Earbuds made by telephone manufacturers often get a nasty rap. Audiophiles typically dismiss earbuds from common 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 most recent Galaxy Buds, Pixel Buds, and AirPods fashions. Frankly, the finest earbuds for many customers are those that match their telephone model.
Of the bunch, the Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 Professional may be probably the most underrated. When it comes to sound high quality, the Galaxy Buds 3 Professional can dangle with the very best. They’re comfy, with strong energetic noise-canceling and a very good software program suite. Though there are just a few locations the place the Galaxy Buds 3 Professional might be improved, I am not excited for the upcoming Galaxy Buds 4 Professional.
The Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 Professional design would not want altering
Samsung appears destined to alter the Galaxy Buds 3 Professional design, and in a significant approach. It is not laborious to determine why. The Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 Professional have been ridiculed by followers and haters alike for his or her look, which channel the AirPods Professional type in a really related approach. This mannequin added stems for the primary time and snap-attaching ear ideas for the primary time, just like AirPods.
Samsung executives have been reportedly livid that the Galaxy Buds 3 Professional appeared like a knockoff of the AirPods Professional. In consequence, I am not shocked in any respect that the corporate is ready to make sweeping modifications with the upcoming Galaxy Buds 4 Professional. I simply did not anticipate 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 unique insertion angle, and a brand new mesh grill on the surface (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 have been too straightforward to by chance set off. I might’ve additionally welcomed sturdier ear ideas and a refined connection system, as the present mannequin’s ideas are likely to tear when switched out typically.
However a whole design overhaul? That feels extreme.
Contemplating the Galaxy Buds 3 Professional have been arguably my favourite earbuds till Bose launched the QuietComfort Extremely Gen 2 earbuds just a few months in the past, I am frightened the design modifications might be for the more severe. On the subject of 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 acquainted with, as a result of Apple’s revamped AirPods Professional 3 design left me on the surface 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 chance an organization takes when it considerably modifications the design of an audio product. What’s scary is that the rumored Galaxy Buds 4 Professional design modifications 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 severe
Samsung is not stopping with simply the earbuds — it is also rumored to be altering the case design as properly. As a substitute 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 type, as they’re sometimes bigger and tougher to pocket than the choice. I really feel just like the Galaxy Buds 4 Professional substitute might 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 basic options like sport mode and Samsung Seamless Codec (SSC) help, the Galaxy Buds 4 Professional are anticipated so as to add a “Discover Your Telephone” button on the charging case.
This button would allow you to ping your telephone by way of Bluetooth from the earbuds’ case. The reverse might 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 will probably be a success. Nevertheless, the indicators level to the Galaxy Buds 4 Professional being considerably completely different from the Galaxy Buds 3 Professional. That is a dangerous transfer, because the Galaxy Buds 3 Professional shined in 2024 and held up properly in 2025.
Blindly copying Apple is a nasty factor, however altering a strong product design to keep away from being referred to as a copycat is not a profitable technique both. It is why I feel the Galaxy Buds 3 Professional may nonetheless be my favourite Samsung earbuds even after the brand new mannequin comes out.
