Elehear Delight vs. Phonak Audéo EON

The ELEHEAR Delight is an affordable OTC hearing aid designed to look and feel more like a modern earbud than a traditional hearing aid. While HearingTracker has not yet completed a full hands-on review, independent lab testing from HearAdvisor suggests the Delight delivers strong overall value for the price, with especially good performance for everyday conversations in quieter settings and better-than-expected music streaming. Its main trade-offs are more modest performance in noisy environments and slightly weaker feedback handling, but for budget-conscious shoppers who want a comfortable, app-connected, earbud-style hearing aid, the Delight is a promising option.

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.

Elehear Delight achieved a SoundScore of 4.3/5 and a SoundGrade of A in HearAdvisor lab testing. It ranked #9 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.

Elehear Delight have an IP67 rating, meaning they offer good protection against moisture and dust. They appear built from quality materials, with a unique rubber flange pull-tab, and come with a sleek robust 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.

Delight have a reported battery life of up to 13.5 hours per charge, which is on the lower end. The case offers up to 2 full additional charges which you can expect to take around 1.5 hours from a fully depleted battery.

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.

Delight are Bluetooth compatible with both iOS and Android devices, allowing for audio streaming and hands-free calling.

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.

The Elehear app has a user-friendly interface and modern, appealing design. It includes practical features like volume control and a tone balance from Brighter to Deeper. At this time, Delight are "preset-based", though you can get a more customized fit using their ElePro feature and their "Audiologist Plan" program.

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

I found Delight fairly comfortable with good ear retention. Be sure to test various ear tips to find optimal comfort and hearing benefit.

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.

Unlike other Elehear hearing aids, Delight offer a more modern earbud-like design. Their smaller size also means they are relatively discrete. One potential downside is that Delight are currently only available in a light-tan color.

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.

Elehear Delight has a value score of 5.0/5 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.

I did not run into any issues while using Delight and overall found the app, and Bluetooth connection, very stable. Delight hearing aids are ear specific, so be sure to get them oriented properly.

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.

Unlike many OTC devices, remote support from licensed audiologists is available through the ElePro app feature and follow-up email correspondence. It is not the same as direct in-person care, though it is a nice inclusion from Elehear.

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.