Hearing Aid Styles
Choosing a Style That You Will Actually Wear
The best device is the one that stays in your ear. Advanced EARGEAR fits every hearing aid style in Akron, OH and at our Newark, Newcomerstown, and Zanesville offices, from behind-the-ear models built for serious amplification down to invisible-in-canal devices nobody will notice. Because we work across all major manufacturers, the style comes from your ear canal and your hearing loss.
Which Style Suits Your Hearing and Your Hands
Style choice comes down to four things: how much hearing loss you have, the size and shape of your ear canal, how well you handle small objects, and how visible you are willing to let the device be.
Receiver-in-Canal (RIC)
The style most patients end up choosing. A small housing tucks behind the ear and feeds sound down a thin wire to a speaker sitting in the canal. RIC devices stay light and low-profile while leaving room for rechargeable batteries and wireless streaming, and they cover mild through severe hearing loss. If you want performance without announcing the device to everyone you meet, start here.
Behind-the-Ear (BTE)
The workhorse. The full housing sits behind the ear and sends sound through a tube into a custom earmold or dome, which is why BTE devices deliver the most amplification and the longest battery life of any style. They handle moderate through profound loss, support wireless streaming, and their larger size makes them considerably easier to pick up, insert, and clean.
In-the-Ear (ITE)
Custom-molded from an impression of your ear to fill the outer bowl, ITE aids suit mild through severe loss. The shell is large enough to grip properly, which matters a great deal if arthritis or reduced sensation makes small devices frustrating. There is also room inside for volume controls, directional microphones, wireless connectivity, and rechargeable cells.
In-the-Canal (ITC)
Also custom-made, ITC aids sit partly down inside the canal, so they read as noticeably smaller than an ITE without giving up directional microphones or wireless features. They work well for mild to moderate loss and land in a useful middle ground for patients who want something discreet while keeping manual controls they can find by touch.
Completely-in-Canal (CIC)
A CIC device sits wholly inside the canal, with nothing showing but a small handle at the opening for removal. It is a common pick for mild to moderate loss when appearance is the deciding factor. The compact housing does place limits on features and battery size, though plenty of current CIC models still manage wireless connectivity.
Invisible-in-Canal (IIC)
The smallest hearing aid made. An IIC device seats deep in the canal and is effectively undetectable, removed each day by a short pull string. It suits mild to moderate loss. Candidacy depends entirely on the dimensions of your canal, which we confirm during your assessment before recommending one. When discretion is your first priority, this is the style to ask about.
We Don't Let Hearing Aids End Up in a Drawer
Plenty of hearing aids get sold. Fewer get worn. Advanced EARGEAR has spent 20 years closing that gap, starting every patient with a full audiometric assessment and a conversation about what they actually need to hear at home and at work. We verify the fit, adjust as your hearing changes, and service your devices at every one of our Ohio offices, whatever brand you wear and wherever you bought it.
Ready to Hear Better? Book Your Evaluation Today
Full audiometric assessments, all major brands, and complete service in Akron, Newark, Newcomerstown, and Zanesville.
Serving Central & Northeast Ohio
Our Locations
Hearing care close to home across central and northeast Ohio. Every office offers complete hearing testing, hearing aid fittings, and repairs.
- (330) 785-0800
- advancedeargear@gmail.com
- Fax: (330) 785-0802
- 100+ years of combined team experience
- Serving Ohio families since 2006
- Medicare, major insurance, and most managed care accepted
“Honesty and integrity from a family owned business that genuinely cares. They took the time to explain every option instead of pushing the most expensive one, and I hear my grandkids clearly again.”— Facebook recommendation · 100% recommend
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Hearing Aid Styles FAQs
Questions we field about hearing aid styles at our Ohio offices: which sit deepest in the canal, which come rechargeable, and how we match a style to your ears.
Invisible-in-canal (IIC) devices sit the deepest, followed by completely-in-canal (CIC) models. Both disappear almost entirely once seated, with just a small removal handle showing at the canal opening. They suit mild to moderate hearing loss.
The trade-off is physical space. A housing that small leaves little room for directional microphones, aggressive noise management, or a battery that lasts more than a few days. Ear canal anatomy also rules some people out, which we can only determine by looking. ITC and ITE styles sit higher and are easier to grip, handle more amplification, and take larger or rechargeable batteries. Call Akron at (330) 785-0800 to find out which styles your ears can take, or ring the office closest to you.
Not quite every style, but most of them. Rechargeable options are widely available in RIC, BTE, and ITE devices across the manufacturers we work with, and ITC models are starting to appear as cells get smaller. CIC and IIC housings are still too tight to hold a rechargeable cell, so those run on disposable zinc-air batteries.
For anyone with arthritis, tremor, or fading eyesight, a rechargeable RIC removes the fiddliest part of daily hearing aid ownership. Drop them on the charger overnight and they are ready in the morning. Our hearing aid batteries page compares both approaches, or call Akron at (330) 785-0800, with our other three numbers on the locations page.
Wireless streaming needs an antenna and a radio, which means the larger styles get it first. RIC and BTE devices carry Bluetooth almost universally now, many ITE models do, and support thins out as the housings shrink toward CIC and IIC.
Auracast is newer and narrower. Only about three major manufacturers currently build it into hearing aids, so if broadcast audio in theaters, meeting rooms, or classrooms matters to you, that shortens the list of styles worth considering. We install Auracast systems as well as fit the devices, so we can tell you what is realistic today. Call Akron at (330) 785-0800, or pick the office nearest you.
Style selection is a clinical call, not a sales pitch. We start from your audiogram, because the degree and configuration of your loss rules some styles in and others out immediately. Then we look at your ears, since canal size and shape decide whether the smallest devices are even possible for you.
After that it is about your life. Where do you struggle to hear, how are your hands, how much do you care whether people notice, and what can you spend. Our team has been fitting hearing aids in Ohio since 2006, with over 100 years of combined experience between us, and we would rather you understand the trade-offs than trust us blindly. Call Akron at (330) 785-0800 or any of our four Ohio offices.