Need Phone Recommendation for myPhonak and I-90 Sphere

Phonak is not compliant with the mfi (made for iphone) standard, so it won’t be able to exploit the mfi features of the apple ecosystem. I think that removes some of the advantages HT gives to the iphone 17 and may put the Pixel or Galaxy S ahead of the 17.

If the 10a doesn’t do Auracast, that’s a mark against it and the S25/S26.

I too was shocked to see an Apple at the top and ahead of Pixels…

I ordered the ‘my next phone’ list according to my personal circumstances (My present phone is a Samsung Android phone, the new phone has to control Phonak I-90 Sphere, Phonak TV Connector, and Phonak PartnerMic. I don’t/won’t have a big use for Auracast)

So here goes, my ordered list with a few comments of mine:

1. Google Pixel 10a
   Simpler transition from Samsung Android to Google Android for me, see item #2. I prefer the simplicity of Pixel over the ‘richness’ of Galaxy
   $679.99 in Canadian funds, cheapest option in the list, partly because this phone is not a flagship phone like the two others below. However, this phone does pass the compatibility test in Hearing Aid Phone Compatibility | Phonak6

2. Apple iPhone 17
   Bigger transition from Android to iOS for me, but I used to have Apple computers, I like the ‘it just works’ ecosystem
   $1,129.00 in Canadian funds, mid $ option in the list

3. Samsung Galaxy S26
   Simplest transition from Samsung Android to Samsung Android for me
   $1,2499.99 in Canadian funds, most expensive option in the list
   There is a caution in Hearing Aid Phone Compatibility | Phonak “Bluetooth hearing aid connection issues after updating to Android / One UI 6.x?”

You may have different phones, different needs/preferences and different cautions, so your ordered shortlist will likely be different, but I hope my ordered shortlist will be useful for others

I didn’t find the iphone I had (SE 2022) to just work.

It would work for a while. Then an update would break it to some extent. Then after of couple of iterations, a new update would fix it - until another update would break it.

Of course, Google updates aren’t perfect; nor is their documentation.

Between Google, Apple, and Samsung, it’s six of one, half dozen of the others as far as ‘just working’ goes, at least in my experience.

I mean … LE Audio is still marked ‘experimental’ by Google!

I have an iPhone 14 pro and Phonak i90 Spheres. Even after deleting the app and reinstalling, I get minor problems. For example, my right aid just rebooted itself for no reason while I was reading this thread. This typically gets worse every time either Phonak or Apple does an update, until I’ve done the unpair, reinstall, pair dance.

The Spheres are so much better for me than anything else I’ve tried that I am prepared to put up with the minor annoyances with Bluetooth.

Have you thought about looking for a used iPhone? If you buy a new Android or Apple phone, make sure you can return it within a reasonable time if it doesn’t work for you.

Thanks for your reply. I understand that I need a new phone. What I don’t get is why Phonak cant seem to tell me what OS they will be supporting.

Thanks for the reply. I am looking at buying a used phone that fits my budget, but I want one that can handle what ever Phonak supports . I don’t want to buy an older phone just to find out it isn’t supported. I can’t find out from Phonak what OS versions they support.

Samsung Flip 6 user. Works perfect with Phonak app and on the phone

Just info:

I have Sphere (updated) I70s, a Galaxy S22 (“old” now), and a PartnerMic.

All work well together. The PartnerMic is curious in that aside from Automatic, rather than a separate section to itself, ALL the other classes (TV, Restaurant, Music) defaulted to “PartnerMic + mic” - but when I just tried to duplicate that, only the segment I’d asked for displayed that function/name - and when I’d switch to another, with the PM enabled, it (the PM) didn’t play in that segment.

Closing/swiping-away the myPhonak and reopening it removed the PM. Re-opening myPhonak showed the PM + line, but restored all 4 basic functions un-PM’d.

So, apparently, if I’m ‘out of’ (I’ve not started up) myPhonak, and turn on the PM, it will make a separate program as did the Beltones’ HearMax I used to use with those aids and the PalPro mic.

As to your new phone, I’d ask for a demo to make sure you were comfortable, but I have little doubt that Samsung’s phones would work for you.

I’m using Phonak i90s with an iPhone, and for me the key issue has not just been “better Bluetooth,” but how call audio is routed. When my hearing-aid microphones handled my outgoing voice, speech in noise was not nearly as clear. But when I set it so that incoming audio still goes to the hearing aids while the outgoing voice uses the iPhone’s microphone, call clarity improved a lot because the iPhone’s own voice processing/noise suppression worked better.

So in my case, iPhone has been a good experience with Phonak. I also would not assume that myPhonak app behaviorand overall phone/call performance are exactly the same issue. The app can misbehave, yet the day-to-day calling experience can still be good when the routing is set correctly.

So to your exact question: yes, moving to iPhone was worthwhile in my experience with Phonak i90s. But if you want certainty about the full combination of iPhone + hearing aids + TV streamer + PartnerMic all together, I’d still want to hear from someone using that exact setup before spending money solely on that assumption. –Written with ChatGPT’s help, based on my own experience.

@hearingMac Your post inspired me to look at audio paths for incoming and outgoing calls with Phonak HAs, thanks! According to ChatGPT, the default audio paths are the same for iPhones and Android phones.

For incoming calls, the default audio path is phone streams to Phonak HA which is good.

For outgoing calls, the default audio path is the Phonak HA mic streams to phone. Audio quality can be improved if the audio path for outgoing calls uses the phone mic (instead of the Phonak HA mic) and there are workarounds to do just that (use phone mic for outgoing calls) for both iPhone and Android phones, see below.

I hope that the workarounds below are useful for other Phonak HA users, whether they use iPhone or Android phones.

Yes—there are a few practical ways to force your phone to use its own microphone instead of your Phonak hearing aids for outgoing calls.

The simplest workaround (works on both iPhone & Android)

Manually switch audio source during a call

1. Start or answer a call

2. Tap the Audio (or speaker) button on the call screen

3. Select Phone (or “Handset”) instead of your hearing aids

This keeps audio playing through the phone speaker/earpiece and uses the phone’s built-in mic.

iPhone-specific options

Change the default call audio routing

On Apple iPhone:

• Go to Settings → Accessibility → Touch → Call Audio Routing

• Set it to Automatic or Speaker

This can help, but note:

• If your Phonak aids are actively connected, iOS often still treats them as a headset and prioritizes them

Temporarily disable Bluetooth (quick toggle)

• Turn off Bluetooth before making the call

• Or disconnect the hearing aids from Control Center

This forces:

• Mic = phone

• Audio = phone

Then reconnect afterward.

Android-specific options

Change call audio output

On Android:

• During a call, tap Audio source

• Choose Phone instead of Bluetooth

Disable “Calls” for the hearing aids

In Bluetooth settings:

1. Go to paired devices

2. Tap your Phonak hearing aids

3. Toggle off Calls (leave media on if you want)

Result:

• Calls use phone mic + speaker

• You can still stream audio if supported

A more “set-and-forget” workaround

Use speakerphone deliberately

• Turn on Speaker during calls

• Hold phone normally or slightly away

This ensures:

• Mic = phone

• Audio = phone speaker

Important limitation

Phonak devices are designed to behave like a Bluetooth headset, so:

• Phones prefer using their microphones during calls

• There’s no universal “always use phone mic but still send audio to hearing aids” toggle

That hybrid mode (hearing aids for audio, phone mic for input) is not reliably supported across devices.

Bottom line

• You can use the phone mic—but usually by switching audio away from Bluetooth

• You generally can’t keep audio in hearing aids and force the phone mic at the same time (without disconnecting or tweaking per-call)