More than an AirPods Lookalike?

Design and ergonomics

As part of its recent event in Paris, Samsung unveiled the two new Galaxy Buds 3 and Galaxy Buds 3 Pro wireless earbuds, among other devices. Even at first glance, it is noticeable that both earbuds differ significantly from their predecessors in terms of design. This time, the South Korean manufacturer opted for a look similar to the Apple AirPods albeit with a triangular earbud.

Samsung claimed to have decided to take this step to better accommodate the microphones in the housing. Furthermore, voice recognition and control would work better this way according to Samsung as cited by other sources.

These are the major advantages of the new shape, but the design also has disadvantages. The most important thing with wireless earbuds is often not the sound quality, but the fit. If the earbuds do not fit perfectly in the ear, even having the best sound quality is moot.

Since the new Galaxy Buds 3 and Galaxy Buds 3 Pro no longer resemble their predecessors in terms of design, it may well be that they no longer fit well those for whom the Galaxy Buds 2 (review) or Galaxy Buds 2 Pro (review) fit like a glove. Even the advertised improved wearing comfort won’t help much.

On the other hand, the workmanship is certainly high standard enough with protection against dust and water largely guaranteed thanks to IP57 certification for both the Galaxy Buds 3 and the Galaxy Buds 3 Pro.

What do you get upon unboxing the Buds 3 & Buds 3 Pro?

Now to what you get in the box: if you ordered the Pro version, in addition to the Buds 3 Pro themselves and the customary charging case with a transparent lid, you will also receive a USB-C charging cable and rubber attachments of different sizes to fit various ear canals. This is precisely one of the biggest advantages of the Pro Buds. With the normal Galaxy Buds 3, the area that is inserted into the ear cup is fixed. If the earbuds are too large, buyers can do nothing more than return them within the relevant period.

Performance

We were not granted too many insights into the inner workings of the Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 and Buds 3 Pro at the event in Paris. However, we were not left completely in the dark, either. I can say that both earbuds have three built-in microphones and support Bluetooth version 5.4. As mentioned earlier, they are controlled via the stem using touch sensors, to be precise.

What is exciting is the volume can be manipulated on both earbuds this way. This is not possible with many other wireless earbuds. The stems of the Galaxy Buds 3 Pro are also illuminated, which can be deactivated if desired.

Sound quality & ANC

In terms of sound quality, only the Galaxy Buds 3 Pro was able to impress me. Compared to other wireless earbuds, this means the Galaxy Buds 3 Pro sit somewhere near the top, especially with the bass. There is room for improvement in the high tones, but these are not really bad, either.

What I wasn’t able to test extensively during the hands-on is the adaptive equalizer and the adaptive Active Noise Cancellation (ANC). This was supposed to automatically adjust the noise based on the ambient noise. For instance, if a conversation is detected, the earbuds automatically reduce the noise cancellation level. If there is construction noise in the vicinity, ANC is bumped up to the maximum.

Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 Pro technical specifications

Early thoughts