The Galaxy Buds 3 and Buds 3 Pro were great earbuds, so the Galaxy Buds 4 had some big shoes to fill. Luckily, thanks to a sleek redesign and some surprising new features, I think Samsung may have knocked it out of the park.
I do wanna preface this by saying that I'm not a huge fan of earbuds with stems. I find they often just look like AirPod clones, and the design usually feels uninspired. However, I don't feel that way about Samsung's Galaxy Buds 4 and Buds 4 Pro. In fact, after trying them out during my hands-on at Galaxy Unpacked, I might have to pick up a pair for myself.
The Galaxy Buds 4 feature an updated design with a flat, metal finish on one side of the stem. The contrast between the metal and the rest of the earbuds is pretty striking, helping them stand out from a sea of similar-looking earbuds. It also feels quite smooth and nice to the touch, though you probably won't be touching it all that much (more on that later).
The Buds 4 and Buds 4 Pro look very similar, but they stand apart: the latter features interchangeable ear tips, while the former goes for a unibody approach, likely with less seal on your eardrums.
Unfortunately, the colors aren't as bold, with white and black as the standard, and Pink Gold available for the Pro. I kind of wish Samsung featured more colors to match the new Galaxy S26 series, but I digress.
After using the Buds Pro 4, I was impressed with the audio quality. I played The Midnight's "Fatal Obsession," and it sounded clean and crisp. That said, I'm no audiophile, so it doesn't take much to impress me in that regard, but I thought they sounded good, nonetheless. If you want a more thorough deep dive into the audio quality and experience, you'll just have to wait for the full review.
But where I was really impressed was with literally everything else. Samsung seems to have fine-tuned the experience, almost as if they heard my complaints from other wireless earbuds and addressed them here. For instance, as I spoke aloud, the earbuds automatically lowered the volume of the song I was playing, allowing me to hear myself and the person I'm talking to clearly. It worked so seamlessly, and while it's not the first of its kind, it is the first time I've felt compelled to use this feature.
Samsung also put the touch controls on the side, not on the metal bit, so I can raise or lower the volume by sliding my finger up or down the stem. I could also perform other actions by pinching the sides, such as triggering Gemini. Normally, I don't care much for capacitive touch controls on earbuds, as they always trigger when I'm adjusting my buds. However, these are far enough out of the way that I can still grab the metal part of the stem to adjust the buds without accidentally stopping my music.
There are also head gestures, which let you nod or shake your head to do things like answer phone calls. Unfortunately, I didn't get to try this, but I'm curious to see how well it works in the real world.
Samsung also redesigned the charging case, making it shorter and allowing the buds to lie flat. The top is translucent, which is a nice touch, and the case itself offers up to 24 or 26 hours of battery life with ANC on, in addition to the five or six hours on the Galaxy Buds 4 or 4 Pro, respectively.
There's a lot to like about the new Galaxy Buds, and I love that, despite the stem design, Samsung seems to be differentiating them enough to make them stand out in a sea of similar-looking earbuds. And at $179 and $249, respectively, these are significantly cheaper than competing options, such as the excellent but expensive Sony WF-1000XM6, making them an attractive buy for Galaxy S26 owners.
