Leading Swiss hearing aid manufacturer Phonak have introduced an all new high-performance chipset, Spice, to their latest range of hearing aids. The new Spice Generation chipset from Phonak sets a new benchmark in hearing aid microchip technology and promises great benefits to hearing aid wearers all over the world.

So what's new?

Hearing aids with the new chipset have faster processing power, higher capacity and larger memory.  Better still, the chipset is the smallest ever developed by Phonak - allowing a whole host of features and benefits to be packed into even the smallest of hearing aids.

What does that mean for the hearing aid wearer?

Simply put the combination of all this technology enables features to be built into the hearing aids to make clear hearing possible in situations where it was impossible in the past. The new Spice Generation features a variety of breakthrough innovations to give hearing aid wearers more natural, clearer hearing.

With the new hearing aid feature, 'Stereozoom' four microphones placed on the hearing aid create a focused beam to the front of the hearing aid wearer allowing them to 'zoom' in on a single voice while suppressing all other interfering background noise.

Another feature, 'auto ZoomControl' effectively 'scans'  the environment for  the direction of the dominant speech source and automatically selects it whether it is coming from in front of the wearer, from behind, or from the left or right. That means the wearer no longer has to be facing the speaker in order to hear and understand them. A real benefit on car journeys when passengers are sat in the back.

'DuoPhone' is another new feature that makes understanding on the phone simple and stress free by picking up the sound from the ear held to the receiver and streaming it through both hearing aids - and therefore both ears! 'Duophone' is easy and convenient and launches as soon as the conversation starts.

Not just a good looking hearing aid

Just looking good is not quite enough for Phonak: The new Spice Generation products are designed to look great but also offer easy handling and wearing comfort. The new behind the ear hearing aids are 20-30% smaller than their predecessors and when on the ear are hardly noticeable.

In addition, all gaps in the housings have been reduced to a minimum to protect the instrument against moisture and debris, guaranteeing maximum reliability. The nano-coating ensures moisture pearls off without entering the housing, while a new microphone protection screen provides the best possible protection without clogging. That can mean greater reliability, better performance and longer life of the hearing aid.

"Our platform strategy is clearly the driving force of our innovation leadership, enabling us to create the products that our clients need to fully hear all the soundscapes of the world. I am very proud of our latest high-tech wonder, the Spice chipset, which will, without a doubt 'spice' up our clients' lives", says Valentin Chapero, CEO of Phonak