Your Android phone has a unique feature designed to improve the hearing of persons with hearing difficulties or disabilities. It’s called Sound Amplifier, and all you need is a pair of wireless Bluetooth earbuds. Follow along for an inexpensive way to improve the hearing of you or someone you love.
Get Started With Sound Amplifier
Before you begin,check the version of Android that’s installed on your phone, ensuring that it’s running Android 8.1 or later. If it’s older than that,update your Android phone, then continue. Also, be sure you have a good pair of Bluetooth earbuds. These earbuds will act as your proverbial ears, so purchase a comfortable pair.
To get started, connect your earbuds to your Android phone via Bluetooth. Now download theSound Amplifierapp from the Play Store. It’s a Google app, and it’s free.
Once installed, open the app and tap theSettingsicon, then selectShow icon in the app listunderGeneral. This makes it easy to find and open the app when you need it via your app tray like any other app.
The Sound Amplifier’s “ear” icon is displayed in your phone’s Notification Bar while it’s open. Swipe down to remove the notification by selectingDismissor opening Sound Amplifier again by tappingResume.
How to Use Sound Amplifier
On Sound Amplifier’s home screen, you will see three options:
By default, Sound Amplifier is set toOff. The other two options are used to enhance conversations and to improve the sound of your media. Let’s explore them and see how using Sound Amplifier can help improve your hearing.
How to Improve Conversations With Sound Amplifier
To make it easier to hear conversations, Sound Amplifier uses your phone’s microphone to increase the volume of those around you.
To get started, ensure your wireless earbuds are connected to your Android phone, put them in your ears, then tapPhone mic. The audio picked up by your phone’s microphone will be amplified. You can adjust the clarity of the audio by activating/deactivating and tweaking the noise reduction and boost settings.
With those adjustments out of the way, tapConversation modeto bring up your camera. Look at theSet upsection to see how to use your phone’s camera to increase the volume of the speaker(s) in your vicinity. In a nutshell, point your phone’s front-facing camera at whomever’s voice you want to amplify.
If Conversation mode is working, the wording in theSet upsection will change fromSet uptoActive. You’ll also know it’s working when the person’s voice you’re pointing the front-facing camera at is louder and easier to understand. Tweak theNoise reductionandBoostvalues as needed to listen to conversations comfortably.
How to Make Hearing Music and Videos Easier With Sound Amplifier
Having a difficult time hearing certain tracks or videos? Play the video or track you want to listen to and tapPhone media > Boostin Sound Amplifier. Then, adjust theBoost quiet soundslevels to amplify the quieter parts of what you’re listening to, or boost the frequencies via theBoost high or low frequencies.
Raising Boost levels can make audio sound hollow as it’s amplified.
Have an Extra Android Device? Use It as a Dedicated Sound Amplifier
Sound Amplifier works as long as your Bluetooth earbuds and Android phone are within range of one another. That’s around 33 feet. Thus, your earbuds and Android device can have a considerable amount of distance between them before the audio starts to stutter.
If you have an old Android phone (running Android 8.1 and above), use it as a dedicated Sound Amplifier system. It’s an easy solution for hearing better in the classroom, at gatherings where there is constant chatter, in seminars, or anywhere else where listening intently is an obstacle.
Place it near the person speaking or have someone hold the Android phone close to them, and you can hang back within 33 feet and easily listen. The only caveat is you don’t have physical access to your Android device to adjust the settings.
If you really need to do that as you’re listening, you canuse TeamViewer Remote Control to connect to your Android phoneand make the adjustments in Sound Amplifier remotely.
Improve Your Hearing With Gear You Already Own Thanks to Sound Amplifier
Sound Amplifier isn’t a replacement for a dedicated hearing aid. But if you don’t have easy access to a hearing aid where you live, can’t afford one, or you’d rather work with gear you already own, Sound Amplifier helps you to stay present in conversations, or listen more intently to what you’re streaming. Try it out or introduce it to a loved one: it could make all the difference.
