Samsung Galaxy Buds Pro Review: Great All-Rounder
February 27, 2021Type: Wireless
Functionally: Bluetooth v5.0, wireless charging
Colour: Phantom Violet,Phantom Black ,Phantom Silver
Battery Life: 5h Talk-Time 18(ANC ON) / 8h Talk-Time 28h (ANC OFF)
Active Noise Cancelling: Yes
Rating: 9/10
Weight: 6.3g (44.9g case)
Price: RM799.00
Many people didn’t warm up to the Galaxy Buds Live the way Samsung had hoped they would. A stark contrast to that of most mainstream earbuds, the jelly bean shaped device had the markings of a decent all-rounder. But proper fitment became an issue due to its unconventional dimensions and silicone holders.
This year’s Galaxy Buds Pro, represents a sharp U-turn with regard to design and construction. It’s wider and thicker than its predecessor, and thankfully, fitted with regular silicone ear tips. It’s not that far off from the look and feel of the original Galaxy Buds – but these are so much classier.
In addition to this, they came in the same tasteful colours as those offered with the S21 line of phones. The one I have here is the phantom violet coloured one to match that of the S21+. And this is what will probably entice most buyers to the prospect of picking up a pair of earbuds to go along with their shiny new phone.
The colour scheme has a glossy finish that gives off an elegant shine. This is a similar approach taken with the Buds Live – making them feel more like jewelry than a boring piece of tech. This is the kind of appeal we need. Nothing is as off putting as having to carry or use a device that isn’t pretty, and cumbersome to carry on your persons.
The carrying case is identical to last year’s device but that’s where the similarities end. The Buds Pro is an entirely different animal. It’s equipped with far superior active noise cancelling as well as other tech that many Sony WH-1000XM4 fans have come to love. It’s simply astonishing to see how much is packed into such small devices.
But to get the most out of the features, you need to have the Galaxy Wearables app. This will let you control the music quality as well as set your preferences for the various functions that I will touch on in the next paragraphs. The most notable of the lot is ANC or active noise cancelling.
Samsung’s Buds Live had this, but the experience wasn’t perfect. It’s ANC wasn’t able to temper certain ambient noises and when it did, the effect was a little artificial. This isn’t true for the Buds Pro. It’s extremely effective at filtering out background sounds and ear piercing ambient noises around you.
Once activated, there’s almost pin drop silence. Mind, you will need to be using the proper sized eartips for a perfect seal. Else, the experience won’t be as impressive. But the Buds Pro’s ANC feels very natural. It seems as though someone put the world on mute – life continues to unfold before your eyes but not your ears.
The tech does a fantastic job of accomplishing this task – even when subjected to varying degrees of ambient disturbances. It’s better than the Buds Live, by a country mile, but is no match for proper over-the-ears ANC headphones. However, that in itself, is an impressive feat for earbuds that are no bigger than my usual earrings.
Now there are three modes to choose from: ANC, Ambient Sounds and standard. We’ve covered the ANC bit, but Ambient sound (low to high) and standard deserve some recognition. The former mode allows ambient sounds into your ears, which is useful if you’re expecting an announcement at the airport or strolling down a busy road.
It lets in just enough of it to make you aware of your surroundings but not to the point where it becomes bothersome. Again, it’s good but not perfect. The sound that enters doesn’t feel nature, because there is a robotic tinge to it. This isn’t a major issue though, because only those with an acute hearing ability will be able to point that out.
The standard mode allows the Buds Pro to function just like any regular device out there. They do lose some of that magic when ANC is turned off, but gain an extra 3 hours of battery charge for each cycle. When turned on, you can expect close to 5 hours per charge, but the carrying case can charge them 3 times before going flat.
In total, with ANC turned off, you can get 28 hours, when it’s on however, that number drops to 18. It’s a respective amount of power given how small the case and earbuds are. I used them for the entire day as I cycled through various tasks and never once encountered connection issues or disruption to my music.
The moment you reseat them into the carrying case, the Buds Pro begins to charge instantly and quickly. Each time that you reach for them, trust that they should be holding a decent amount of charge. The instant that you open the case, the Buds Pro turn on and start searching for the last known paired device.
Touch Convenience
Each earbud’s outer surface is equipped with a touch sensor. This is what tapping them does for you:
Single Tap – Play or Pause music.
Double Tap – Skip to next song or answer a phone call
Triple tap will play back to the Music Previous song
They even have the ability to handle multiple calls at the same time, without you having to reach for your phone to make the switch. They allow you to put the current call on hold while you answer the incoming one. It’s this flexibility that makes one appreciate the little things – like not having to faff about with your phone when on a business call.
Sound Quality
Speaker, 2 way ( 11 mm woofer & 6.5 mm Tweeter)
Main Mic (High SNR), Sub Mic, Inner Mic
Dual mic array for superior beaming performance
Mic mesh and chamber for minimizing wind noise
As expected, the Galaxy Buds Pro have some of the most decently calibrated speakers of any earphones. It offers a good blend of clarity, treble and bass. Music tracks sound crisp and with a good amount of depth. You can easily distinguish the music wafting from the foreground and that from the background. It’s not on par with audiophile level earphones, but is close enough.
They do adequate justice to some of the most complicated tracks, especially from the rock genre. The frequency and balance is spot on, which add to the listening experience. This coupled with the built in Dolby Atmos technology, make for an extremely pleasant music listening session. It’s great for people who want buds that can do it all!
However, if you prefer bass heavy music. Then this may not be the pair of earbuds for you. The Buds Pro are decent all-rounders, but aren’t biased toward any particular genre of music. If you’re specific about your music preference, then you’ll need to look for higher-end offerings to satisfy your needs.
That said, the Galaxy Buds Pro should be enough for the majority of users. They offer a great all-round experience – rich in tech features and good music reproduction. They sound great and are able to offer modern conveniences such as intelligent ANC. It’s a great choice for anyone looking to cut the cord but still enjoy good music.
You can select one of several different music settings. There’s Normal, Bass Boost, Soft, Dynamic, Clear or Treble Boost. My favorite so far is Bass Boost because the music quality that is produced sounds clear but with a good helping of bass. However, this may not be for everyone, because I have a penchant for tracks with a heart-thumping amount of bass.
The Tech Behind It
Samsung has also fitted an accelerometer, gyro, proximity and several other sensors into these tiny devices. Remember when I said that the Buds Pro are smart, well, it’s because of the aforementioned hardware. When you remove one earbud from your ear, the music playing on your phone is paused. Put it back in, the music resumes.
When left idle, the earbuds go into a low powered state when it’s prudent to do so, thus saving you some battery power in the process. But the moment you put them back into your ears, they spring to life in an instant. This is similar to several other high-end earphones that we have tested in the past. But, these have another party trick.
They can sense when you’re conversing with someone, and immediately pauses your music. This negates the need to tap one of the earbuds to pause, then tap it once more to resume. Instead, the Galaxy Buds Pro waits for 10 seconds to make sure that you’re done with your conversation before resuming the active music track.
If you’re anything like me, then you’ll probably sing along to the music that’s playing in your ears. I do this quite a lot, much to the chagrin of my co-workers. The Buds Pro allows enough of it into your ears, allowing you to keep up with the tempo of the actual music – it’s pretty cool. And if a person speaks to you, the music volume is lowered so that you understand them.
When on a call with someone, you can choose to have music continue to play in the background. It won’t be disruptive or distracting, because it will continue to play at a very low volume , enough to be heard – that’s it. Some of the cheaper earbuds can’t execute this well. What ends up happening is that the music and caller’s voice both compete for your attention.
Believe it or not, the Buds Pro can also work as a stand-in for a gaming headset. The clarity and responsiveness of the speaker drivers make them darn good gaming accessories. The sound quality is quite immersive, which allows you to discern lower frequency sounds and high pitched ones. Engine noises, explosions and background chatter – you can hear them all.
Should You Buy This?
I think that I’ve already answered this question. I’m completely sold on the idea of the Galaxy Buds Pro being someone’s only earbuds. They tick all the right boxes in the looks, build quality and sound reproduction departments. They are far better than the original Galaxy Buds and to a lesser extent, Buds Live. Simply put, these are exceptionally good earphones for the money.
But the audiophile in me is compelled to tell you that these aren’t meant for people who expect precise music reproduction. That honor is reserved for much higher-end devices that cost significantly more such as those from Bose and Sennheiser. But for such an experience, it’s wasteful to purchase a pair of earbuds in lieu of a well-sorted pair of headphones.
You don’t buy earphones for a “super accurate’ music listening experience. Instead, you get them because they offer a good enough experience, coupled with the convenience of tucking them away in your jeans pocket or handbag. And for that, you can’t go wrong with the Samsung Galaxy Buds Pro – it’s a great option for most of us.
