Samsung Galaxy Buds2 – For Those Who Love Popular Music [Review]

Here are our thoughts on Samsung’s latest Galaxy Buds2.

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It has an attractive price tag, looks like tiny little eggs, and was a big deal at Unpacked 2021, but are the Samsung Galaxy Buds2 best buds for you? Maybe.

I’ll tell you why later. First, let’s take a look at the specifications of Samsung’s latest entry in the Galaxy Buds series.

Specifications

Colours

Olive.
Lavender.
White.
Graphite.

Earbuds

Dimensions: 17.0mm by 20.9mm by 21.1mm.
Weight: 5.0g.

Charging case

Dimensions: 50.2mm by 50.0mm by 27.8mm.
Weight: 41.2g.

Chipset

BES2500ZP.

RTOS.

Speaker

Dynamic 2-way woofer and tweeter.

Mic

3 mics + VPU.

Connectivity

Bluetooth: 5.2.
BT Profile: HPF, A2DP, AVRCP.
Codec: Scalable (Samsung Proprietary), AAC, SBC.

Battery

Playtime

5h / TTL 20h (ANC on).
7.5h / TTL 29h (ANC off).

Talk time

3.5h / TTL 13h (ANC on).
3.5 / TTL 14h (ANC off).

Quick charging

40min play / 3min charging (Wired, Wireless, D2D).
60min play / 5min charging (Wired, Wireless, D2D).
150min play / 10min charging (Wired, Wireless).

Sensor

Accelerometer.
Gyro.
Proximity.
Hall.
Touch.
Voice Pickup Unity (VPU).

Features

Auto switch.
Bixby.

Controls

Taps.

Eggs In A Clam Shell

The Galaxy Buds2 charging case is small enough to slip into a pocket. The smooth glossy outer shell makes it easy to grip and it is rounded so it won’t snag on anything.

However, because it is thick and looks like a weird bump in my jeans pocket, I wish I had a casing with a carabiner for it. It would make putting them on easier too.

Because of its clamshell design and the sturdy magnet, it takes two hands to open the case. It makes putting them on a conscious decision and reduces the chances of dropping or losing one of the buds taking it out of the case.

The deep recess where the earbud tips rest makes it easy to put the buds back in the case correctly to charge. But it also means that gunk can accumulate in there if not cleaned.

At 5g each, the Galaxy Buds2 weighs almost nothing and does not need strong magnets to stay in the case.

They look like eggs. In the ear, they look like costume jewellery and don’t call attention to themselves.

It is easy to forget that you are wearing them. It is also easy to not realise that you’ve dropped them. So make sure to use the right tips and that they fit securely when you wear them.

Fit & Control

Once the Galaxy Buds2 are in the ear, they can be controlled using taps. But I’m not always sure if I tapped it right.

Because of my lockdown hair, I usually resort to controlling the earbuds from the phone anyway.

These are in-ear style earbuds, so on its own, it has some passive noise cancellation.

I find that the active noise cancellation is fair. It is good enough for everyday use but it also makes calls sound better. An impressive feat for a pair of buds at this price.

The ambient noise feature is alright, good enough for more cases. Most importantly it does not supersede the music.

It Pops Where It Counts

I like a wide variety of music and when I listen to them on the Galaxy Buds2, I’m immediately impressed with how bright it is and how much bass it has for such a small device.

Songs sound powerful and more alive to my ears. The soundstage is impressive as well

But, I also noticed that the sound of stringed instruments and cymbal crashes are very sharp. Mid-frequencies are hiked higher as well.

In a classical piece with lots of strings or rock music where there are a lot of drums, these sharp tones can drown out other instruments.

Where the Galaxy Buds2 shine is with pop music, where there is a clear delineation between low, medium, and high tones and where the lead vocal is on the higher end of the register.

If you like pop, you should be very happy with a pair of these. For everyone else, try it out first.

Availability & Price

You can get Samsung Galaxy Buds2 now for RM499 from Samsung’s official online store. It is an easy recommendation if you like pop music like K-Pop and Anime themes.

But if your taste in music is more diverse, I’d recommend the RM549 Galaxy Buds Live. Watch out for a review coming soon on TRP Tech.

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