I’ve been very impressed with Samsung’s third-gen wi-fi earbuds. The Galaxy Buds3 Pro ($190), which have been launched in 2024, have been a stable AirPods Professional competitor for Android homeowners. Now, they’ve been joined by the Galaxy Buds3 FE, a brand new entry-level mannequin that appears almost an identical to the Buds3 Professional however trades away plenty of bells and whistles for a extra accessible worth: $150.
The Professional’s high-tech LED “blade” lights are gone, as is head monitoring, auto-pause, twin drivers, wi-fi charging, and full waterproofing. What issues extra is what Samsung saved: a really comfy match, nice sound high quality, and surprisingly good ANC, transparency, and name high quality. In brief, the Galaxy Buds3 FE get an important stuff proper.
Like all Samsung Galaxy wi-fi earbuds, a few of their extra fascinating options are completely out there when utilizing Samsung Galaxy phones (and don’t even take into consideration shopping for them when you’re on an iPhone), which narrows their potential market. However when you’re a true-blue Samsung fan on a finances, the Galaxy Buds3 FE are an excellent set of wi-fi buds.
Midrange Gems
{Photograph}: Simon Cohen
Although Samsung calls them Galaxy Buds3 FE—you’d naturally assume which means they substitute 2023’s Galaxy Buds FE ($100)—they’re truly a form of midrange possibility. Samsung is preserving the Buds FE round (and sustaining the value), which I feel is a superb concept. The unique Buds FE are nonetheless glorious, and now you’ve acquired two completely different match choices: the older, button-style, and the newer AirPods imitation form. As a bonus, when you go for the Buds3 FE, you get higher water and mud safety: IP54 versus IPX2.
Between the 2 FE fashions, I’ve acquired to present the consolation award to the Buds3 FE. With much less mass in your ear and no silicone stability fin wrapped across the circumference, it’s a mild, straightforward really feel. In case you’ve ever tried the Galaxy Buds3 Professional, Apple AirPods Professional, or similarly shaped, stem-based models, the Buds3 FE ought to really feel immediately acquainted. Nevertheless, that additionally means they aren’t precisely rock-solid for high-impact actions like working. That is the place the unique Galaxy Buds FE nonetheless have an edge: Twist them into place and it’s unlikely they’ll budge except you need them to.
Put on App through Simon Cohen
Samsung isn’t very beneficiant with ear tip sizes. Past the preinstalled medium suggestions, you solely get a small and a big measurement within the field—the brand new AirPods Professional, for instance, offer you 4 pairs. Be sure you use the match take a look at within the Samsung Wear app when you get the earbuds related. I assumed the medium suggestions felt OK, however the take a look at prompted me to strive the massive, and it was proper: They gave me a greater match and a tighter seal.
Talking of what’s in (or not in) the field, Samsung, like Apple, now not features a charging cable. You most likely have at the very least one USB-C cable already, however when you don’t, you’ll want one.
Transferring to the stem-based design brings pinch and swipe gestures to the FE household. Samsung borrowed this technique from Apple’s AirPods Professional, however the triangular form of the Galaxy Buds’ stems could make these controls just a little tougher to make use of than Apple’s. You do get used to them, nevertheless, and general, I feel they’re an enchancment on the first-gen Buds FE’s contact controls—particularly utilizing the up/down swipe gesture to regulate quantity.
Samsung’s AirPods
{Photograph}: Simon Cohen
Sound high quality on the Galaxy Buds3 FE is excellent. It not solely compares properly to different earbuds at this worth, it holds as much as many dearer fashions. The sound signature is strong, with glorious response throughout frequencies. The low finish is resonant but snappy, the mids and highs are clear and detailed, and the soundstage has a lovely quantity of width and depth.
