With good sound quality, outstanding active noise canceling and compact design, Apples AirPods Pro set the tone for premium wireless earbuds. But Samsung may give its competitor a run for its money. Its taking Apple head-on with the Galaxy Buds Live, which have similar features like sound canceling and a genuinely wireless style, at a significantly less expensive price. The Galaxy Buds cost $170, while the AirPodsPro cost $249. How do you choose which earbuds are best for you? As I found out, its not as straightforward as picking based upon price alone.
Find out more: AirPods Pro vs. Jabra Elite 75t and AirPods Pro vs. Galaxy Buds Plus
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These wireless earbuds are truly the jack of all trades, particularly for iPhone users. Their one standout feature is that they have exceptional active noise cancellation.
Read our Apple AirPods Pro evaluation.
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Noise canceling is way much better on AirPods Pro, but Galaxy Buds Live sound better
Both of these earbuds sound excellent. But the Galaxy Buds Live have a much more dynamic sound profile when left on default settings, with a punchy bass response that matches a series of musical categories. The AirPods Pro sound more neutral, with less bass, that makes them balanced for leaping in between podcasts and music..
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The Galaxy Buds Live, affectionately dubbed the Galaxy Beans after their unique shape, sit in your ears instead of your ear canal. Depending on the shape of your ear, they might wind up being more comfy for extended wear. The sound quality is great when left on default settings, however you can likewise tweak the audio profile with presets in the Galaxy Wearable app.
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The AirPods Pro, on the other hand, come with three various ear idea sizes you can switch in or out depending upon the size of your ear canal. Its available only in white and to browse through tunes, theres a stem that points down out of your ear that you click on..
I have exceptionally little ears and the smallest tip on the AirPods Pro has actually never been little enough for me to produce a super tight seal. That implies from time to time, like when Im moving around a lot or doing an exercise, I have to push them back in my ears, which is irritating.
The Buds Live, however, remained in my ears better throughout an exercise and just started to feel like they were slipping out of my ear towards the end. While they fit much better than the AirPods, in general they didnt feel more comfy. After around three hours, my left ear began to hurt so I needed to take a break. Remember that the fit and comfort of either of these earbuds will differ from person to individual– my coworker David Carnoy mentioned that the Buds Live sat well in his ears with the bigger idea attached.
For water and sweat resistance, the AirPods Pro have a higher IP score of IPX4 compared to the IPX2 on the Buds Live. That implies they can resist splashes from any instructions, while the Buds Live can withstand sprays from 15 degrees or less. While I have not done water tests on either pair yet, I have actually utilized them both throughout sweaty workouts and cleaned them down afterwards. Both were great.
Siri or Bixby? Both buds have smart functions.
As you would anticipate, the AirPods Pro utilize Siri on the iPhone and the Buds Live utilize Bixby on a Samsung Galaxy phone. If you use AirPods Pro with Android, you cant summon Siri or Google Assistant from your earbuds without downloading a third-party app.
You can customize the tap/press controls on each of these buds: AirPods from the iOS settings or control center, Buds Live from the Galaxy Wearable app. However only the Buds Live let you change the volume with a long-press on the touch panel. To change volume on the AirPods Pro you have to ask Siri, grab your phone or turn the crown on the Apple Watch.
The Galaxy Buds Live likewise provide the capability to switch between numerous devices signed into the exact same Samsung account. Theres likewise a Labs section in the app that lets you turn on a gaming mode to minimize latency. The AirPods Pro support Apples live listen feature for availability, so your iPhone serves as a microphone to send out noise to the earbuds.
If you lose your earbuds, both let you play a sound to help discover them again, but just the AirPods Pro will show their last place on a map.
Read our Samsung Galaxy Buds Live evaluation.
AirPods Pro or Galaxy Buds Live? How to select the very best …
Lexy Savvides/CNET.
Thanks to their in-ear style, the AirPods Pro have effective active noise cancellation, which actually does shut out most unwanted noise such as the holler of an airplane engine, or a low hum of a train. Considering that Ive been working from home for the past couple of months, I have not been able to check how the Galaxy Buds Live compare for airplane travel. (I did recreate a white-noise hum utilizing my really loud bathroom fan.) Because the Buds Live do not develop a seal in your ear like the AirPods Pro, they let in a lot more external sound. They also have ANC that you can switch on or off, however its not especially efficient compared to the AirPods Pro.
Call quality on both is likewise great, although in a noisy environment, callers remarked that the background hum was much less visible when I used the Galaxy Buds Live compared to the AirPods. Take a listen to microphone samples in the video on this page to hear what each pair sounds like. Both the Galaxy Buds Live and AirPods Pro let you utilize either earbud independently for calls.
Comfort and style is a love it or hate it affair.
You have to commend Samsung for developing a style that looks drastically different from every other cordless earbud out there. Depending on your ear shape, these bean-shaped buds fit comfortably in your ear without any protrusions. They can be found in bronze, white and black and to alter tracks or adjust volume, you just have to tap on the touch panel.
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Samsungs Galaxy Wearable app (on iOS and Android) lets you change the sound profile for the Buds Live to one of 6 various presets, like bass-boost or soft. While the AirPods Pro do not have a user-adjustable equalizer (unless you use an EQ in Apple Music or Spotify) there is an adaptive equalizer that alters the sound instantly based upon variables like your ear shape. Apples earbuds will likewise be getting a spatial audio upgrade in iOS 14.
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Galaxy Buds Live are much better for battery life.
The Galaxy Buds Live last longer if you want to listen to music or be on calls for much of the day. Samsung ranks the battery for six hours with ANC turned on and 8 hours with it turned off. I found that the Buds Live didnt quite measure up to that claim, just lasting 5 hours, 10 minutes with ANC turned on.
Apple rates the AirPods Pro for 4.5 hours with ANC on and approximately 5 hours with it shut off. When I first tested out the AirPods Pro back in October 2019 and they were new, they met and often surpassed Apples rating. Now however, after 10 months of usage, I get closer to four hours of battery life when using ANC.
Each case holds additional charge time: the Buds Live amounts to 29 hours (if youre not utilizing ANC) and the AirPods 24 hours. To charge them through cable, note that they use different plugs (USB-C for the Buds Live and Lightning for the AirPods Pro), but they also both wireless charge.
Are AirPods Pro or Galaxy Buds Live much better for me?
As always, this truly depends on how you use your earbuds and what ecosystem (iOS or Android/Siri or Bixby) youre already adept at using. If you need active sound canceling earbuds and want an excellent balance between music, podcasts and calls, pick the AirPods Pro. Get the Galaxy Buds Live if you desire much better sound quality and sound suppression for calls.
Samsung Galaxy Buds Live.
Terrific sound and a better fit for some.
Apple AirPods Pro.
The very best for sound canceling.
Since the Buds Live dont create a seal in your ear like the AirPods Pro, they let in a lot more external sound. Both the Galaxy Buds Live and AirPods Pro let you utilize either earbud independently for calls.
For water and sweat resistance, the AirPods Pro have a higher IP rating of IPX4 compared to the IPX2 on the Buds Live. As you would expect, the AirPods Pro use Siri on the iPhone and the Buds Live use Bixby on a Samsung Galaxy phone. I discovered that the Buds Live didnt quite live up to that claim, only lasting 5 hours, 10 minutes with ANC turned on.
