Advertisement

Review | Samsung Galaxy Buds Live review – unique design and a better sound than Apple AirPods Pro

  • The earbuds fit snugly in the ear with no foam or silicon, the noise cancelling works well and they sound amazing
  • The only gripe is the oversensitive control button, which is activated any time you adjust the buds

Reading Time:3 minutes
Why you can trust SCMP
0
Samsung Galaxy Buds Live fit in your ear without any silicon or foam tip. The seal isn’t as tight as Air Pods, but the buds don’t fall out of your ear.

The new Samsung Galaxy Buds Live (US$169.99) are Samsung’s answer to Apple’s AirPods Pro. I have a pair of AirPods Pro and I really like them, so this Buds Live review is more a comparison of the two.

The first thing I noticed about the Buds Live is the design, which is unlike any other. They are shaped like beans and there is no silicone or foam tip to fit into your ear canal.

They are smooth and are made to sit snugly in your ear. They do make a seal, but not as much of one as the AirPods Pro. But they are the most comfortable earbuds I’ve ever worn, aside from a few minor annoyances that I’ll get to later.

The Buds Live slide into my ear and feel very secure. I can’t imagine any kind of movement would cause them to fly out. I can’t say that about my AirPods. I have pretty big ears, so I asked my wife to try them on, too. She is not an earbud wearer, but once I showed her how to put them in her ears, she said they were very comfortable, and she couldn’t shake them out of her ears either.

The Samsung Galaxy Buds Live have no silicon or foam, so the seal isn’t airtight. However, this doesn’t seem to affect the noise cancelling. Photo: Samsung
The Samsung Galaxy Buds Live have no silicon or foam, so the seal isn’t airtight. However, this doesn’t seem to affect the noise cancelling. Photo: Samsung

Controls

Each bud has a small area that is a touch button. Even the lightest touch activates the button, which was really my only gripe with the design. Touch the button once to play/pause the music. Touch it twice to answer or end a call or advance to the next song. Triple touch to play the previous track.

Advertisement