The new Oticon Play PX hearing aids have a groundbreaking new paediatric platform designed to develop as children grow, providing help for young brains to handle sound and also support for more natural development of the auditory system.

Copenhagen, Denmark, 11th February, 2022. Oticon is pleased to announce that it is introducing the award winning hearing technologies of Oticon More™ into paediatric hearing aids. The new Oticon Play PX family are the world’s first hearing aids for children with an on-board Deep Neural Network (DNN). Trained with 12 million sound scenes from real-life, this intelligent DNN has learned to recognize sounds through experience, just like how a child’s brain does. Thanks to the DNN technology, children with hearing loss are provided access to the entire sound scene and a closer-to-natural listening experience.

A variety of meaningful sound is important for the development of a child’s auditory system and Oticon Play PX hearing aids have been developed to provide just that. Ensuring that children have access to the entire sound scene in any environment while controlling noise, Oticon Play PX helps support children’s brains to both handle sound and hear naturally. Oticon has optimised the revolutionary technology of Oticon More™, adapting the premium hearing technology that adults have access to, specifically for children. Oticon’s Genie 2 software features pre-set fitting options for children according to age which also take a child’s growth into account, so that Oticon Play PX can help support every stage of a child’s hearing system as it develops.

“At Oticon, we know that children with hearing loss need access to all relevant sounds in the rich sound scenes they grow up in, and our latest paediatric hearing aids have been developed to do just that,” says Thomas Behrens, Chief of Audiology, Oticon. “The experiences children have as they grow rapidly through childhood to adolescence play a vital role in stimulating the brain and supporting development of important skills and cognitive function. Without full access to the world around them and communication, children with hearing loss lack sufficient sensory input, which is why we are offering children the new approach to sound processing delivered by our innovative MoreSound technologies. With the best technology available from Oticon, and adapted according to age, children are better supported to learn and meet developmental targets at a pace on par with their peers.”

Powerful evidence

Recent independent research shows that in order for children to grow, develop and mature, they need optimal access to all relevant sounds. The research highlights that noisy and complex everyday environments can be a challenge for children with hearing loss, limiting their access to important sound information, which is why providing effective help for children with hearing loss is so crucial. A new study by Oticon demonstrates that Oticon Play PX makes sound from all directions clearer for speech recognition and recall than hearing aids using traditional and OMNI directional hearing technology. Notably, in some conditions, speech recognition and recall, even in noisy environments, can be similar to the normal hearing range. By giving children’s brains access to the full sound environment in a more natural way, therefore improving their access to communication and promoting participation in everyday listening environments, Oticon Play PX provides optimal support for language, learning, emotional and social development.

The latest technology from Oticon

Oticon Play PX is powered by Polaris™, a powerful platform featuring the new MoreSound Intelligence™, MoreSound Amplifier™ and MoreSound Optimizer ™. Together, these technologies ensure children can enjoy a more natural representation of all sounds in a clear and complete sound scene with fine contrast and balance between sounds, and optimal, stable amplification which is comfortable and much less likely to cause feedback when children are playing, hugging and interacting.

Next generation connectivity

• Oticon Play PX is supported by EduMic, the remote microphone system built for educational settings.
• With Oticon Play PX children can wirelessly stream from their favourite iPhone® and Android™ devices, including their favourite music, which sounds better than ever before thanks to the award-winning MyMusic programme by Oticon.

Oticon Play PX is available in a variety of colours. The new paediatric hearing aid family features two BTE styles and two miniRITE styles, including two rechargeable styles which provide power for a full day. The child-friendly designs are robust and provide comfort and safety in children’s active lives. See below for further information on Oticon Play PX and the revolutionary MoreSound hearing technologies inside which will help children be part of every moment and feel confident to participate.

About Oticon

500 million people worldwide suffer from hearing loss. The majority are over the age of 50 while eight percent are under the age of 18. Oticon's vision is to create a world where people are no longer limited by hearing loss. A world where hearing aids fit seamlessly into life and help people realise their full potential, while avoiding the health consequences of hearing loss. Oticon develops and manufactures hearing aids for both adults and children and supports every kind of hearing loss from mild to profound and we pride ourselves on developing some of the most innovative hearing aids in the market. Headquartered in Denmark, we are a global company and part of Demant with more than 16,500 employees and revenues of around DKK 15 billion. Changing technology. Changing conventions. Changing lives. Oticon – Life-changing hearing technology.