The Samsung Galaxy Buds Pro features an ambient sound mode that uses an onboard microphone to pick up and amplify sounds that are difficult to hear with the headphones in place. Conceptually, it is no different from the clarity mode found in many other wireless earbuds, but new research suggests that this feature could make the Samsung Galaxy Buds Pro a dedicated hearing aid alternative.

The study, conducted by Samsung Medical Center and published in the journal Clinical and Experimental Otorhinolaryngology, involved 18 participants with mild or moderate hearing loss. Of these, 57.6% indicated that the use of Galaxy Buds Pro was beneficial to their hearing in a quiet environment.

It is important to note the limitations of such a small sample size and the fact that conventional hearing aids outperformed the GalaxyBuds Pro.

However, while Samsung is not advocating GalaxyBuds Pro as a one-to-one replacement for hearing aids, the study makes a good point in suggesting that headphones with ambient/transparent modes may be useful in low- and middle-income countries where hearing aids are prohibitively expensive .

According to a World Health Organization study on hearing impairment and deafness cited in the Samsung study, 80% of people with disabling hearing loss live in these countries, and only 17% of those who could potentially benefit from hearing aids actually wear them

In some countries, such as the United Kingdom, hearing aids are free, but in others, the $199 Galaxy Buds Pro may be considered a more affordable alternative to hearing aids, which usually cost several times as much. Even if they are less effective and have a battery life of only a few hours (instead of days as typical hearing aids).

Samsung has long noted the therapeutic qualities of the Galaxy Buds Pro, and in January released a software update that added the ability to adjust the volume of the left and right Galaxy Buds Pro independently.