AirPods Pro can get a challenger in the new fitness-focused Samsung Galaxy Bud

AirPods Pro can get a challenger in the new fitness-focused Samsung Galaxy Bud

It is a set of wearable wireless earbuds with "built-in software that measures distance, speed, time, heart rate changes, activity level, calories burned, and also plays music.

This could be Samsung's preemptive answer to Apple's upcoming AirPods, which are rumored to track various health metrics.

The Bean trademark, unearthed by Dutch tech blog Letsgodigital, describes a "wearable wireless earset consisting primarily of an MP3 player, a wireless earset that incorporates sensors to detect whether the earset is on or off, a fitness guide Covers "wireless ear sets that incorporate software that provides, wireless ear sets that incorporate software that measures distance, speed, time, heart rate changes, activity level, calories burned, and earbuds.

If Bean is indeed a new fitness-oriented earpiece set, it would mark Samsung's return to this market after the Samsung Gear X Icon, a waterproof device that can track workouts.

This time, however, Samsung seems to be aiming to turn its activity-tracking headphones into the perfect health-tracking device as well.

In fact, the Bean may be Samsung's bet on the health market. Since the company's Galaxy Watch Active 2 can't seem to break Apple Watch's overwhelming market dominance, it makes sense for Samsung to create a product that people can compete with without spending a fortune.

If the Korean company can successfully develop water- and sweat-resistant wireless earbuds that track activity, heart rate, and body temperature, Samsung would have a chance to steal some of Apple Watch's thunder. Perhaps a set of earbuds would be much cheaper than the Apple Watch while offering many of the same features.

Apple may be thinking the same thing; as AppleInsider noted in early 2019, Apple has a number of patents that suggest AirPods with health tracking capabilities.

As our colleague Caitlin McGarry wrote last year to explain why to skip the latest AirPods, "The head is the best place to measure vitals, especially the ears," and "[n]ot everyone wants an Apple Watch so it would make sense to add some of those health tracking features to AirPods."

As someone who likes the health features of the Apple Watch but resists the expense, I would certainly get AirPods or Galaxy Beans with health tracking.

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