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  1. Table of Contents
  2. Top
  3. Main Differences
  4. Design
    1. Style
    2. Comfort
    3. Controls
    4. Breathability
    5. Portability
    6. Case
    7. Build Quality
    8. Stability
    9. Headshots 1
    10. Headshots 2
    11. Top
    12. In The Box
  5. Sound
    1. Sound Profile
    2. Frequency Response Consistency
    3. Raw Frequency Response
    4. Bass Profile: Target Compliance
    5. Mid-Range Profile: Target Compliance
    6. Treble Profile: Target Compliance
    7. Peaks/Dips
    8. Imaging
    9. Passive Soundstage
    10. Virtual Soundstage
    11. Weighted Harmonic Distortion
    12. Test Settings
  6. Isolation
    1. Noise Isolation - Full Range
    2. Noise Isolation - Common Scenarios
    3. Noise Isolation - Voice Handling
    4. ANC Wind Handling
    5. Leakage
  7. Microphone
    1. Microphone Style
    2. Recording Quality
    3. Noise Handling
  8. Active Features
    1. Battery
    2. App Support
  9. Connectivity
    1. Wired Connection
    2. Bluetooth Connection
    3. Wireless Connection (Dongle)
    4. PC Compatibility
    5. PlayStation Compatibility
    6. Xbox Compatibility
    7. Base/Dock
  10. Comments

Samsung Galaxy Buds2 vs Apple AirPods (3rd generation) Truly Wireless

Side-by-Side Comparison

Products

Samsung Galaxy Buds2
Apple AirPods (3rd generation)

Tested using Methodology v1.5

Updated Feb 13, 2025 12:28 AM

SEE PRICE
Amazon.com

Tested using Methodology v1.8

Updated Jan 17, 2025 08:32 PM

SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Picture
Apple AirPods (3rd generation) Truly Wireless Picture

Variants

  • Galaxy Buds2 (Graphite)
  • Galaxy Buds2 (Lavender)
  • Galaxy Buds2 (Olive)
  • Galaxy Buds2 (Phantom Black)
  • Galaxy Buds2 (White)
  • AirPods (3rd generation) (Lightning Charging Case - White)
  • AirPods (3rd generation) (White)

Our Verdict

Samsung Galaxy Buds2

Apple AirPods (3rd generation) Truly Wireless

The Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Truly Wireless are better for most purposes than the Apple AirPods (3rd generation) Truly Wireless. The Samsung are closed-back earbuds with ANC, blocking out more noise and leaking less audio. They’re more comfortable and stable and deliver a more bass-rich sound, which some may prefer. Their app has sound customization features but only works on Android devices. Meanwhile, the Apple have a better overall battery performance.

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White
Galaxy Buds2
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White
AirPods (3rd generation)
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Graphite
Galaxy Buds2
Searching
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Lightning Charging Case - White
AirPods (3rd generation)
Searching
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Lavender
Galaxy Buds2
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Olive
Galaxy Buds2
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Phantom Black
Galaxy Buds2
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Notice: Two or more of the products selected have been tested with different test methodologies, so some of the results below aren't directly comparable. Learn how our test benches and scoring system work, and read more about the latest changes to our headphones test methodology.

Main Differences for

Threshold 

0.10

Neutral Sound 

7.4
7.1

Bass Accuracy 
 

9.3
6.3

Passive Soundstage 
 

1.0
2.9

Mid Accuracy 
 

8.4
9.0

Full Comparison

Design

Style  

Design Picture 2  

Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Design Picture 2
Apple AirPods (3rd generation) Truly Wireless Design Picture 2

Type  

In-ear
Earbuds

Enclosure  

Closed-Back
Open-Back

Wireless  

Truly Wireless
Truly Wireless

Transducer  

Dynamic
Dynamic

Show text

Comfort 
 

7.5
7.0

Comfort Picture  

Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Comfort Picture
Apple AirPods (3rd generation) Truly Wireless Comfort Picture

Weight  

0.02 lbs
0.02 lbs

Clamping Force 
 

0 lbs
N/A

Show text

Controls 
 

6.2
5.5

Controls Picture  

Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Controls Picture
Apple AirPods (3rd generation) Truly Wireless Controls Picture

OS Compatibility 
 

Not OS specific
Not OS specific

Ease Of Use  

Decent
Great

Feedback  

Good
Good

Call/Music Control  

Yes
Yes

Volume Control  

No
No

Microphone Control  

No
No

Channel Mixing 
 

No
No

Noise Cancelling Control  

On/Off
No

Talk-Through 
 

On/Off
No

Additional Controls  

No
Voice Assistant

Show text

Breathability 
 

9.2

Breathability After Picture  

Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Breathability After Picture

Avg.Temp.Difference  

0.8 °C

Show text

Portability 
 

9.5
9.7

Portability Picture  

Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Portability Picture
Apple AirPods (3rd generation) Truly Wireless Portability Picture

 

1.4" (3.6 cm)
1.2" (3.1 cm)

 

1.0" (2.5 cm)
0.8" (2.1 cm)

 

1.0" (2.5 cm)
0.6" (1.6 cm)

Volume  

1.37 in³ (22.50 cm³)
0.62 in³ (10.20 cm³)

Transmitter Required  

No
No

Show text

Case 
 

8.0
8.5

Case Picture  

Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Case Picture
Apple AirPods (3rd generation) Truly Wireless Case Picture

Type  

Hard case
Hard case

 

2.0" (5.1 cm)
2.1" (5.4 cm)

 

2.0" (5.1 cm)
1.8" (4.6 cm)

 

1.1" (2.8 cm)
0.8" (2.1 cm)

Volume  

4.41 in³ (72.30 cm³)
3.28 in³ (53.80 cm³)

Show text

Build Quality 
 

7.5
8.0

Build Quality Picture  

Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Build Quality Picture
Apple AirPods (3rd generation) Truly Wireless Build Quality Picture

Show text

Stability 
 

7.5
6.5

Stability Picture  

Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Stability Picture
Apple AirPods (3rd generation) Truly Wireless Stability Picture

Show text

Headshots 1  

Angled Picture  

Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Angled Picture
Apple AirPods (3rd generation) Truly Wireless Angled Picture

Side Picture  

Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Side Picture
Apple AirPods (3rd generation) Truly Wireless Side Picture

Headshots 2  

Front Picture  

Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Front Picture
Apple AirPods (3rd generation) Truly Wireless Front Picture

Rear Picture  

Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Rear Picture
Apple AirPods (3rd generation) Truly Wireless Rear Picture

Top  

Top Picture  

Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Top Picture
Apple AirPods (3rd generation) Truly Wireless Top Picture

In The Box  

In The Box Picture  

Samsung Galaxy Buds2 In The Box Picture
Apple AirPods (3rd generation) Truly Wireless In The Box Picture

Show text

Sound

Sound Profile 
 

Sound Profile  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Normalization Frequency 
 

1,200 Hz

Bass Amount 
 

-0.04 dB
-5.1 dB

Treble Amount 
 

-0.98 dB
-2.3 dB

Show text

Frequency Response Consistency 
 

9.3
7.5

Consistency L  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Consistency R  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Avg. Std. Deviation 
 

0.15 dB
0.5 dB

Show text

Raw Frequency Response 
 

Raw FR L  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Raw FR R  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Bass Profile: Target Compliance 
 

9.3
6.3

Bass Profile: Target Compliance  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

RMS Deviation From Target 
 

0.97 dB
7.8 dB

Low-Frequency Extension 
 

21.5 Hz
40.02 Hz

Low Bass 
 

-1.87 dB
-10.47 dB

Mid Bass 
 

-0.43 dB
-1.36 dB

High Bass 
 

-0.53 dB
-0.53 dB

Show text

Mid-Range Profile: Target Compliance 
 

8.4
9.0

Mid-Range Profile: Target Compliance  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

RMS Deviation From Target 
 

2.08 dB
1.13 dB

Low Mid 
 

-0.5 dB
-0.09 dB

Mid-Mid 
 

-3.16 dB
-1.29 dB

High Mid 
 

-0.1 dB
1.06 dB

Show text

Treble Profile: Target Compliance 
 

7.4
7.5

Treble Profile: Target Compliance  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

RMS Deviation From Target 
 

3.85 dB
2.9 dB

Low Treble 
 

-3.31 dB
-1.79 dB

Mid Treble 
 

0.49 dB
-2.93 dB

High Treble 
 

-6.62 dB
-9.72 dB

Show text

Peaks/Dips 
 

7.3
7.5

Peaks/Dips Graph 
 

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Peaks 
 

1.92 dB
1.39 dB

Dips 
 

1.05 dB
2.08 dB

Show text

Imaging 
 

9.2
9.2

Group Delay  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Phase Response Mismatch  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Weighted Group Delay 
 

0.22
0.25

Weighted Phase Mismatch 
 

0.99
1.69

Weighted Amplitude Mismatch 
 

0.74
0.24

Weighted Frequency Mismatch 
 

0.57
1.18

Show text

Passive Soundstage 
 

1.0
2.9

PRTF  

Samsung Galaxy Buds2 PRTF
Apple AirPods (3rd generation) Truly Wireless PRTF

PRTF Accuracy (Std. Dev.) 
 

N/A
N/A

PRTF Size (Avg.) 
 

N/A
N/A

PRTF Distance 
 

N/A
N/A

Openness 
 

1.9
9.3

Acoustic Space Excitation 
 

2.0
3.4

Show text

Virtual Soundstage 
 

2.9
2.9

Virtual Soundstage  

Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Virtual Soundstage
Apple AirPods (3rd generation) Truly Wireless Virtual Soundstage

Head Modeling 
 

No
No

Speaker Modeling 
 

On/Off
On/Off

Room Ambience 
 

No
No

Head Tracking 
 

On/Off
On/Off

Virtual Surround 
 

360 Audio
Spatial Audio

Show text

Weighted Harmonic Distortion 
 

7.7
7.6

Weighted Harmonic Distortion  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

WHD @ 90 
 

0.175
0.405

WHD @ 100 
 

0.163
0.127

Show text

Test Settings 
 

Firmware 
 

R177XXU0AUI2
6F21.

Power 
 

On
On

Connection 
 

Bluetooth 5.0
Bluetooth

Codec 
 

SBC, 16-bit, 48kHz
SBC, 16-bit, 48kHz

Test Instrument  

Audio Precision APx517B

EQ 
 

Default
Adaptive EQ

ANC 
 

On
No ANC

Tip/Pad 
 

Silicone (small)
Default

Microphone 
 

Integrated
Integrated

Show text

Isolation

Noise Isolation - Full Range 
 

8.1
1.7

Noise Isolation - Full Range Graph  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Noise Cancelling  

Yes
No

Overall Attenuation 
 

-21.73 dB
-3.75 dB

Isolation Audio 
 

Bass 
 

-18.06 dB
-0.02 dB

Mid 
 

-16.7 dB
-0.95 dB

Treble 
 

-30.06 dB
-11.36 dB

Show text

Noise Isolation - Common Scenarios 
 

1.9

Noise Isolation - Common Scenarios Graph  

See details on graph tool

Airplane Noise Attenuation 
 

-3.32 dB

Airplane Noise Isolation Audio 
 

Office Noise Attenuation 
 

-3.35 dB

Office Noise Isolation Audio 
 

Street Noise Attenuation 
 

-3.57 dB

Street Noise Isolation Audio 
 

Show text

Noise Isolation - Voice Handling 
 

Female Voice 1 
 

Male Voice 1 
 

Female Voice 2 
 

Male Voice 2 
 

ANC Wind Handling 
 

ANC Wind Handling Graph  

Apple AirPods (3rd generation) Truly Wireless ANC Wind Handling Graph

ANC Wind Noise 
 

N/A

Leakage 
 

8.3
7.0

Leakage  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Leakage Audio 
 

Overall Leakage @ 1ft 
 

31.89 dB
39.46 dB

Show text

Microphone

Microphone Style 
 

Integrated 
 

Yes
Yes

In-Line 
 

No
No

Boom 
 

No
No

Detachable Boom 
 

No
No

Mic  

Yes
Yes

Recording Quality 
 

7.6
6.0

Microphone Frequency Response  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Recorded Speech 
 

LFE 
 

20 Hz
67.27 Hz

FR Std. Dev. 
 

4.54 dB
3.25 dB

HFE 
 

4,763.35 Hz
1,659.96 Hz

Weighted THD 
 

0.428
3.887

Gain 
 

10.49 dB
18.34 dB

Show text

Noise Handling 
 

4.7
5.5

SpNR  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

SpNR 
 

9.9 dB
12.16 dB

Noise Gate 
 

No
Always On

Speech + Pink Noise Handling 
 

4.5
5.5

Speech + Pink Noise Audio Sample  

Speech + Subway Noise Handling 
 

5.0
5.5

Speech + Subway Noise Audio Sample  

Show text

Active Features

Battery 
 

5.9
7.2

Battery Type 
 

Rechargable
Rechargable

Continuous Battery Life 
 

4.7 hrs
6.8 hrs

Additional Charges 
 

3.0
5.0

Total Battery Life 
 

18.8 hrs
40.8 hrs

Charge Time 
 

1.4 hrs
0.8 hrs

Power-Saving Feature 
 

No
Standby mode

Audio While Charging 
 

Yes
Yes

Passive Playback 
 

No
No

Charging Port  

USB-C
Lightning

Show text

App Support 
 

7.5
5.0

App Picture  

Samsung Galaxy Buds2 App Picture
Apple AirPods (3rd generation) Truly Wireless App Picture

App Name  

Galaxy Wearable
iOS Interface

iOS  

No
Yes

Android  

Yes
No

macOS  

No
Yes

Windows  

Yes
No

Equalizer 
 

Presets
No

ANC Control 
 

On/Off
No

Mic Control  

No
No

Room Effects 
 

No
No

Playback Control 
 

No
No

Button Mapping  

Yes
No

Surround Support 
 

No
Yes

Show text

Connectivity

Wired Connection 
 

0.0
0.0

Cable Picture  

Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Cable Picture
Apple AirPods (3rd generation) Truly Wireless Cable Picture

Analog Audio 
 

No
No

USB Audio 
 

No
No

Detachable 
 

No
No

Length 
 

N/A
N/A

Connector 
 

No Wired Option
No Wired Option

Latency - Analog 
 

N/A

Latency - USB 
 

N/A
N/A

Recorded Latency 
 

N/A

Recorded Latency Connection  

No Wired Audio

Show text

Bluetooth Connection 
 

7.3
7.2

Bluetooth Version 
 

5.2
5.0+H1 chip

Multi-Device Pairing 
 

No
No

NFC Pairing 
 

No

Quick Pair (Android) 
 

No

Quick Pair (iOS) 
 

Yes

Line Of Sight Range 
 

245.41 ft (74.80 m)
205.05 ft (62.50 m)

Latency - SBC 
 

250 ms
184 ms

Latency - aptX 
 

N/A
N/A

Latency - aptX Adaptive (High Quality) 
 

N/A

Latency - aptX Adaptive (Low Latency) 
 

N/A

Latency - LDAC 
 

N/A

Recorded Latency 
 

Recorded Latency Codec  

SBC

AAC Support 
 

Yes

PC Latency (aptX HD) 
 

N/A

PC Latency (aptX-LL) 
 

N/A

iOS Latency 
 

-19 ms

Android Latency 
 

-1 ms

Show text

Wireless Connection (Dongle) 
 

0.0
0.0

Line Of Sight Range 
 

N/A
N/A

Latency - Dongle 
 

N/A
N/A

Recorded Latency 
 

N/A

PC Compatibility 
 

Analog 
 

No
No

Wired USB 
 

No
No

Non-BT Wireless 
 

No
No

Show text

PlayStation Compatibility 
 

PS4 Analog 
 

No
No

PS4 Wired USB 
 

No
No

PS4 Non-BT Wireless 
 

No
No

PS5 Analog 
 

No
No

PS5 Wired USB 
 

No
No

PS5 Non-BT Wireless 
 

No
No

Xbox Compatibility 
 

Xbox One Analog 
 

No
No

Xbox One Wired USB 
 

No
No

Xbox One Non-BT Wireless 
 

No
No

Xbox Series X|S Analog 
 

No
No

Xbox Series X|S Wired USB 
 

No
No

Xbox Series X|S Non-BT Wireless 
 

No
No

Base/Dock 
 

2.2
2.2

Type 
 

Charging Case
Charging Case

USB Input 
 

No
No

Line In 
 

No
No

Line Out 
 

No
No

Optical Input 
 

No
No

RCA Input 
 

No
No

Dock Charging 
 

Yes
Yes

Power Supply 
 

USB-C
Lightning

Show text

Check Price

White
Galaxy Buds2
Searching
Finding store
White
AirPods (3rd generation)
Searching
Finding store
Graphite
Galaxy Buds2
Searching
Finding store
Lightning Charging Case - White
AirPods (3rd generation)
Searching
Finding store
Lavender
Galaxy Buds2
Searching
Finding store
 
Olive
Galaxy Buds2
Searching
Finding store
 
Phantom Black
Galaxy Buds2
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Finding store
 

Samsung Galaxy Buds2

Apple AirPods (3rd generation) Truly Wireless

Comments

  1. Comparison

Samsung Galaxy Buds2 vs Apple AirPods (3rd generation): Main Discussion

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