireless control and streaming for both iOS and Android. This is the key new addition for Atom X and I found it to work very well.

Phonak are compatible with both iOS and Android, offering wireless audio streaming and hands-free calls. Pairing was easy and reliable in our testing, especially with Apple mobile devices.

Not yet rated by our experts

I found the MyPhonak Hearing Aid app easy to use with many useful features, including health and fitness tracking.

I found Atom X more comfortable than Atom Pro 2, though other hearing aids will likely offer you a better fit and overall comfort.

EON are extremely comfortable with their smaller more compact redesign. Glasses wearers, and or those with smaller ears, should definitely notice fit improvements compared to previous Sphere models.

The design of Atom X falls between a custom hearing aid and wireless earbud. They are only available in a medical beige color, which is meant to match skin color, but will not suit everyone.

Audéo EON Sphere offer a significantly smaller size than the previous generation Sphere models. The size is now comparable to most other receiver-in-canal prescription hearing aids on the market.

Audien Atom X has a value score of 4.2/5 based on lab performance and public display price.

Phonak Audéo EON Sphere has a value score of 3.6/5 based on lab performance and public display price.

Atom X is the most user friendly hearing aid I have tried from Audien Hearing to date. The physical buttons are large and the bright touchscreen feature is a great addition.

Audéo EON Sphere are easy to use and adjust using either the large multi-function button or MyPhonak app. I had no issues making adjustments with either.

Like many OTC products, Audien does not offer remote assistance from hearing experts, support is limited to email and phone customer support.

Prescription hearing aids like EON Sphere are fit by hearing care providers so you should receive quality care. The MyPhonak app also opens the possibility for remote programming and virtual follow-up appointments.