Oticon's Zeal Raises the Bar for In-the-Ear Hearing Aids-and the Price

"Oticon, a subsidiary of Danish hearing support company Demant, markets a substantial collection of behind-the-ear hearing aids with the traditional teardrop-and-wire design. Now, with the Oticon Zeal, it's making a big move to a much more discreet in-the-ear design, an entirely new category for the manufacturer. (Oticon's other line of in-the-ear devices is all custom-fit hearing aids that sit deep inside the ear canal.)"

"Like the Phonak Virto R Infinio hearing aids, the Oticon Zeal are designed to all but disappear when worn, fitting neatly into the ear canal with no protruding components. But unlike the Virto R, the Zeal is not a custom-fit design. With these, it's one size fits all, save for your choice of ear tips that affix to the end of the lengthy tube-like structure that pushes the receiver as far as possible into the ear canal."

Oticon Zeal are ultra-small, 1.68-gram, non-custom in-the-ear prescription hearing aids designed to sit deep in the ear canal with minimal visibility. The devices deliver comfortable, balanced hearing support with good streaming quality and solid battery life. The design uses a tube-like receiver tip with interchangeable ear tips and a curved rear wire that functions as both a retention lock and a wireless antenna. The aids can be difficult to insert and retain in the ear for some users, and the tap control system is prone to misfires. The products are priced very high, especially given the non-custom fit.

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