Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 & Buds 3 Pro Review - Stems Are Good

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enhey there I've got the Samsung Galaxy buds 3 and the Galaxy buds 3 Pro here are they worth an upgrade let's find out Samsung's Galaxy buds 3 and Galaxy buds 3 Pro are the company's first earbuds to feature stems as part of their designs and that has some folks mocking Samsung for creating another Apple airpods clone in a sea of airpods clones there's some truth to that but what ultimately matters is how well these earbuds fit sound and perform we've got two buds here that are similar in many ways they share a lot of the same features but do have some key differences the Galaxy buds 3 which cost $180 are open buds like the airpods 3 and are designed for people who don't like having ear tips jammed in their ears meanwhile the Galaxy buds 3 Pro which cost $250 are noise isolating earbuds like the airpods Pro 2 both are available in silver or white and their prices are very similar to those corresponding airpods models battery life for the Galaxy buds 3 Pro is rated up to 7 hours with noise cancelling off and 6 hours with it on Galaxy buds 3 are rated for up to 6 hours with A&C off and 5 hours with it on now it's hard to review two products in a single video so what I'm going to do is tell you what I like about these Buds and then let you know a few things I don't like so much here's what I like first up is their fit some of you may be disappointed that Samsung moved to a stem design copying the airpods but both new Galaxy buds are lightweight and comfortable to wear and fit my ears well with the buds 3 I got a little more secure fit than I did with the airpods 3 and with the buds 3 Pro I was able to pass the SE steal test in the app with the largest ear tips though I would have liked to have an option of using a tip that was just a touch larger sorry quick Interruption so initially we were planning on posting this review video earlier but as many of you are probably aware Samsung ran into some quality control issues with the ear tips for the Galaxy buds 3 Pro so their ship date was pushed back to Mid August for a lot of folks who pre-ordered them I didn't have any issues with the ear tips and neither did a couple of other people in our office who got early units so hopefully this is just a minor hiccup okay back to the review next up is their controls I do like that these earbuds have pinch controls similar to the airpods as well as swipe controls for volume adjustment you just run your finger up the side of either Bud to raise and lower volume and I do think the buds pinch and swipe controls work well both models have relatively robust feature sets while the bud 3 Pro have a couple of extra features the two earbuds share a lot of the same features and have identical cases that offer wireless and USBC charging along with a dedicated Bluetooth button that makes it easier to pair any Bluetooth audio device they're equipped with Bluetooth 5.4 and ear detection sensors as for water and dust resistance they have an ip57 rating which means they can withstand a sustained spray of water they support Le audio along with the new orac cast feature that allows you to hear Bluetooth broadcast in public places like gyms Samsung's 360 audio feature is also board with headtracking like it is with the airpods and their spatial audio feature I use these buds with an iPhone 14 pro along with Samsung's Galaxy flip 5 the audio would wouldn't automatically switch between my iPhone and the flip 5 but Samsung users get automatic pairing and switching between their Galaxy devices including laptops so I was able to pair the buds with my Galaxy Tab 8 plus and flip 5 and have the audio automatically switch back and forth between them the active noise cancelling on the buds 3 Pro is good and at least on par with the noise cancelling you get with the Galaxy buds 2 Pro and maybe slightly better that said I would say the noise cancelling is a touch behind what you get with the airpods Pro 2 the B quiet Comfort Ultra earbuds and Sony wf1000x Mark 5 buds I tested the noise cancelling with an HVAC unit running in my apartment and those models were able to muffle just a tad more noise from the unit of course how tight a seal you get from the ear tips you're using is crucial to noise canceling performance so make sure you have a tight seal the butt 3 PR ambient mode which lets sound in the butts also seems very good you can adjust the levels but I thought it sounded quite natural at the middle setting initially the buds 3 Pro have something similar to the airpods Pro 2's adaptive audio feature Samsung says the buds constantly collect and identify surrounding sound and automat adjust the optimal level of noise and sound without manual adjustment through adaptive noise control siren detect and voice detect basically what's going on is that it's kicking in noise cancelling when you need it and then opening the buds up when you don't need it I was impressed with both earbud sound quality though more so with the bud 3 Pro which feature dual drivers a 10 mm Dynamic driver to go along with a planer Tweeter Samsung owns Harmon which has Brands like JBL and AKG under its umbrella but there's no longer any Sound by AKG stamped on these Galaxy buds cases so Samsung seems to have moved away from that little branding tie-in the buds 3 have a single 11 mm Dynamic driver and I thought they sounded quite good for open earbuds they have good Clarity and the Bass Performance is also good though like a lot of open earbuds the buds 3 are a little Bay shy I thought the airpods 3 sounded a touch better it's not a night and day difference the airpods 3 are just slightly Fuller sounding and play slightly louder the planer Tweeter driver in the buds 3 Pro does enhance treble performance Samsung also says the Budz 3 Pro have dual amps which helps reduce Wireless hiccups for those wondering how these compare to the Galaxy buds 2 Pro the buds 3 Pro do sound better buds 2 Pro sound good but the buds 3 PR treble Clarity and base definition is to peer and they sound cleaner and more accurate overall I actually thought they sounded a little better than the airpods Pro 2 they're a little more dynamic they you sound a little punchier overall and the treble has a little more Sparkle to it both buds support the Samsung seamless codec that Samsung says is now capable of delivering 24-bit 96 khz high resolution streams I listen to tracks on my Galaxy flip 5 using quzz and frankly only heard a very subtle difference in sound quality I'm listening to the same tracks on my iPhone using quzz and Spotify you have to be a pretty sophisticated listener to hear any differences the buz 3 Pro have lights in their stems or blades as Samsung calls them them while the buds 3 don't I like them they let you know when the buds are in pairing mode and they flash when you use the find my feature as the buds make a chirping noise this would make them easier to find in a dark room for example you can also just activate the lights by pinching and holding each Bud for a few seconds and wear the buds around with lights on if that's your thing last but not least I was really impressed with the voice calling performance Samsung has mostly done a good job with voice calling performance in its previous Galaxy Budz models but these new series 3 model deliver even better voice calling performance with topnotch noise reduction they have three microphones in each Bud along with a voice pickup unit earbuds with the stem design do get the microphones a little closer to your mouse so that does help with voice calling my calls using the Galaxy Buzz 3 Pro with the noisy streets of New York with some wind in fact caller said they could barely hear any background noise and that my voice was mostly clear with limited warbling AV Liston as I talk with fellow editor Josh Goldman all right I'm making a test call here in the streets of New York City just note that uh the call is being recorded over the Internet so there's a tiny bit of compression uh but I'm talking to editor Josh Goldman uh Josh Shadow sound it's very hot here in New York city so I'm trying not to sweat uh but there's a lot of cars going by uh fair amount of noise people walking by as well um if you're on the city streets I I don't hear any evidence of it it's it's very quiet on my end you might as well be in a closed conference room um I can't really hear anything thing um and your voice quality sounds it sounds good it's like a typical cell phone uh phone call so all in all sounds great okay let's move on to a few things that I don't like or at least don't love about these buds I do think their design is a little generic some have said they're a little cheap looking and that may be so but the case does have a solid feel to it and the buds themselves don't look any cheaper than the airpods the blades on the silver models and just to be clear these are plastic not metal they do give the buzz a a little bit of a Tesla cybertruck 5 so there is that but some folks may be disappointed the buds don't come in colors to match their new Galaxy smartphones I also think it's weird that Samsung has given another set of open earbuds active noise cancelling like Samsung's earlier Galaxy buds live aka the beans the buds three have some active noise cancelling but it just doesn't seem to do much because ANC typically doesn't work well with open buds I couldn't really tell the difference when I turned it on with the buds 3 though I did notice that the sound changed slightly when I engage thec maybe there's a bit of Ambient sound filtration but if you're looking for real noise cancelling you want the Galaxy buds 3 Pro I didn't love that the ear tips for the buds 3 Pro are custom design for the buds make it a little tricky to get your own tips on there if need be the same is true for the airpods true of course um and ironically I was able to get some thirdparty foam tips made for the airpods Pro 2 to click onto the bud 3 Pro but they didn't give me a Tight Seal according to the seal test in the app my only other gripe is I do think that their list prices are a little high Samsung often runs tradein deals or has discounts on accessories like earbuds when you buy a new Galaxy phone so most people won't pay anywhere near full price for these and you shouldn't either it's hard to say what they're really worth but probably about 30% less as I said in my first take of these buds some of you might be a little disappointed that Samsung gave in and followed Apple's earbuds approach after determining the stem design worked best for the most people but what it's worth I did like the these better than that of the Galaxy buds 2 and buds 2 Pro as well as the more recent Galaxy buds Fe I do think they'll fit a wider range of ears for the right price I have no problem recommending the Galaxy buds 3 to Samsung Galaxy owners as well as other Android users who don't like having ear tips jammed in their ears but the Galaxy buz 3 Pro are more special and compete well against other premium noise cancelling earbuds in their price range particularly when it comes to sound quality and voice calling performance which is truly topnotch if you're contemplating upgrading from the Galaxy buds 2 Pro the buds 3 Pro are better but it's not a massive difference so I think it really comes down to what kind of deal you can get on the bud 3 Pro some of the tradeing deals are pretty tempting but I'm sure some people prefer the Bud 2 Pro stemless design so that makes it a harder Choice as always let me know your thoughts in the comment section below and hit the like button if you found this video informative at all I'm David Conor for cat.com thanks for watchinghey there I've got the Samsung Galaxy buds 3 and the Galaxy buds 3 Pro here are they worth an upgrade let's find out Samsung's Galaxy buds 3 and Galaxy buds 3 Pro are the company's first earbuds to feature stems as part of their designs and that has some folks mocking Samsung for creating another Apple airpods clone in a sea of airpods clones there's some truth to that but what ultimately matters is how well these earbuds fit sound and perform we've got two buds here that are similar in many ways they share a lot of the same features but do have some key differences the Galaxy buds 3 which cost $180 are open buds like the airpods 3 and are designed for people who don't like having ear tips jammed in their ears meanwhile the Galaxy buds 3 Pro which cost $250 are noise isolating earbuds like the airpods Pro 2 both are available in silver or white and their prices are very similar to those corresponding airpods models battery life for the Galaxy buds 3 Pro is rated up to 7 hours with noise cancelling off and 6 hours with it on Galaxy buds 3 are rated for up to 6 hours with A&C off and 5 hours with it on now it's hard to review two products in a single video so what I'm going to do is tell you what I like about these Buds and then let you know a few things I don't like so much here's what I like first up is their fit some of you may be disappointed that Samsung moved to a stem design copying the airpods but both new Galaxy buds are lightweight and comfortable to wear and fit my ears well with the buds 3 I got a little more secure fit than I did with the airpods 3 and with the buds 3 Pro I was able to pass the SE steal test in the app with the largest ear tips though I would have liked to have an option of using a tip that was just a touch larger sorry quick Interruption so initially we were planning on posting this review video earlier but as many of you are probably aware Samsung ran into some quality control issues with the ear tips for the Galaxy buds 3 Pro so their ship date was pushed back to Mid August for a lot of folks who pre-ordered them I didn't have any issues with the ear tips and neither did a couple of other people in our office who got early units so hopefully this is just a minor hiccup okay back to the review next up is their controls I do like that these earbuds have pinch controls similar to the airpods as well as swipe controls for volume adjustment you just run your finger up the side of either Bud to raise and lower volume and I do think the buds pinch and swipe controls work well both models have relatively robust feature sets while the bud 3 Pro have a couple of extra features the two earbuds share a lot of the same features and have identical cases that offer wireless and USBC charging along with a dedicated Bluetooth button that makes it easier to pair any Bluetooth audio device they're equipped with Bluetooth 5.4 and ear detection sensors as for water and dust resistance they have an ip57 rating which means they can withstand a sustained spray of water they support Le audio along with the new orac cast feature that allows you to hear Bluetooth broadcast in public places like gyms Samsung's 360 audio feature is also board with headtracking like it is with the airpods and their spatial audio feature I use these buds with an iPhone 14 pro along with Samsung's Galaxy flip 5 the audio would wouldn't automatically switch between my iPhone and the flip 5 but Samsung users get automatic pairing and switching between their Galaxy devices including laptops so I was able to pair the buds with my Galaxy Tab 8 plus and flip 5 and have the audio automatically switch back and forth between them the active noise cancelling on the buds 3 Pro is good and at least on par with the noise cancelling you get with the Galaxy buds 2 Pro and maybe slightly better that said I would say the noise cancelling is a touch behind what you get with the airpods Pro 2 the B quiet Comfort Ultra earbuds and Sony wf1000x Mark 5 buds I tested the noise cancelling with an HVAC unit running in my apartment and those models were able to muffle just a tad more noise from the unit of course how tight a seal you get from the ear tips you're using is crucial to noise canceling performance so make sure you have a tight seal the butt 3 PR ambient mode which lets sound in the butts also seems very good you can adjust the levels but I thought it sounded quite natural at the middle setting initially the buds 3 Pro have something similar to the airpods Pro 2's adaptive audio feature Samsung says the buds constantly collect and identify surrounding sound and automat adjust the optimal level of noise and sound without manual adjustment through adaptive noise control siren detect and voice detect basically what's going on is that it's kicking in noise cancelling when you need it and then opening the buds up when you don't need it I was impressed with both earbud sound quality though more so with the bud 3 Pro which feature dual drivers a 10 mm Dynamic driver to go along with a planer Tweeter Samsung owns Harmon which has Brands like JBL and AKG under its umbrella but there's no longer any Sound by AKG stamped on these Galaxy buds cases so Samsung seems to have moved away from that little branding tie-in the buds 3 have a single 11 mm Dynamic driver and I thought they sounded quite good for open earbuds they have good Clarity and the Bass Performance is also good though like a lot of open earbuds the buds 3 are a little Bay shy I thought the airpods 3 sounded a touch better it's not a night and day difference the airpods 3 are just slightly Fuller sounding and play slightly louder the planer Tweeter driver in the buds 3 Pro does enhance treble performance Samsung also says the Budz 3 Pro have dual amps which helps reduce Wireless hiccups for those wondering how these compare to the Galaxy buds 2 Pro the buds 3 Pro do sound better buds 2 Pro sound good but the buds 3 PR treble Clarity and base definition is to peer and they sound cleaner and more accurate overall I actually thought they sounded a little better than the airpods Pro 2 they're a little more dynamic they you sound a little punchier overall and the treble has a little more Sparkle to it both buds support the Samsung seamless codec that Samsung says is now capable of delivering 24-bit 96 khz high resolution streams I listen to tracks on my Galaxy flip 5 using quzz and frankly only heard a very subtle difference in sound quality I'm listening to the same tracks on my iPhone using quzz and Spotify you have to be a pretty sophisticated listener to hear any differences the buz 3 Pro have lights in their stems or blades as Samsung calls them them while the buds 3 don't I like them they let you know when the buds are in pairing mode and they flash when you use the find my feature as the buds make a chirping noise this would make them easier to find in a dark room for example you can also just activate the lights by pinching and holding each Bud for a few seconds and wear the buds around with lights on if that's your thing last but not least I was really impressed with the voice calling performance Samsung has mostly done a good job with voice calling performance in its previous Galaxy Budz models but these new series 3 model deliver even better voice calling performance with topnotch noise reduction they have three microphones in each Bud along with a voice pickup unit earbuds with the stem design do get the microphones a little closer to your mouse so that does help with voice calling my calls using the Galaxy Buzz 3 Pro with the noisy streets of New York with some wind in fact caller said they could barely hear any background noise and that my voice was mostly clear with limited warbling AV Liston as I talk with fellow editor Josh Goldman all right I'm making a test call here in the streets of New York City just note that uh the call is being recorded over the Internet so there's a tiny bit of compression uh but I'm talking to editor Josh Goldman uh Josh Shadow sound it's very hot here in New York city so I'm trying not to sweat uh but there's a lot of cars going by uh fair amount of noise people walking by as well um if you're on the city streets I I don't hear any evidence of it it's it's very quiet on my end you might as well be in a closed conference room um I can't really hear anything thing um and your voice quality sounds it sounds good it's like a typical cell phone uh phone call so all in all sounds great okay let's move on to a few things that I don't like or at least don't love about these buds I do think their design is a little generic some have said they're a little cheap looking and that may be so but the case does have a solid feel to it and the buds themselves don't look any cheaper than the airpods the blades on the silver models and just to be clear these are plastic not metal they do give the buzz a a little bit of a Tesla cybertruck 5 so there is that but some folks may be disappointed the buds don't come in colors to match their new Galaxy smartphones I also think it's weird that Samsung has given another set of open earbuds active noise cancelling like Samsung's earlier Galaxy buds live aka the beans the buds three have some active noise cancelling but it just doesn't seem to do much because ANC typically doesn't work well with open buds I couldn't really tell the difference when I turned it on with the buds 3 though I did notice that the sound changed slightly when I engage thec maybe there's a bit of Ambient sound filtration but if you're looking for real noise cancelling you want the Galaxy buds 3 Pro I didn't love that the ear tips for the buds 3 Pro are custom design for the buds make it a little tricky to get your own tips on there if need be the same is true for the airpods true of course um and ironically I was able to get some thirdparty foam tips made for the airpods Pro 2 to click onto the bud 3 Pro but they didn't give me a Tight Seal according to the seal test in the app my only other gripe is I do think that their list prices are a little high Samsung often runs tradein deals or has discounts on accessories like earbuds when you buy a new Galaxy phone so most people won't pay anywhere near full price for these and you shouldn't either it's hard to say what they're really worth but probably about 30% less as I said in my first take of these buds some of you might be a little disappointed that Samsung gave in and followed Apple's earbuds approach after determining the stem design worked best for the most people but what it's worth I did like the these better than that of the Galaxy buds 2 and buds 2 Pro as well as the more recent Galaxy buds Fe I do think they'll fit a wider range of ears for the right price I have no problem recommending the Galaxy buds 3 to Samsung Galaxy owners as well as other Android users who don't like having ear tips jammed in their ears but the Galaxy buz 3 Pro are more special and compete well against other premium noise cancelling earbuds in their price range particularly when it comes to sound quality and voice calling performance which is truly topnotch if you're contemplating upgrading from the Galaxy buds 2 Pro the buds 3 Pro are better but it's not a massive difference so I think it really comes down to what kind of deal you can get on the bud 3 Pro some of the tradeing deals are pretty tempting but I'm sure some people prefer the Bud 2 Pro stemless design so that makes it a harder Choice as always let me know your thoughts in the comment section below and hit the like button if you found this video informative at all I'm David Conor for cat.com thanks for watching\n"