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ReSound announced ReSound Sensia in August 2026, and if you wear ReSound Vivia, it is your natural next step. Sensia keeps what Vivia wearers already like, from the discreet microRIE to the ReSound Smart 3D app, and adds what most people want from their hearing aids: help in noise that switches itself on, with the Sensia 9 microRIE.
I have fitted ReSound hearing aids for more than twenty years. This guide sets out, level by level, what you gain by moving from Vivia to Sensia, drawn from ReSound’s UK datasheets and brochures and from what GN’s engineers said at the launch.
What Is New in ReSound Sensia?
Sensia's big step is automation. On the Sensia 9 microRIE, Intelligent All-Around listens to the room and brings in a four-microphone beam and the deep neural network by itself whenever speech meets noise. On Vivia, the noise help sits in a programme you have to remember to switch on.
ReSound calls the new approach Intelligent All-Around, available on the Sensia 9 microRIE, and describes it in three steps:
- Sense. AcoustIQ, ReSound’s system for recognising the listening situation, reads how loud the room is, where the speech is coming from and how much noise surrounds it, then decides what help to bring in.
- Focus. Four microphones across the pair act as one beam that faces the way you face, so you follow a conversation by looking at the person. In moderate noise ReSound’s Better Ear step aims the beam on the noisier side only; in loud noise both aids focus forward.
- Engage. Intelligent Noise Tracker, ReSound’s deep neural network, keeps the voice in front of you forward and softens the clatter behind and beside it.
Why does that matter if your Vivia already has a noise programme? Because a programme only helps when you remember to switch it on. On the Sensia 9 microRIE, AcoustIQ brings the deep neural network in by itself whenever speech meets noise, and holds back in quiet, so the help is there in the restaurant, the meeting and the family gathering without a tap. GN’s engineers said exactly this at the launch: the network is largely the same as on Vivia, and the big change is how and when it engages. Our guide to AI in hearing aids explains the technology itself.
Smooth, not sudden. ReSound says the system waits about a minute to confirm it is hearing speech in noise before it applies its strongest processing, and keeps the low tones open while it narrows the middle ones, so the change feels gradual, never abrupt. Music stays a programme you choose, by ReSound’s design.
Which Sensia models have it. Intelligent All-Around is ReSound’s top experience, on the Sensia 9 in the rechargeable microRIE style. The Sensia 7 microRIE brings the same deep neural network a level lower than Vivia offered it, as a programme you switch on. The RIE 61, the RIE 62 and the custom styles work with ReSound’s four-microphone Clear Focus beam on levels 9 and 7 rather than the deep neural network.
How Is ReSound Sensia Different from ReSound Vivia?
Sensia keeps what Vivia wearers rely on, the same discreet styles, the same app and ReSound's same battery figures, and adds to it: help in noise that switches itself on with the Sensia 9 microRIE, the deep neural network at level 7, a step-up noise programme from level 7 down, custom in-ear styles and dedicated bimodal versions.
| Feature | ReSound Sensia | ReSound Vivia |
|---|---|---|
| Help in noise | Switches itself on with the Sensia 9 microRIE (Intelligent All-Around) | A programme you switch on |
| Deep neural network (DNN) | Sensia 9 (automatic) and Sensia 7 (a programme), microRIE style | Vivia 9 only, microRIE style |
| Speech-in-noise programme by level | 9 and 7: Intelligent Focus (microRIE) or Clear Focus; 5: Front Focus; 4: Ultra Focus | 9: Intelligent Focus (microRIE) or Clear Focus; 7: Front Focus; 5: Ultra Focus; 4: Autoscope Adaptive Directionality |
| Styles | microRIE 60S, RIE 61 and RIE 62, plus custom ITE, ITC and CIC | microRIE 60S, RIE 61 and RIE 62 |
| Bimodal, with a Cochlear Nucleus sound processor | Dedicated Sensia Bimodal versions | No dedicated bimodal version in ReSound’s UK overview |
| Battery, rechargeable styles | Up to 24 hours typical, even with the DNN engaging automatically on the Sensia 9 microRIE* | Up to 24 hours typical* |
| Chip platform | Two chips, one dedicated to the DNN | The same platform |
| Charging | Inductive, in ReSound’s microRIE chargers | The same chargers fit both |
| LE Audio and Auracast | Yes, except the non-wireless CIC; Auracast in venues with a transmitter | Yes; Auracast in venues with a transmitter |
| App | ReSound Smart 3D, with the Auracast Assistant | The same app |
| Colours | Ten Receiver-in-Ear colours, plus six custom shells | The same ten |
| Technology levels | 9, 7, 5 and 4 | 9, 7, 5 and 4 |
| Price at VIP | ReSound Sensia models from £3,295 per pair | The same from-price; your quote depends on the level and style |
What the evidence shows. In GN’s own study with Hörzentrum Oldenburg, 80% of participants rated the person in front of them most audible with ReSound’s Intelligent Focus, compared with one other premium brand’s hearing aid with DNN denoising.† No study has yet set Sensia against Vivia directly, so the trial is where you settle it: you compare the two yourself, in the places that matter to you.
Who Gains Most from Upgrading to ReSound Sensia?
Every Vivia wearer gains something from Sensia, and some gain a great deal: anyone who finds restaurants, meetings and family gatherings hard work, anyone wearing Vivia 7, 5 or 4, and anyone who would prefer a custom in-ear style or uses a cochlear implant on the other ear.
- You wear Vivia 9. You already have ReSound’s deep neural network; the Sensia 9 microRIE puts it to work by itself. If you have ever reached the end of a meal before remembering the noise programme, or simply never use it, this is the change that matters most, because Intelligent All-Around brings in the beam and the network for you whenever speech meets noise.
- You wear Vivia 7, 5 or 4. This is the biggest step. Vivia 7, 5 and 4 have no deep neural network; the Sensia 7 microRIE has it, and in ReSound’s UK feature overview each Sensia level from 7 down carries the speech-in-noise programme ReSound gave the Vivia level above it. Level for level, you move up.
- You would prefer a custom in-ear style. Vivia comes in Receiver-in-Ear styles only. Sensia adds custom ITE, ITC and CIC styles, made to the shape of your ear.
- You use a cochlear implant on the other ear. Sensia comes in dedicated bimodal versions designed to work alongside a Cochlear Nucleus sound processor, with one app and one remote control across both.
- Your ReSound hearing aids are four or five years old and out of warranty. ReSound lists Bluetooth LE Audio for Sensia, Vivia, Nexia, Savi and Enzo IA; if yours are not one of those families, Sensia also brings LE Audio streaming and Auracast broadcasts in venues that have a transmitter.
What If Your ReSound Vivia Still Works Well?
Your Vivia is still a premium hearing aid, so this is not about it being out of date. Sensia is ReSound's newest family, now listed first in its UK range, and if your Vivia serves you well you are well placed to judge what Sensia adds: our free, no-obligation 30-day trial lets you compare the two.
- The moments you do not switch. However well your Vivia 9 serves you, a programme only helps in the rooms where you remember to switch it on. The Sensia 9 microRIE handles those moments by itself, which is exactly what GN set out to do: stop relying on people remembering a noise programme.
- Your hearing today. Hearing changes gradually, often without our noticing. Moving to Sensia starts with a full hearing test, and the new fitting is tuned to your hearing as it is now, not as it was when your Vivia was fitted.
- Your charger comes with you. ReSound lists the same chargers for the Vivia and Sensia microRIE, so if you wear a rechargeable Vivia microRIE, the charger you already use charges Sensia too.
- A fresh start on care. A new pair comes with a new manufacturer warranty and our aftercare from day one.
- Nothing to lose by trying. Our free, no-obligation 30-day home trial lets you wear Sensia in your own restaurants and meetings with your Vivia to hand as the benchmark, and decide at the end of the 30 days. Whatever you choose, we go on looking after you.
What Does Upgrading from ReSound Vivia to Sensia Involve?
A Vivia cannot be upgraded to Sensia by software or in clinic, because Sensia is a new pair of hearing aids. Upgrading at VIP is simple: a hearing test, the level and style agreed with your audiologist, a fitting tuned to your hearing, then 30 days at home with Sensia before you decide.
Upgrading takes a few simple steps at our London, Eastcote and Brentwood clinics:
- A hearing test. Your hearing may have changed since your Vivia was fitted, so we start with a full hearing test.
- Where you want more. Tell us about the restaurants, meetings and gatherings you find hardest, so your fitting is built around them.
- The level and style, agreed together. Your audiologist explains each option and you decide together; if you want the help in noise to switch itself on, that means the Sensia 9 microRIE.
- Fitting. We programme Sensia to your hearing test and the places you described. We tailor sound to your unique listening environments.
- Thirty days at home, with your Vivia as the benchmark. Every fitting includes our free, no-obligation 30-day home trial. Wear Sensia in the places that matter to you and hear what it adds.
What it costs. ReSound Sensia models from £3,295 per pair, including your hearing assessment, fitting, the 30-day home trial and aftercare. Both families sit on the same from-price, so your quote comes down to the level and style you agree with your audiologist, confirmed at your consultation. Your clinic confirms any appointment fee when you book.
Book your Sensia trial and hear what ReSound’s newest hearing aid adds to your day. For the wider range, see our guide to ReSound hearing aids.
Nick Clive
Partner & Chief of Audiology, VIP Hearing Solutions (HCPC HAD00170)
* ReSound’s figures for the rechargeable styles: up to 24 hours typical including several hours of streaming, up to 30 hours with no streaming; real use depends on features, streaming, hearing loss, battery age and surroundings. † GN’s own studies with Hörzentrum Oldenburg (Jespersen and Rubachandran, 2026; Jespersen, Heeren and Quilter, 2026): Intelligent Focus compared with one other premium brand with DNN denoising, competitor unnamed. Levels, styles and features: ReSound’s UK datasheets and UK portfolio brochure (May 2026). No independent study of ReSound Sensia had been published when we wrote this.
