Another month, another pair of wireless earbuds from a leading tech manufacturer. We’ve reviewed quite a few in just six months and each one has been good to very good. Samsung Galaxy Buds Plus had stamina that impressed earbud aficionado Adam Kelly. Google Pixel Buds (2020) featured a great user experience with its enhanced touch controls, live translation and always-on assistant. Huawei FreeBuds 3i had active noise-cancellation crammed in. Samsung Galaxy Buds Live comes as a wonder of modern electronics.
What Hath Science Wrought
The entire package of Samsung Galaxy Buds Live is tiny. The case, a curved-edge cuboid, is just 50.2x50x27.8mm. It’s a pocketable package at just 53.4 grams in total.
The buds themselves are ridiculously small. Kidney bean-shaped and built to sit mostly inside your ears, the thought that has gone into the design is commendable on its own. Shrinking everything necessary into a pair of 27.3×16.5×14.9mm beans is a mind-blowing achievement.
The practicality and implementation of Samsung Galaxy Buds Live is excellent. Despite a bold and daring design, they are comfortable. The seal is effective (though not as good as Galaxy Buds+) and as a result, they feel secure in the ear while running or jogging.
Even how they sit in their charging case seems to have crafted for ease of use. The buds of Galaxy Buds Live almost sit on the case more than inside the case. Magnets hold them tight in their respective recesses. They also readily sit themselves back in their case when you are done or need a charge.
Samsung Galaxy Styling
There are three colours of Buds Live available. Our review model’s ‘Bronze’ standouts from the white and black other two. The outer casing’s matted aluminium and curved corners have an elegent and refined look even if the colour will divide opinion.
The bronze colouring seems more intense on the glossy metallic buds themselves but if you like the outer, you will love the copper tone of the buds. The plastic areas on the reverse of the buds and the inside of the case are a muted tan than tries to remain inconspicuous lest it disturb the rest of the look.
Surprising but Not Superb Sound
Fitting 12mm drivers in Samsung Galaxy Buds Live surely presented a huge challenge to their designers. The sound from the drivers is good but they are a little throaty – the faux bass trickery sounds harsh and slightly rough with no adjustments to EQ.
This roughness obviously disturbs the mids and highs a little, both of which sound good otherwise. Once you mess with the set’s voice and dial back the bass a little bit they sound a lot better. Given their size and form, Buds Live sound better than I expected but compared to slightly larger buds in their class, they don’t hold up.
Active noise-cancellation performance is excellent considering their size but again, there is better implementation on other buds in its range.
For How Long Do Samsung Galaxy Buds Live Live?
Another impressive feat is the competitive stamina of Buds Live. Given their diminutive dimensions, Samsung could have been forgiven for mediocre staying power but the earbuds are rated to do a maximum shift of about eight hours with no ANC or Bixby. Samsung claim around six hours with ANC on. These figures seem about correct given my daily usage and experience with Buds Live
The case brings the maximum total to around 29. ANC-on total is around 21 hours. There are many larger earbuds that can’t quite boast these figures.
With only five minutes in the charging case, a listener can get about an hour’s playback. Samsung Galaxy Buds can be charged wirelessly (Qi-enabled). If your smartphone supports reverse wireless charging, this feature will save you from mild boredom some day.
Just Shy on Sound
Samsung Galaxy Buds Live are yet another milestone in relatively new tech – the buds’ size is a miracle of miniaturisation. Add to this Samsung’s eye for visually striking design and Galaxy Buds Live justify their price tag. It’s a pity that a musically pleasing sound takes a bit of backseat to both.
Around €179/£159/$169 at the time of review.
Review unit provided by PR.
