Samsung Galaxy Buds Pro Lightning Review: Premium True Wireless Earbuds

The new Samsung Galaxy Buds Pro poses a serious challenge to some of the top true wireless earbuds out there.

Launched in mid January 2021, it comes with huge improvement in sound quality, sporting an 11-millimeter woofer for deeper bass and a 6.5-millimeter tweeter for a crisp treble with minimum distortion. Samsung Galaxy Buds Pro reintroduces rubber tips to the Galaxy Buds line with improved Active Noise cancellation (ANC) and a fresh design delivering better passive noise cancellation, improving the overall listening experience.

Once you find the right size of rubber tips, these earbuds fit securely, and you shouldn’t struggle with them falling out easily. even during an exercise.

You can easily configure the Galaxy Buds Pro using the Galaxy Wearable app. This is where you can access the ANC features, turn on ambient sound, set or turn off touch controls, select different EQ profiles, among others. The ANC has a high and low setting while the included EQ profiles are Bass boost, Soft, Dynamic, Clear, and Treble Boost although there’s no option to set your own personalised profile.

For me, music from the Galaxy Buds Pro sound great all the time. Audio from the microphone has a little bit of muffling but still better compared to other TWS. It does a pretty good job with reducing background noises.

Samsung said that Galaxy Buds Pro recognize when you’re speaking (automatic voice detection), and they can automatically switch between canceling nearby sounds and amplifying them. They will also turn down your music when you want to talk, even if you are using Ambient Sound or have ANC turned off. This technology allows you to hear and communicate more effectively and makes Galaxy Buds Pro the perfect tool for daily use.

There’s also an Auto Switch feature between Galaxy devices with One UI 3.1. For example, if you’re watching a video on your Galaxy Tab S7 and then receive a call on your Galaxy S21, the all-new Auto Switch feature will pause the video and let you answer the phone using Galaxy Buds Pro. Once the call is over, your earbuds instantly switch back to your tablet; the video plays again, and you can hear the audio through your earbuds again.

A 360 Audio featuring Dolby Head Tracking technology enables cinematic sound. Samsung said it comes with intelligent motion-tracking sensor that pinpoints the direction of the sound as you move your head, enabling a powerful sense of realism in your listening experience. Currently this feature also works with Samsung devices with Android One UI version 3.1 or later, such as the Galaxy S21 series.

Gaming mode helps minimise audio delay for synchronised gaming sound. If you misplaced your earbuds, you can use the SmartThings app to locate it, even when they’re out of Bluetooth range or completely out of sight.

One of the features I like about the Galaxy Buds Pro is the ability to read out notifications. For example, while in use, it is able to say the name of the apps that triggered the notification on your phone and even read out messages, and you don’t need to check your phone.

The Samsung Galaxy Buds Pro feature touch-sensitive panels on the sides of each earbuds. Tapping either earbud once starts or stops the music you’re playing, double tapping skips a song, and triple tapping goes back. You can change these settings in the Samsung Wearable app or turn off touch controls entirely.

With support of wireless and USB-C charging, each Samsung Galaxy Bud holds a 61mAh charge and the case has a 472mAh battery capacity. On paper, Samsung Galaxy Buds Pro offers 5 hours with ANC on and 13 hours from the case; 8 hours with ANC off and 20 hours from the case. Personally, it lasted around 4 hours in my own test with ANC on, but they do last for days at a time with frequent use between charges from the case. The flip-open magnetic case itself is very small, so you can easily put it in your pocket.

The Buds Pro has an IPX7 water resistance rating which Samsung claims to be the highest standard of water resistance in the Galaxy Buds line.

In summary, sound from the Samsung Galaxy Buds Pro was really good, the ANC is impressive and the voice detection feature is useful – its offers a premium true wireless experience.

Available now, the Galaxy Buds Pro is priced at RM799 and comes in three stunning colors: Phantom Violet, Phantom Black, and Phantom Silve. Order here.

Galaxy Buds Pro Specifications: