Earbuds made by cellphone manufacturers normally get a nasty rap. Audiophiles usually dismiss earbuds from normal tech manufacturers, like Samsung, Google, or Apple, in favor of choices from legacy audio manufacturers, corresponding to Sony or Bose. That stated, I have been impressed by the newest Galaxy Buds, Pixel Buds, and AirPods fashions. Frankly, the finest earbuds for many customers are those that match their cellphone model.
Of the bunch, the Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 Professional is perhaps essentially the most underrated. By way of sound high quality, the Galaxy Buds 3 Professional can cling with the most effective. They’re comfy, with stable energetic noise-canceling and a very good software program suite. Though there are just a few locations the place the Galaxy Buds 3 Professional may very well be improved, I am not excited for the upcoming Galaxy Buds 4 Professional.
The Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 Professional design does not want altering
Samsung appears destined to alter the Galaxy Buds 3 Professional design, and in a serious approach. It is not onerous to determine why. The Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 Professional had been ridiculed by followers and haters alike for his or her look, which channel the AirPods Professional fashion in a really comparable approach. This mannequin added stems for the primary time and snap-attaching ear suggestions for the primary time, much like AirPods.
Samsung executives had been reportedly livid that the Galaxy Buds 3 Professional seemed like a knockoff of the AirPods Professional. Because of this, I am not stunned in any respect that the corporate is ready to make sweeping adjustments with the upcoming Galaxy Buds 4 Professional. I simply did not count on them to be this radical.
As revealed in a One UI 8.5 animations leak, the Galaxy Buds 4 Professional are anticipated to have a revamped design with flatter stems, a special insertion angle, and a brand new mesh grill on the skin (by way of Android Authority). The triangular stems and their LED strips appear to be utterly gone.
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Wanting on the leaked Galaxy Buds 4 Professional renders, I am prematurely mourning the lack of the Galaxy Buds 3 Professional. I might’ve preferred Samsung to enhance the reliability of swipe gestures and pinch controls, which had been too straightforward to by accident set off. I might’ve additionally welcomed sturdier ear suggestions and a refined connection system, as the present mannequin’s suggestions are likely to tear when switched out usually.
However a whole design overhaul? That feels extreme.
Contemplating the Galaxy Buds 3 Professional had been arguably my favourite earbuds till Bose launched the QuietComfort Extremely Gen 2 earbuds just a few months in the past, I am nervous the design adjustments may very well be for the more serious. In relation to headphone and earbud design, much less is extra. If it is not broke, do not attempt to repair it.
It is a philosophy I am all too aware of, as a result of Apple’s revamped AirPods Professional 3 design left me on the skin wanting in. Though I’ve used AirPods Professional and AirPods Professional 2 up to now, I merely do not discover the newer mannequin comfy. That is the danger an organization takes when it considerably adjustments the design of an audio product. What’s horrifying is that the rumored Galaxy Buds 4 Professional design adjustments look to be far better than what Apple did with the AirPods Professional 3.
Samsung may revamp the Galaxy Buds 4 Professional case for the more serious
Samsung is not stopping with simply the earbuds — it is also rumored to be altering the case design as properly. As an alternative of a tall charging case that the earbuds slide into vertically, the Galaxy Buds 4 Professional are anticipated to make use of a flat, jewelry-style charging case. I am not a fan of this earbud case fashion, as they’re usually bigger and tougher to pocket than the choice. I really feel just like the Galaxy Buds 4 Professional substitute may very well be a step backward.
The good factor I can say concerning the rumored Galaxy Buds 4 Professional is that they are nonetheless anticipated to lean into what Samsung’s audio gear does finest — software program. Along with traditional options like sport mode and Samsung Seamless Codec (SSC) help, the Galaxy Buds 4 Professional are anticipated so as to add a “Discover Your Cellphone” button on the charging case.
This button would allow you to ping your cellphone by way of Bluetooth from the earbuds’ case. The reverse may work, too, with a speaker grille on the charging case. That is clearly the intense spot of a rumored charging case design change.
The Galaxy Buds 3 Professional are peak Samsung earbuds
It is too early to say whether or not the Samsung Galaxy Buds 4 Professional can be successful. Nevertheless, the indicators level to the Galaxy Buds 4 Professional being considerably totally different from the Galaxy Buds 3 Professional. That is a dangerous transfer, for the reason that Galaxy Buds 3 Professional shined in 2024 and held up properly in 2025.
Blindly copying Apple is a nasty factor, however altering a stable product design to keep away from being known as a copycat is not a successful technique both. It is why I believe the Galaxy Buds 3 Professional may nonetheless be my favourite Samsung earbuds even after the brand new mannequin comes out.
