Galaxy Buds 3 vs Galaxy Buds 3 Pro: What are the differences?

The exciting new features of Galaxy Buds 3 and Galaxy Buds 3 Pro and the totally new design make this generation of Galaxy Buds one of the top choices of wireless earbuds in 2024 for Android users. However, many people are confused about the differences between Galaxy Buds 3 vs Galaxy Buds 3 Pro.

This Galaxy Buds guide explains the 5 major differences between Galaxy Buds 3 and Galaxy Buds 3 Pro, including design, adaptive ANC, sound quality, battery, and price, to help you make informed decisions when buying your new wireless earbuds.

The common features of Galaxy Buds 3 and Galaxy Buds 3 Pro are discussed in this post. This post focuses on the differences of Galaxy Buds 3 vs Galaxy Buds 3 Pro.

Galaxy Buds 3 vs Galaxy Buds 3 Pro: Different design

Samsung revamped the design for both Galaxy Buds 3 and Galaxy Buds 3 Pro. Although they look similar, the difference in design is obvious.

Galaxy Buds 3 adopted the open-ear design without ear tips to seal the fit. Galaxy Buds 3 Pro, on the contrary, adopted the traditional in-ear design for noise-canceling earbuds.

In a nutshell, Galaxy Buds 3 is the successor of the bean-shaped Galaxy Buds Live. It is designed for users who are uncomfortable with the “stuffed” feeling in their ears. Of course, due to the open-ear design, active noise canceling (ANC) is less effective on Galaxy Buds 3 vs Galaxy Buds 3 Pro.

The Galaxy Bud 3 Pro is designed for users who prefer “strong” noise canceling, blocking ambient sound as much as possible. The contour of Galaxy Buds 3 Pro, together with the silicon tips, can effectively create an isolated audio environment in your ears.

Like it or not, Galaxy Buds 3 is similar to AirPods 3, while Galaxy Buds 3 Pro is close to AirPods Pro 2.

Blade light is another design difference when you compare Galaxy Buds 3 vs Galaxy Buds 3 Pro. Both buds have a stem. However, the built-in LED light, which Samsung called Blade Light, is only available on the stem of Galaxy Buds 3 Pro.

Adaptive ANC

ANC is one of the essential features in the top-tier wireless earbuds in 2024. Both Galaxy Buds 3 and Galaxy Buds 3 Pro have this feature.

However, in addition to overall better noise canceling, Galaxy Buds 3 Pro has a few advanced features related to ANC, mainly Adaptive ANC.

Adaptive ANC is a sophisticated Galaxy AI-based feature that intelligently identifies and diminishes ambient distractions, such as unwanted conversations and street noise. It offers users the flexibility to fine-tune the level of background noise suppression while remaining attuned to essential sounds like alarms and sirens.

Moreover, the Adaptive ANC lets you prioritize conversations, seamlessly adjusting to incoming speech while enjoying music playback.

Similar features can be found in AirPods Pro in iOS 17, such as adaptive mode and conversation awareness (different from voice detection in Galaxy Buds 2 and other Galaxy Buds devices).

Galaxy Buds 3 vs Galaxy Buds 3 Pro: Sound quality

Both Galaxy Buds 3 and Galaxy Buds 3 Pro offer decent sound quality that matches that of other flagship wireless earbuds, e.g., Sony WF-1000XM5, AirPods Pro 2, Pixel Buds Pro, and Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds.

Of course, sound quality is usually subjective to individual ears and music sources. But we feel that Galaxy Buds 3 Pro, most of the time, delivers noticeably better sound quality compared to Galaxy Buds 3, with the same audio source on the same device.

The better sound quality of Galaxy Buds 3 Pro may be attributed to the dual amplifier (independently controlled woofer and tweeter) and the two-way speaker. As a comparison, Galaxy Buds 3 offers a one-way speaker with an 11mm dynamic driver.

Please note that both models can handle high-quality 24-bit/96 Hz sound (through Samsung Seamless Codec) and 360 audio. So, the sound quality is close to that of wireless earbuds with LDAC codec.

Galaxy Buds 3 vs Galaxy Buds 3 Pro: Battery and Playtime

Galaxy Buds 3 Pro has a slightly larger battery of 53mAh and offers 6 hours of music play time with ANC on.

As a comparison, the battery capacity of Galaxy Buds 3 is 48mAh. The claimed music playtime is about 5 hours (with ANC on).

The case for both models has an identical battery capacity of 515mAh.

Price

The list price of Galaxy Buds 3 and Galaxy Buds 3 Pro in the US is $179.99 and $249.99, respectively. The street price is always lower.

In other regions, Samsung may price them differently. But Galaxy Buds 3 Pro is generally more expensive than Galaxy Buds 3 in all regions.

Do you have any questions about the comparison of Galaxy Buds 3 and Galaxy Buds 3 Pro?

Please let us know in the comment box below if you have any questions about the differences between Galaxy Buds 3 and Galaxy Buds 3 Pro.

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