Samsung this week introduced its latest earbuds, the Galaxy Buds3 Pro, which look quite a bit like Apple’s AirPods Pro 2. Given the similarities, we thought we’d compare Samsung’s new earbuds to the AirPods Pro.
Design wise, you could potentially mistake Samsung’s Galaxy Buds3 Pro for the AirPods Pro. The Buds3 Pro have the same general shape and a silicone tip, though it’s worth noting that the Buds3 Pro come in both white and gray, so you’re not limited to white as you are with the AirPods Pro 2. The charging case is similar to the AirPods Charging Case too, but there’s a transparent upper portion.
The Buds3 Pro sound great out of the box, but there is an option to adjust the sound using the equalizer, which isn’t possible with the AirPods Pro 2. The Active Noise Cancellation and the “Ambient Mode” or transparency on the Buds3 Pro work as well as those features on the AirPods Pro, and it’s tough to tell the difference between them.
Samsung’s Buds3 Pro do not perform as well as the AirPods Pro when it comes to ambient noise detection to adjust sound, however. The AirPods Pro can adjust sound when someone is speaking to you so you can hear them, but the Buds3 Pro struggled to do the same.
The Buds3 Pro have a built-in LED light for aesthetics, and there are controls on the stem for adjusting volume. Samsung also added an interpreter mode for translating foreign languages when connected to the most recent Galaxy phones, but the feature wasn’t super accurate.
Though the Buds3 Pro are similar to the AirPods Pro 2, it’s hard to see the two as competitors because you’re only going to want to use the Buds3 Pro with Android devices, while the AirPods Pro 2 work best with Apple devices. iPhone users should stick with the AirPods, while Samsung users will want to check out the Buds3 Pro.
Samsung’s Galaxy Buds3 Pro are priced at $250, which is the same price as the AirPods Pro 2. Pre-orders are available now ahead of a July 24 launch date.