Elehear Delight OTC Hearing Aids Review

About Elehear Delight OTC hearing aids

• Self-fitting or preset: Preset
• Warranty: 1-year limited warranty
• Battery life: Up to 13.5 hours per charge (hearing aid mode only), or up to 40.5 hours with battery case
• Battery or rechargeable: Rechargeable
• FDA status: FDA-registered status for OTC hearing aids
• HFA-FOG50 (Gain): 35±5 dB
• AI noise reduction: Max 24 dB
• Frequency range: 125Hz–7000Hz
• Connection: Bluetooth 5.3 (music streaming & phone calls)
• Hearing aid weight: 3.5g
• Soft speech enhancement: Yes
• Microphone: 1 microphone per hearing aid
• Hearing aid dimensions: 0.93 x 0.73 x 0.62 inches

Charging case:

• Single charge: Up to 13.5 hours of runtime (hearing aid mode only)
• Battery capacity: 60mAh (hearing aids), 400mAh (charging box)
• Charging box usage time: 2 extra charges
• Charging case weight: 51g
• Charging case dimensions: 2.95 x 1.37 x 1.10 inches

At $299—or as low as $269 with a coupon—the Delight is half the cost of the $599 Beyond Pro.

How we tested

We tested the Elehear Delights for more than a week, primarily on an iPhone (specifically, iPhone 17 Pro Max) and an Android-based Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra. We also tested without a phone, walking around the neighborhood wearing them as a standalone sound solution. As with our reviews of the Elehear Beyond OTC hearing aids and the Elehear Beyond Pro OTC hearing aids, it's important to experience everything like a consumer would—from unboxing and setup to testing performance (in multiple environments and with varying content) and assessing comfort and battery life.

We evaluated performance based on conversing with others in person and over the phone (via Bluetooth), general audio quality across different environments (such as a noisy indoor mall), listening to TV programming, and streaming music and podcasts via a smartphone.

We noted impressions over the course of nine days and communicated some questions to the company about halfway through testing.

What we like

Elehear nails the design

The most impressive part of this product is also the first one you'll notice: Elehear Delight looks like earbuds, not hearing aids.

Unlike Elehear's previous models, which have large-ish shells that wrap around the back of the ear, the Delight is small, like regular earbuds that fit completely inside the ear. For comparison, the dimensions of the hearing aid are smaller than Apple's trendy AirPods Pro without the stem. Because they look like consumer earbuds, most people will naturally assume these aren't hearing aids, thus eliminating potential stigma.

In the box, you also get an assortment of silicone tips to suit varying ear sizes and fit/comfort preferences. This is especially ideal, as these hearing aids are designed for people with active lifestyles, including IP67 support, which means high-level resistance to heavy sweat and rain (but not for swimming or submersion in a pool or bath).

Small earbuds are also great for portability, plus the charging case is small, too, especially compared to the Elehear Beyond Pro.

Its price offers an exceptional value

Prior to the widespread availability of over-the-counter (OTC) hearing aids—officially approved by the FDA in August 2022 and on shelves that October—the average pair of prescription hearing aids ran between $2,000 and $7,000, not counting diagnosis and fitting costs. The ability to skip the doctor's visit didn't just simplify the process; it opened the door for a wave of more affordable options. Early OTC pricing was all over the map, with pairs ranging anywhere from a couple hundred dollars to well over $1,500. Fast-forward to today, and the Elehear Delight at just $299 feels remarkable—roughly the same price as Apple's AirPods Pro 3, which now include an FDA-cleared hearing aid feature of their own.

Its app has all the features you'd need

As with its predecessors, once the Elehear Delight hearing aids are connected to your mobile device, the companion app lets you tweak volume per ear, tune for phone call enhancements, adjust noise control and environmental settings, see battery life per hearing aid, and select music-related adjustments (like bass and treble), to name a few handy features.

Like the Beyond Pros, you can take a hearing test in the app and tap to share your hearing results with Elehear's licensed audiologist for remote adjustment, which you'll see about 24 hours later (and you'll receive a notification once the results are ready). An underrated feature: you can play and fuse white noise and soundscape options for those affected by tinnitus, the perception of sound in your ears—like ringing, buzzing, or hissing—without an external source causing it. Our favorite combination was heavy rain with a thunderstorm (and frogs!). There are 26 options you can mix and match.

The Elehear app and hearing aids also translate up to 20 languages as you converse (compared to 11 languages the last time we tested this feature). Simply select your native language in the app, and the language of the person you're chatting with, and these hearing aids will translate complete sentences as you converse.

It works fairly well—but the voice you hear in your earbuds is robotic compared to the far more human-sounding voices in other solutions, including Apple and Google.

Battery life is still solid

Despite the major reduction in the size of the hearing aids (and the carrying case), the battery life of the Elehear Delight remains impressive at up to 14 hours per charge.

Note: This was in Hearing Aid Mode, which disables Bluetooth streaming to extend battery life, for when you don't need to listen to music or podcasts (or other audio) or take calls for a while. In the app, you can toggle back to the full-functioning Headset Mode, with a battery cap of about 10 hours. But remember, the included portable charging case offers two additional full charges, providing up to 40-odd hours of use before it requires recharging.

What we don't like

Clarity and frequency fall short

Perhaps it won't surprise you to learn $299 hearing aids lag behind a pair that's twice the price—even from the same company. While the Elehear Delight is a comfortable, budget-friendly, and discreet in-ear model with solid overall performance, the Beyond Pro is the company's premium flagship model, providing much clearer speech and superior sound processing in our testing last year.

Even on paper, the numbers support our anecdotal experience. The frequency range is broader on the Beyond Pro (125Hz–8,500Hz) than on the Delight (125Hz–7,000Hz)—meaning it captures a wider range of sounds, improving speech understanding (especially in noisy spaces).

Elehear Delights are still capable—but they trail Elehear's other model.

We experienced setup issues

As shared with Elehear, there was an initial hiccup when pairing the hearing aids to the phone for the first time.

On the iPhone 17 Pro Max, the app found the hearing aids without issue via Bluetooth, but we weren't able to stream audio. That is, the hearing aids worked on their own, but the audio from a test phone call did not come through. Same with playback from a YouTube video, Spotify song, and podcast.

I then disconnected the Bluetooth connection and launched the Elehear app on an Android-based Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra, to which they immediately found the Delight and prompted me to download a firmware update for the hearing aids. While the firmware update stopped a couple of times and required a restart (from scratch), it eventually completed. At this point, they were connected to the iPhone again, and the streaming audio worked.

I'm fortunate as a tech reviewer to have both devices on my desk, but what about iPhone owners who couldn't jump through the same hoops to get these hearing aids to work? Elehear said they were unaware of the issue but seemed grateful the feedback was shared.

Placing the hearing aids in the case properly is tricky

Placing the hearing aids back in the charging case proved to be another issue.

We found it can be tough to line up the teeny sensors on the right and left hearing aids with the correct sensors in the case, so they can magnetically lock into position (thus, allowing you to close the lid). The trick is to hold the wing and drop it into each side, just so. But because they're so small, they often drop into the case at the wrong angle, and you need to move them around to lock them in place (while also hearing that annoying high-pitched hearing-aid feedback as the buds get too close to one another).

Now, I'm a 55-year-old without any dexterity challenges, like tremors, but I still had a bit of a challenge getting it right every time. If you're buying these for someone with shaky hands, you may want to think twice.

Warranty

Elehear Delight hearing aids feature a one-year manufacturer's warranty.

Should you buy the Elehear Delight?

Yes, it offers an excellent value for someone with mild hearing loss

Despite the audio quality not being on par with Elehear's Beyond Pro hearing aids, and a couple of other shortcomings, Elehear Delight hearing aids (available at Amazon for $299.00) are an excellent consideration for those who want a small size and a small price. For mild to moderate hearing loss, this pair offers solid everyday performance, and the app includes a ton of features, like testing, audiologist feedback, language translation, and tinnitus masking.

Choose the Delights for superior comfort, a discreet in-ear form factor, and active use (including a more weather- and sweat-resistant design). Those with a bigger budget who don't mind the larger shell that sits behind the ear should opt for the more powerful Beyond Pro (and with better battery life, too).

Both devices are FDA-registered and provide excellent value, but the Pro model is superior for high-fidelity audio and complex listening environments.