My Phonak Sphere Infinio I90 vs Lumity L90 Shootout

GLAD you are getting a replacement aid. I have to ask: does the Sphere make the same “water-resistent” claim as the Lumity Life? I read (perhaps here at the forum) that Phonak can no longer call the Lumity Life aids “waterproof”, but was thinking the Spheres would be more “water-resistent” than my 312s. I fried the right one after a workout at the gym, so I guess I should only wear one of the rechargeables I have in future for workouts.

@1Bluejay said:

I have to ask: does the Sphere make the same “water-resistent” claim as the Lumity Life?

The user manual for the Infinio Sphere hearing aids states:

Ingress Protection Rating. IP68 rating
indicates that the hearing aid is water and
dust resistant. It survived continuous
immersion in 1 meter of fresh water for 60
minutes and 8 hours in a dust chamber as
per the IEC 60529 standard.

and then says:

These hearing aids are water resistant. They are designed to
withstand normal activities and occasional accidental
exposure to extreme conditions. Phonak hearing aids are
not specifically designed for extended periods of water
submersion on a continual basis, that is worn in activities
such as swimming or bathing. Always remove your hearing
aid before these activities, as the hearing aid contains
sensitive electronic parts.

Jordan

This could make the difference for me whether or not to pursue CI since hearing speech in noise is the most difficult. Other manufacturers may also use this technology and then the price could be lower.

Do you have to use the program or can you change to noise reduction setting by clicking a button on the aids to change the program? In other words, I don’t use the app with Phonak. My audiologist set up my ha so I can click the button on the side of the hearing aid to change a program to telephone, directional microphone, etc.

THIS!
These hearing aids are water resistant. They are designed to
withstand normal activities and occasional accidental
exposure to extreme conditions. Phonak hearing aids are
not specifically designed for extended periods of water
submersion on a continual basis, that is worn in activities
such as swimming or bathing. Always remove your hearing
aid before these activities, as the hearing aid contains
sensitive electronic parts.

'Bout time they got called on the carpet to explain themselves.

@1Bluejay said:

I’d actually deleted myPhonak app cuz I got frustrated when I couldn’t rename programs on it.

You can. For a long time now.

I was trying to rename the MAIN programs in myRoger (that I thought I’d read could only be set up by my audi?). I guess my question for you (or my audi) is: are there set programs in myRoger that I can NOT change the names of? I’d wanted to tinker with the adjustments on “Restaurant” then name it “Speech in Loud Noise” to override the one myRoger was loaded with. I wasn’t able to do that.

I’m thinking that’s cuz the “Speech in Loud Noise” already on myRoger was set up by my audi and reflects that dedicated program on my aids (which is right after Default in the lineup on my aids). It gets confusing …

Posting another update.

Not much new to report. I am consistently going to bed at night with about 60%-65% of the rechargeable battery remaining after 16 hours of use and 3-4 hours of streaming a day. The Spheric noise reduction turns on/off quite well as you enter or leave a noisy place. Brief use of the automatic Sphere noise program doesn’t seem to impact battery life too much and the only indication you have that it has turned on is that voices suddenly get really sharp and the background sounds drop in volume and sound weird.

I headed over to the Apple Store this afternoon at the local shopping mall to pickup a new iPhone case for the iPhone 16 Pro Max I pre-ordered. The Apple Store has always been a horribly noisy place for hearing aid users as there are typically hundreds of people milling around, tons of different conversations going on and the whole store is tile floors, glass doors, wooden tables, etc. Today was the first time that I can ever remember being able to hear clearly in the Apple Store. I actually got confused a few times because someone behind me started talking to an Apple Store associate and their voice was so loud and clear that it kinda startled me. I had to turn around to see where the voices were coming from and lo and behold, they were talking at the table that was six feet behind me. So strange to be able to hear like this again in noisy places. It’s a bit weird and disorienting at times.

I’m going to test the Sphere’s on Sunday at a wedding and I still have to figure out a day to see a movie at the cinema. Still very satisfied with these hearing aids. No real downside except the the cost

Jordan

@AshFan said:

As you are in Canada , out of curiosity how much the sphere cost !

I just turned in a demo pair of l90s to a retailer - who are owned by Sonova, the CAN distributors of Phonax it would seem. Their price - with a CAA discount is a blistering $8190 CAN!

I hope so but I will need the HA to hear the flight attendant

@To_be_determined said:

with a CAA discount is a blistering $8190 CAN!

Truely outrageous pricing there, but your not alone, in most countries this is standard practice, thank god for Costco!

Can that 70dB threshold where the Spheres switch into Spheric mode be adjusted by the audi to where it switches at a higher or lower threshold?

I really don’t understand these prices. There are people selling new I90s on eBay for $3800 within the US and $3000 shipped from Europe.

Shopping outside of your home market can lead to difficulties if you ever need service. Warranties are usually only valid in the country of purchase, so if it breaks you take it back there – wherever there is. And even paid-for service and parts can be denied at the local distributor’s whim. Further, local government rebates (like Ontario’s $500 per ear) will undoubtedly be denied for an out-of-province purchase. Things to think about . . .

I’m not saying people should buy them on eBay, though it’s a good option for some. I’m saying that if eBay sellers based in the US are making a comfortable profit by selling them at $3800, prices nearly double that amount are way past what a reasonable markup would be.