Samsung Galaxy Buds 4 Pro review

Samsung’s earbuds lineup has taken a pretty interesting path over the years. Earlier Galaxy Buds generations had a much more distinctive design language of their own, before Samsung changed direction with the Galaxy Buds 3 Pro and moved much closer to Apple’s look.

Those clearly gave off AirPods vibes. With the Galaxy Buds 4 Pro, Samsung still sticks to the stem-style approach, but this time the whole product feels more settled and more confident. The design looks cleaner, the overall package feels more refined, and more importantly, the experience finally comes together in a way that feels genuinely flagship.

Officially, Samsung positions the Buds 4 Pro with features like a two-way speaker setup, Bluetooth 6.1, Auracast, adaptive noise control, head gestures, IP57 protection, and 24-bit/96kHz UHQ audio on supported Galaxy devices.

What matters more to me, though, is how they feel in daily use, and that is where the Galaxy Buds 4 Pro really won me over. These are not earbuds that impress only on a spec sheet, and this review will tell you why.

The design is one of the first things that stood out to me. As I said, older Galaxy Buds had more of their own identity, while the Buds 3 Pro looked very obviously inspired by AirPods. The Galaxy Buds 4 Pro still follow that stem-based formula, but they do a better job of feeling like Samsung’s own product again.

The metallic blade finish gives them more character, and the transparent charging case also helps them stand apart a bit more from Apple’s cleaner, simpler case design. Samsung also gives them an IP57 rating, which adds some welcome peace of mind for everyday use.

More importantly, they are just really comfortable. And I do not mean that in the usual throwaway “yeah they fit fine” kind of way. The Galaxy Buds 4 Pro sit very pleasantly in the ear, and they stay comfortable even over several hours. That is one of the reasons I like them so much.

A lot of earbuds can make a strong first impression, but after an hour or two you start noticing pressure, irritation, or that slightly annoying feeling that makes you want to take them out for a break. I did not really have that here.

That also makes them feel much more like proper everyday earbuds. You can wear them for longer listening sessions, for calls, while working, while traveling, or just while moving through the day without constantly being reminded that you have something sitting in your ears. Samsung includes three sizes of silicone ear tips, and that obviously helps with dialing in the fit, but the overall shape deserves credit too.

For me, the comfort is one of the underrated strengths of the Buds 4 Pro. Premium earbuds should not just sound good for 20 minutes but easy to live with for hours.

The sound quality is excellent. Samsung equips the Buds 4 Pro with an 11 mm woofer and a 5.5 mm tweeter, and on supported Galaxy devices they also support 24-bit/96kHz UHQ audio.

In actual use, the Buds 4 Pro sound rich, lively, and properly premium. The bass has real punch and depth, but it does not just steamroll everything else. Vocals come through clearly, instruments have nice separation, and the highs bring enough detail and energy to keep music sounding exciting.

They have a fun sound, but not in a messy or exaggerated way. There is weight where you want it, but there is also enough control that the whole thing does not fall apart once a track gets more crowded.

What I also really like is that the Buds 4 Pro are not locked into one fixed sound identity the way AirPods Pro often feel. Apple’s earbuds still do the classic Apple thing where you mostly get Apple’s sound tuning and live with it. Samsung gives you more freedom. The 9-band equalizer is a real advantage here because it lets you actually tune the sound to your own taste.

That makes a difference in daily use. Some people want more bass, others want to smooth out the top end a bit, others want something more balanced overall. The Buds 4 Pro let you do that. Being able to customize the sound properly is just better than being stuck with a more fixed audio profile.

The active noise cancellation is one of the biggest strengths of the Galaxy Buds 4 Pro. Samsung highlights adaptive ANC and real-time adjustment based on wear and surroundings, and whether you care about the technical wording or not, the result is simply that the ANC works very well.

In everyday use, the Buds 4 Pro do a very convincing job of cutting off the outside world. They are especially effective in exactly the kinds of situations where you want flagship earbuds to earn their money: travel, commuting, general background noise, and those low steady sounds that can otherwise get annoying fast. They make it much easier to just focus on whatever you are listening to.

The transparency mode is also really strong, and honestly that is almost as important to me as ANC. Plenty of earbuds have an ambient mode, but not all of them sound natural. Here, outside sound comes through clearly enough that conversations and general awareness feel easy and normal, not weirdly artificial.

Samsung also includes voice detection and siren-related awareness features on the Pro model, which fits the idea that these are meant to be smart everyday earbuds, not just music accessories.

Samsung has packed the Buds 4 Pro with features, especially if you are already using Galaxy devices. They support Bluetooth 6.1, Auracast, 360 Audio, Auto Switch, and head gestures. You can use them to talk to Bixby or Google Gemini as well.

Head gestures are one of those features that could have easily ended up feeling like a gimmick, but they are actually pretty cool. Being able to nod to accept a call or shake your head to reject one makes the earbuds feel just a bit smarter and more modern in daily use.

That is the general vibe of the Buds 4 Pro in a nutshell. They do not try to wow you with one silly headline feature. They just have a lot of small and useful things that make the overall experience feel polished.

The microphones are also really good. That is worth stressing, because strong call quality makes a huge difference in whether earbuds feel like a complete everyday product or just something you use for music. With the Buds 4 Pro, calls sound clear, and even in louder environments people remain easy to understand. That is a big plus.

Samsung also builds in call-focused features like voice enhancement and noise reduction, and the Buds 4 Pro absolutely feel like earbuds that were designed to handle more than just media playback.

Battery life is good, even if this is probably the one area where I would not call the Buds 4 Pro class-leading. Samsung lists up to 6 hours with ANC on and up to 7 hours with ANC off, with the charging case extending that to up to 26 hours or 30 hours respectively. The case supports both USB-C and wireless charging.

And importantly, those numbers do not feel made up. On my return flight from San Francisco, I was able to test the Buds 4 Pro properly and the endurance held up very well. So while these are not earbuds that suddenly redefine battery life in this category, they do feel honest in what they deliver.

That said, there are clearly earbuds out there with better runtimes. If battery life is the single most important thing to you, you can find stronger numbers elsewhere. But I also do not think that becomes a huge practical issue here, because the charging case helps a lot.

The nice thing with earbuds like these is that you do not always need some giant marathon battery result from one continuous session. In real life, you often put them back in the case for a short time anyway, and with the Buds 4 Pro that quickly gives you several more hours to work with. So even if the raw numbers are not market-leading, the overall experience still feels very manageable and convenient.

That is basically how I would sum up the battery story: not best-in-class, but absolutely solid, and more than good enough in actual everyday use.

The Galaxy Buds 4 Pro are excellent earbuds and very easily among Samsung’s best audio products so far. The Buds 4 Pro sit firmly in the premium segment and are priced accordingly, and while the price is on the higher side, you are getting your money's worth.

The Buds 4 Pro sound fantastic, the ANC is strong, transparency mode is top-notch, the microphones are very good, and the comfort is one of the things that really makes them stand out to me. Being able to wear them pleasantly for several hours matters a lot, and the Buds 4 Pro get that right.

What I like most is that they feel like a complete product. They do not just have one standout feature while the rest is average. They are strong across the board. The design feels more settled than the Buds 3 Pro, the sound is excellent, and the EQ gives them a real advantage over AirPods if you actually care about tailoring the listening experience to your own taste.

Battery life may not be the absolute best in the segment, but it is still solid and easy to live with, especially because a short stop in the case quickly gets you going again. And once you put all of that together, the headline still fits perfectly: these really are Samsung’s best earbuds yet.