Samsung Galaxy Buds 4 and 4 Professional assessment: Spectacular audio, imperfect ANC

Samsung caught flak for the Galaxy Buds 3. The corporate’s mimicry of Apple’s AirPods was all too apparent final yr when it opted for a stem or “blade” design after a number of generations of placing contact controls on the principle housing of its earbuds. The Galaxy Buds 4 and Galaxy Buds 4 Pro proceed that trajectory, as Samsung retains including new options with direct parallels to AirPods. The excellent news is, each fashions have been improved in numerous methods, all whereas  their costs keep the identical.

Samsung

The Galaxy Buds 4 provide good sound and the advantages of an open match, however the ANC wants work. They’re nonetheless a compelling possibility for Galaxy telephone house owners wanting to economize over the Galaxy Buds 4 Professional.

Execs

• Refined design
• Wonderful audio
• A number of options
• Open match has its advantages

Cons

• Design continues to be unoriginal
• ANC is barely helpful
• Many options require a Samsung telephone
• Fixed match changes because of open design

A refined design that’s nonetheless too acquainted

On final yr’s Galaxy Buds fashions, Samsung launched its “blade” design and total shapes that clearly took inspiration from Apple’s earbuds. Whereas all of that continues to be the identical on the Galaxy Buds 4 lineup, Samsung made some refinements that at the least offers its earbuds a extra polished look.

The angular “blade” is gone from each the open-fit Galaxy Buds 4 and silicone-tipped Galaxy Buds 4 Professional. That stem is now a flat panel with a skinny metallic cowl, nevertheless it’s nonetheless known as the blade (thanks, Samsung). And thank the gods, the gimmicky blade lights on the final Professional mannequin are actually gone. The Galaxy Buds 4 and 4 Professional each have an indented space that accepts each swipes and presses for the onboard controls, a design alternative that makes that space simple to search out by contact alone. Except for that, the general form of each Galaxy Buds 4 fashions stays principally the identical, they usually’re each just about the identical measurement too.

One huge change for the Galaxy Buds 4 duo is the charging case. Because the buds now lay flat in there as an alternative of sitting vertically within the case on the earlier mannequin, Samsung has gone again to its rounded sq. form from older generations. The corporate did, nonetheless, hold the translucent lids, so you possibly can clearly see if the earbuds are within the case with out having to open it.

Along with their kinds (the Buds 4 are open match whereas the Professional have ear ideas), a notable distinction between the 2 is their ingress safety (IP) ranges. The Galaxy Buds 4 Professional is rated IP57, which is sweet sufficient for mud safety and full immersion in as much as three toes for half-hour, whereas the Galaxy Buds 4 is IP54. That latter quantity means you’re solely guarded towards mud intrusion and water splashes.

Helpful options, when you’ve got a Samsung telephone

A couple of years in the past, Samsung provided iPhone customers the same suite of features as these onGalaxy telephones. These days are lengthy gone. Like Apple does with AirPods and Google with Pixel Buds, Samsung requires you to pair a Galaxy telephone to get essentially the most out of a pair of Galaxy Buds 4 or 4 Professional. If you happen to go for the open-fit mannequin although, you’ll should sacrifice just a few options.

Let’s begin with the instruments which are out there on each variations. You’ll be able to anticipate Adaptive EQ 2.0, 360 audio with head monitoring, Auracast, automated switching, head gestures and each contact and swipe controls throughout the board. Each fashions additionally provide AI help by way of both Bixby or Gemini.

Voice options are the place the 2 fashions primarily differ. The Galaxy Buds 4 Professional has voice detection that mechanically lowers the quantity and prompts ambient sound mode once you begin talking. The pricier model additionally gives hands-free entry to an AI assistant with out having to the touch the earbuds or your related machine.

Just about all of these items requires a Samsung telephone. Certain, you should utilize the fundamentals — ANC, onboard controls and ambient sound — from the likes of iPhones and Macs. However the extra superior gadgets like voice detection, head gestures and automated switching received’t be out there there. As earlier than, there’s an app for Android customers with non-Galaxy telephones, however issues like UHD audio and higher-quality calls are usually not out there on these gadgets. If you happen to do have a Galaxy telephone, every part is baked into the Bluetooth menu, similar to Apple does with AirPods.

Shockingly good sound high quality

I’ve come to anticipate good sound from the Galaxy Buds line. I often go into any new Samsung audio assessment figuring out I”ll be getting common audio high quality on the very least. On final yr’s Galaxy Buds 3, the sound efficiency was effectively above common for each units, and that continues on the 2 newest fashions. Nevertheless, if audio is your major precedence, the Galaxy Buds 4 Professional is the higher decide.

Like Samsung did with the Galaxy Buds 3 Professional, this yr’s 4 Professional has a two-way driver setup with an 11mm “super-wide” woofer and a 5.5mm planar tweeter. Whereas the woofer is bigger than what’s inside the three Professional, the tweeter is smaller. These elements mix for shockingly good sound high quality for a pair of Samsung earbuds. I used to be really stunned after I put the Galaxy Buds 4 Professional in my ears for the primary time and performed aya’s electro-tinged hexed! The driving bass line on “off the ESSO” is energetic but nuanced, vocals are reducing and clear, whereas the synths and different percussive components pierce by way of the combination. The Galaxy Buds 4 Professional deftly dealt with every part I threw at it, from Spiritbox’s heavy metallic to the mellow acoustic tunes on Muscadine Bloodline’s 2025 launch.

The Galaxy Buds 4 aren’t a sonic slouch by any means. It’s true you’ll get deeper bass and extra total readability and element from the Professional mannequin, however potential consumers who need an open match don’t should sacrifice an excessive amount of within the sound division. There’s nonetheless punchy bass and crunchy highs, with sufficient midrange to fill within the gaps adequately. I observed the largest distinction on that aya monitor, the place the bass isn’t as deep or detailed and the remainder of the combination isn’t fairly as dynamic as it’s on the Galaxy Buds 4 Professional.

Energetic noise cancellation that also wants work

Whereas each Galaxy Buds 4 fashions provide lively noise cancellation (ANC), the Professional model has what Samsung calls Adaptive Energetic Noise Cancellation 2.0 versus simply Adaptive Energetic Noise Cancellation on the opposite. The corporate didn’t go into a lot element in regards to the variations, aside from to say the ANC efficiency on the Galaxy Buds 4 Professional is superior. Therefore the two.0, I suppose.

ANC efficiency was a significant concern on the Galaxy Buds 3 and that continues on the Galaxy Buds 4. Samsung simply hasn’t managed to crack the noise cancellation code on open-fit earbuds the identical manner Apple has with its “regular” AirPods. The truth is, the ANC on this new mannequin makes such a modest distinction, I’d wager most clients would like to commerce it for longer battery life (or a cheaper price). I solely saved it on within the curiosity of my battery rundown, in any other case I wouldn’t have used it in any respect. It’s undoubtedly extra like lively noise discount than outright cancellation.

Fortunately, noise cancellation is a distinct story on the Galaxy Buds 4 Professional. It’s nonetheless not going to silence the world just like the second-gen Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds can, however Samsung’s tech does simply sufficient to make it helpful in most circumstances. I discovered it notably adept at blocking reasonable ranges of fixed noise, like a garments dryer, fan or white noise machine. It’s the sudden jolts of racket the place the Professional struggles. The Buds 4 Professional additionally does a good job at muffling human voices, which triggered my household a lot frustration.

Calls and voice high quality

Each audio firm claims its particular sauce is the important thing to the clearest calls, and Samsung isn’t any completely different. The corporate boasts that its combo of a 16kHz tremendous wideband mode, DNN noise discount and customized beamforming mics provide “calls so clear, it’s gorgeous.” After all, that promise requires a Galaxy S26 sequence telephone — not simply the earbuds.

I used to be shocked to find how effectively I sounded in quiet environments as each of those earbuds provide voice high quality that’s crisp and clear. If you happen to transfer to a loud spot, each fashions will fully block any background roar, however you’ll sound barely digitized on the opposite finish. This was extra obvious on the Galaxy Buds 4, nevertheless it’s noticeable on each variations. That’s because of all of the audio processing Samsung is doing to mute these distractions.

To high all of it off, the ambient sound mode on the Galaxy Buds 4 Professional may be very pure, which suggests you received’t be yelling to listen to your self throughout calls or conferences.

The competitors

If you happen to’re in search of the very best earbuds to make use of with a Samsung telephone, the Galaxy Buds 4 and 4 Professional are your greatest choices. Once more, like Apple does with the AirPods and Google with the Pixel Buds, Samsung continues to supply essentially the most superior and most helpful options to the Galaxy trustworthy. If you happen to don’t actually care about that synergy, the second-gen Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds are at present my top pick. That set received’t wow you with options, however the mixture of wonderful sound high quality and the very best ANC efficiency make them arduous to beat. Plus, multipoint Bluetooth connectivity gives simple switching between a Galaxy S26 and a MacBook.

Wrap-up

With every passing yr, Samsung attracts nearer to providing Galaxy telephone customers a real like-for-like AirPods rival. The corporate is actually solely lagging behind Apple in two areas: listening to well being and heart-rate monitoring. Samsung at present gives the choice to amplify voices on its earbuds, nevertheless it hasn’t constructed a listening to check or the listening to safety instruments Apple has. The largest replace on the AirPods Professional 3 was the addition of heart-rate monitoring final yr, which might be an amazing basis for a fitness-focused model of the Galaxy Buds.

Every thing else continues to enhance on a well-recognized components. Samsung has bolstered total sound high quality and ANC efficiency, even when the noise canceling talents of the Galaxy Buds 4 stay considerably lackluster. The design modifications provide a extra premium look and the gradual addition of recent options like head gestures assist the corporate hold tempo with the competitors. Whereas the Galaxy Buds 4 and 4 Professional are each good, Samsung actually must take larger swings with new options to make its earbuds the must-buy that AirPods are for iPhone customers.