Sennheiser All-Day Clear Hearing Aid

Sennheiser offers two noteworthy devices in the burgeoning OTC hearing aid market: All Day Clear and the All Day Clear Slim. The acquisition of Sennheiser's consumer division by hearing giant Sonova has brought together a wealth of expertise and innovation, and these are the first real FDA-approved OTC hearing aids to emerge from this union.

All Day Clear and All Day Clear Slim were initially priced at $1400 and $1500 a pair, respectively. However, as this update is being written, they are both offered on the Sennheiser website for $1099 per pair. You can purchase these hearing aids directly online from Sennheiser, and they are also offered online and at Big Box retailers like Best Buy and Amazon.

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Technology Highlights

All Day Clear and the All Day Clear Slim represent a targeted effort to provide quality, accessible hearing aids for those with mild to moderate hearing loss. Notably, they incorporate features found in their prescription counterparts, reflecting a broader trend in the industry to bridge the gap between medical devices and consumer electronics.

One standout feature of these devices is their rechargeability, which despite seeming obvious in 2023, is not universal among OTC devices. Sennheiser's models distinguish themselves with a battery life promising 16 hours of operation on a three-hour charge.

Automation is another aspect worth mentioning. With a pedigree of 75 years in the hearing industry, Sonova's algorithms optimize dialogue and overall sound quality. "Intelligent Scene Detection" is especially intriguing, with its ability to adapt to the acoustic environment and provide optimal speech and music experiences. This is technology Sonova has mastered with AutoSense OS, found in its flagship Phonak products like Lumity.

Sennheiser's parent company, Sonova, is the largest hearing aid manufacturer in the world and distributes its Phonak and Unitron products through a large network of hearing care professionals. One advantage of buying these OTC hearing aids is you may be able to opt for Sennheiser's In-Clinic Care Package for an extra $250 (costs may vary depending on the provider). This gives you custom care from a licensed hearing care professional who can program and fine-tune the hearing aids to better suit your needs and assist you should they need servicing and maintenance.

What's the difference between the All-Day Clear and All-Day Clear Slim models?

The only substantial difference between the two models is All-Day Clear Slim has a more sleek design with an earbud-type receiver that sits outside the ear canal. In contrast, All-Day Clear has a design more akin to its prescription hearing aid counterparts, with the receiver nestling inside the ear canal.

You can listen to sound samples for the All-Day Clear Slim by using good-quality headphones and clicking on the Play buttons. The All-Day Clear receiver-in-canal OTC aid does not yet have sound samples available.

In general, receiver in canal style "open fit" hearing aids like All-Day Clear allow external sounds to be mixed with the amplified or processed sounds. This can be advantageous because they tend to mitigate the occlusion or "own voice" effect—a common complaint among hearing aid users—and provide you with a more "natural" sounding experience in many conversation settings.

However, a more "closed fit" earbud receiver-style like Slim has the advantage of preserving streamed audio fidelity when listening to music, podcasts, and other digital audio. So, if you're on the fence about choosing between the models, you may want to consider whether you'll be relying on the devices chiefly for hearing speech or listening to music and other streamed audio. Either model will work, but they may have tradeoffs in sound quality.

Using and controlling All-Day Clear and All-Day Slim OTC hearing aids

Other than the above, there is very little difference in the use and operation of All Day Clear and All-Day Clear Slim. They both feature:

• Two listening modes: Conversation in Quiet and Conversation in Noise
• Directional microphones for better listening in noise
• Onboard push-button controls for in-the-moment adjustments in addition to the All-Day Clear app
• Wind noise control
• Feedback management
• Made for All direct wireless connectivity with hands-free calling
• Provides active wireless connectivity with up to 2 devices
• Optional TV Connector accessory (see below)

Controlling the devices and the All-Day Clear app

Sennheiser All-Day Clear and Slim are intended to be completely automatic, adjusting to different sound scenes as you encounter them. However, they also have onboard push-button controls for turning the devices on/off, adjusting volume, changing sound modes, and accepting/rejecting phone calls.

The All-Day Clear App is essential for easy customization and setup of the device within minutes, according to Sennheiser. It's compatible with Bluetooth-enabled smartphones or tablets running at least iOS 14 or Android 8.0 (note that the app works on tablets but isn’t optimized for them).

During the setup, it will run you through a quick step-by-step process where your sound profile is configured for your degree of hearing loss. You will be asked to answer a couple of questions in the app based on a voice recording heard through your hearing aids. Your sound profile is then saved in the hearing aids and app, but you can also adjust it by navigating to the "My Sound Profile" screen for further changes. There is an equalizer that allows you to adjust for your preferred sound settings.

Sound modes are listed at the top of the sound control screen on the app. You can also change the volume and activate the wind noise reduction program, but once the hearing aids are restarted, these will return to their default settings.

If you opt for the In-Clinic Care Package, your hearing care provider will do all the programming of your hearing aids based on your audiogram for a more precise fitting. In this case, you'll forfeit the ability to change the sound profile; you can contact your hearing care professional for further adjustments.

Trial periods, warranty, and accessories

Sonova provides a 45-day risk-free trial, giving users time to assess their effectiveness and value. Both models are IP68 rated, which is the highest moisture and dirt resistance rating that hearing aids can obtain, so like most Sonova hearing aids, these are robust devices (still, we recommend you keep them out of the water). They come with a 1-year warranty, but the warranty is extended to 2 years if you opt for the In-Clinic Care package.

The hearing aids come with a standard charging unit. With a 3-hour charging time, they should give you 16 hours of use, including 2-3 hours of steaming, depending on your usage (e.g., time spent in complex listening environments, age of devices, etc.). The charger has LED indicator lights that turn from solid green to orange to red to let you know if they're 100%, 11-80%, or under 10% charged, respectively.

Sennheiser also offers its TV Connector accessory, which as the name implies, allows you to stream stereo sound to your hearing aids from your TV, stereo system, or other compatible device from up to 45 feet away. It features a plug-and-play set-up and is sold separately for $350.

Increasing accessibility and affordability in hearing aids

While the impact of All-Day Clear and All-Day Slim on the market will only become evident with time, they certainly represent an intriguing development in the OTC hearing aid space. These appear to be high-quality, well-made hearing aids that should be able to help those with mild to moderate hearing loss. For more information, you can view my above video and also look at the HearAdvisor scores and sound samples for the All-Day Clear Slim in the sidebar at the top right of this page.

It should be noted that Sennheiser also offers the Conversation Clear Plus, which is not an FDA-approved hearing aid but is instead a kind of hybrid earbud with some very similar hearing aid functionality (i.e., a "hearable") for $850 per pair.