Samsung Galaxy Buds+ Review
Samsung is another tech company that has made its presence in the truly wireless audio segment. The South Korean company, recently unveiled its second pair of truly wireless earbuds -- the Galaxy Buds+ -- along with the company’s latest Galaxy S20 series. The new audio accessory by the company falls in the expensive price range, competing with the ones coming from Apple, Jabra, Sony, and Bose.
The earbuds come with various attractive features such as a 2-way speaker, sound by AKG, wireless charging, 3 mics, and more, but is the pair an apt choice for the price tag it has? I got to spend some time with the Galaxy Buds+ and here’s what I think of it. Read on to find out.
Samsung Galaxy Buds+ Review: Design
The Galaxy Buds+ is a pair of truly wireless earbuds that spoke premium to me. The earbuds come with a glossy look and for the first time, I liked something of that texture. I received the black ones and that enhances the glossy finish even more. There are two more colour options you get, white and blue, out of which the latter is an intriguing, pastel colour you would want to try out.
The earbuds come in a small box with just a pill-shaped charging, a micro-USB cable, ear tips (S. M, L), and the manual. The charging case has the two earbuds that are in-ear ones. The charging case is compact and can easily fit in your pocket or a purse for you to carry it anywhere. It has the charging port and a cavity for you to easily open the case.
Samsung Galaxy Buds+ Review
The earbuds are quite comfortable and prove to be apt for travel and workout sessions. My usage for a day spanned 3 to 4 hours, and not once did my ears feel overburdened with the audio accessory. The fit is decent; they hardly fall out and are not prone to accidental touch controls. This is something I like since I tend to touch my earbuds every now and then and people like me can relate.
In the design department, the Galaxy Buds+ impressed me. There is a sense of luxury you get when you use or feel them. The only problem is that the glossy design attracts more dust particles than a matte-finish design. And people who have dogs (I testify it), need to ensure the earbuds aren’t lying around like that.
Samsung Galaxy Buds+ Review: Tech Specifications, Features
The Samsung Galaxy Buds+ support Bluetooth 5.0 and is compatible with both Android and iOS. It weighs 6.3 grams, supports proximity sensor, hall sensor, and accelerometer. It is backed by a 270mAh battery with a claimed battery life of up to 11 hours and 22 hours for the case. There is also support for fast charging and wireless charging. It has a 2-way dynamic speaker, 3 microphones, and sound by AKG. Additionally, it supports Bixby, Google Assistant, and Siri.
Furthermore, it comes with the ability to control the ambient sound to manage the surrounding sounds and supports various touch controls (a single tap to play/pause, double-tap to go to next song or end/receive calls, triple-tap to go to the previous song, touch and hold to perform user set function).
Samsung Galaxy Buds+ Review: Performance, Battery
The new pair of truly wireless earbuds by Samsung is compatible with both Android and iOS devices and it ensures the earbuds connect to the devices with ease. I used the earbuds on both the OS platforms and the connectivity process was a breeze; in less than a minute you are able to start streaming your favourite music.
I used the earphones to listen to a number of music genres, familiar/unfamiliar songs, and even the popular ones. I usually tend to use an audio accessory while working or commuting. Since the latter is not possible right now, I worked through my day, every day, with the Galaxy Buds+ as my audio companion for 3 to 4 hours, and I loved the music experience I had with the pair. The earbuds are balanced when it comes to the various notes of music. The treble, the bass, and the vocals -- all sound apt. You can hear the bass, the treble, the background music, the vocals in a way that doesn’t take a toll on your ears or your brain. You can easily decipher those elements in the song and that very feeling made my listening experience a good one.
Samsung Galaxy Buds+ Review
To put things in perspective, I played the famous Sweet Child O’ Mine by Guns N’ Roses -- a song I have heard as a child and thus, began my love for rock music back then. I heard it after ages and never felt the guitar the way I felt with the Galaxy Buds+. The guitar solo, the drums, and even the singer’s voice was a delight to listen. The balance can be sensed even when you listen to a Punjabi song or a Hindi song. EDM feels good too.
The battery life is pretty good too; with a few hours of usage a day, I was easily able to use the earbuds and the charging case for 3 to 4 days on a single charge. The charging time is decent too as the Galaxy Buds+ can fully charge in about an hour. However, there are two disappointments; the touch controls and the volume levels. While initially, the touch controls were easy and convenient, they eventually failed to work. As for the volume levels, low volume was way too low, and high volume was moderate. I wish these two aspects worked better.
Among others, the Galaxy Buds+ compatibility with my Galaxy S20+ was pretty decent (especially the PowerShare feature) and the use of the Galaxy Wearable app made the usage rather better.
Samsung Galaxy Buds+ Review: Verdict
The Samsung Galaxy Buds+ is a pair of truly wireless earbuds that come with a mixture of elements one would like; good looks, balanced sounds, and decent battery life. However, people who are a sucker for convenient touch controls or higher bass or treble can face issues with earbuds with the Rs. 11,990 price being another hindrance. The Galaxy Buds+ also face competition from the Jabra Elite 75t with an IP55 rating.
Having said that, if you are into balanced music streaming and can spend this much, this is an option to go for. And the cherry on the top is if you have a Samsung device since the Wearables app compatibility ensures better usage.
