The Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Pro True Wireless are the upgraded variant of the Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Truly Wireless. Samsung hasn't changed much regarding the Buds2 low battery life and mic quality. However, one positive change is the improvement of the ANC, which now outperforms competing products like the Apple AirPods Pro Truly Wireless. They also support Seamless, the next generation of Samsung's proprietary Bluetooth codec Scalable, which is designed for streaming hi-res audio. However, you'll need a compatible Samsung device to get the most out of these headphones.
The Samsung Galaxy Buds Pro 2 are decent for neutral sound. Out of the box, they have an excited sound profile. They pack in extra thump and boom, thanks to their overemphasized bass. To balance this, the treble range is also elevated, resulting in bright vocals and instruments, although they sound harsh in vocal-centric content. You can customize their sound using their companion apps' EQ presets, though. If you like to listen to hi-res audio, you can also use Seamless codec to improve audio quality over Bluetooth, but it's only available on compatible Samsung devices.
The Samsung Galaxy Buds Pro 2 are great for commute and travel. These well-built buds have a lightweight design that's easy to take with you on the go and are comfortable enough to wear for long trips. They're equipped with an ANC system to help block out the low rumbles of bus and plane engines. Their continuous battery life of under six hours may not last through transatlantic flights, but luckily, their carrying case supplies an additional 2.6 charges if you need it.
The Samsung Galaxy Buds 2 Pro are great for sports and fitness. They're small, lightweight, and rated IPX7 for resistance against submersion in water. They're well-built and won't fall out of your ears with moderate head movements.
The Samsung Galaxy Buds 2 Pro are decent for office use. These buds can reduce distractions like background chit-chat and traffic outside your window so you can focus on your work. They also have a comfortable fit suitable for long days at the office. Unfortunately, they don't support multi-device pairing, so you can't stay connected with your phone and computer simultaneously. Their continuous battery life may not last throughout your day without a recharge. On the upside, their carrying case holds roughly 2.6 extra charges, so you can always top up the battery if you need more power.
The Samsung Galaxy Buds 2 Pro are Bluetooth-only headphones, so they can't connect with Xbox or PlayStation consoles, and their latency on PCs is too high for wireless gaming. However, they have low latency with iOS and Android devices via Bluetooth, so you won't notice audio lag when playing a game on your phone.
The Samsung Galaxy Buds 2 Pro are Bluetooth-only headphones; you can't use them wired.
The Samsung Galaxy Buds 2 Pro are mediocre for phone calls. Their integrated mic does an okay job recording your voice clearly but struggles to separate your voice from background noise. If you're taking a call from a busy street, your voice can be drowned out. On the upside, these buds have an ANC system. It does an excellent job of blocking out ambient noise like office chatter and the hum of AC units.
We added a reference to the Best Wireless Earbuds For Android article in the Bluetooth Connection box.
The Samsung Buds Pro 2 come in three color variants: 'Bora Purple', 'White', and 'Graphite'. We tested the 'Graphite' variant and you can see our model's label here. If you come across another variant, please let us know in the forums, and we'll update our review.
The Samsung Galaxy Buds Pro 2 are the upgraded variant of the Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Truly Wireless. They support Bluetooth 5.3 and have an improved noise isolation performance, which is good if you need earbuds for a noisy office or your commute. They also support Seamless, Samsung's proprietary Bluetooth codec for streaming hi-res audio, and have a 'Game Mode' for low latency on mobile devices. However, these features are only available on compatible Samsung devices. There haven't been many other changes to their performance, and they still have a short continuous battery life compared to competition like the Sony WF-1000XM4 Truly Wireless.
Check out our recommendations for the best noise cancelling earbuds, the best wireless Bluetooth earbuds, and the best Samsung headphones.
The Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Pro True Wireless are the upgraded variant of the Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Truly Wireless. While both buds are comfortable and well-built, the Pro have a higher IP certification of IPX7 and a significantly better noise isolation performance. They also support Bluetooth 5.3. However, the original Buds2 sound more neutral overall, which some users may prefer. Their bass range is less overemphasized, so mixes have adequate thump, punch, and warmth without cluttering the mids. You still may enjoy the Pro's excited sound though. The extra bass feels energetic while vocals and instruments are bright, thanks to added treble.
The Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Pro True Wireless are slightly better in-ear headphones than the Samsung Galaxy Buds Pro Truly Wireless, but the differences are minor. While both buds are comfortable and well-built, the Buds2 Pro have a significantly better noise isolation performance, and their companion app offers more features. They also have a more neutral sound profile, which some users may prefer.
The Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Pro True Wireless and the Sony WF-1000XM4 Truly Wireless have different strengths. The Samsung headphones are more comfortable and have a more neutral overall sound profile, which some users may prefer, and their ANC can block out a superior amount of ambient noise. However, the Sony headphones are better built and have a longer lasting continuous battery life. Their companion app also offers a graphic EQ to help you customize their sound.
The Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Pro True Wireless have a few more extra features than the Samsung Galaxy Buds FE Truly Wireless. The Pro model have a higher IP rating for water resistance, comparable noise isolation, and a head-tracking feature, making for a more immersive audio experience. That said, the FE model are more comfortable, thanks to their stability fins, and have a better overall microphone performance. Their battery life is better, too.
The Apple AirPods Pro (2nd generation) Truly Wireless have a slight edge over the Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Pro True Wireless, particularly if you're already an iOS user. While both in-ears are comfortable and have similarly excellent levels of noise isolation, the Apple have a more premium build, and their battery performance is better. They also have an H2 chip for seamless pairing with your Apple devices and they support Spatial Audio for a more immersive sound. However, the Samsung headphones have EQ presets, which some users may prefer to adjust their sound to their liking.
The Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Pro True Wireless and the OnePlus Buds Pro 2 Truly Wireless have different strengths and, depending on your preference, you may enjoy either one. While both buds are well-built and comfortable, the Samsung have a significantly better noise isolation performance and can access a spatial audio feature for a more immersive sound experience. However, the OnePlus support multi-device pairing and have a better overall battery performance.
The Apple AirPods Pro Truly Wireless are better in-ears than the Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Pro True Wireless. While both headphones are comfortable, the Apple headphones are better built and have a more neutral sound profile, which some users may prefer, and their overall battery performance is better. They also have an H1 chip for seamless pairing with your Apple devices. However, the Samsung headphones have a better noise isolation performance, and their companion app offers EQ presets to help you customize their sound.
The Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Pro True Wireless and the Beats Fit Pro True Wireless have different strengths, and you may prefer either one. While both buds are well-built, the Samsung headphones are more comfortable and can block out slightly more ambient sound, and their companion app offers EQ presets to help you adjust their sound. However, the Beats have a slightly better battery performance. They also have an H1 chip for seamless pairing with your Apple devices.
The Jabra Elite 7 Pro True Wireless are better in-ears than the Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Pro True Wireless. While both headphones are comfortable and well-built, the Jabra headphones have a more flat and neutral sound profile, which some users may prefer, and their battery life is better too. Their companion app offers a graphic EQ and presets to help you customize their sound, and they support multi-device pairing, meaning you can stay connected with up to two devices at a time. However, the Samsung headphones have a significantly better noise isolation performance.
The Beats Studio Buds + True Wireless and the Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Pro True Wireless are very comparable in-ear headphones, with the Samsung being just slightly better overall. The Beats have a flatter, more even bass response, so kick drums are thumpy without being muddy. But the Samsung have a flatter mid-range that doesn't get as harsh as the Beats and its companion app has EQ presets for customizing your sound. The Samsung's ANC is also better at blocking out the rumble of bus engines. On the other hand, the Beats have a slightly better mic and a longer continuous battery life.
The Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Pro True Wireless offer quite a few features limited to Samsung's ecosystem compared to the Sennheiser MOMENTUM True Wireless 3. That includes the Samsung Seamless Bluetooth codec and an Android-only app. They have a more neutral sound profile by default and can block out significantly more background noise. On the other hand, the Sennheiser have the same compatibility regardless of whether you use iOS or Android. They have a much greater continuous battery life, and a mic with better noise handling. You can customize the EQ with more options than just presets as well.
The Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Pro True Wireless are better buds than the Status Between 3ANC True Wireless. While both buds are well-built, the Samsung are more comfortable and have a virtual soundstage feature to help immerse you in your audio. Their ANC also does a better job of blocking background noise across the range. However, the Status support multi-device pairing, their companion app offers a more robust EQ to help you customize their sound to your liking, and their battery performance is significantly better.
The Samsung Galaxy Buds Pro 2 have a similar style to the Samsung Galaxy Buds Pro Truly Wireless. They have egg-shaped buds but have a more satin finish rather than glossy. They come in three color variants: 'Bora Purple', 'White', and 'Graphite'.
These buds are comfortable. Their design feels like a mix of the Samsung Galaxy Buds Pro Truly Wireless and the Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Truly Wireless. Overall, they feel lightweight in the ears and don't go very deeply into your ear. They also don't put much pressure on your ears. Unfortunately, they can create a plunger-like feeling in your ear.
They have good controls. They're easy to use, and controls can be registered on either bud. However, the touch surfaces are very small, and it's easy to accidentally register a command while you're adjusting the earbuds' positioning in your ears. Also, sometimes, commands don't register correctly. On the upside, there are beeps to let you know when you've successfully registered a command. There are also different chimes to indicate when you've switched between ANC on and off and transparency mode.
On either bud:
There aren't volume or voice assistant controls by default. However, you can activate these commands in the app. You can also add Spotify, which launches this app on command.
The charging case is great. Their case is very similar to the Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Truly Wireless but has a satin finish. Overall, the case feels lightweight yet sturdy. There's a light inside the case to indicate the buds' charge, and there's one light on the outside to indicate the case's charge. It also supports wireless charging.
Using firmware R510XXU0AWI2 and with ANC on, the Samsung Galaxy Buds Pro 2 have a slightly excited sound that delivers extra bass. Vocals and instruments, in comparison, are bright and detailed in mixes to stand out from the bass. However, they can also sound harsh, particularly when listening to vocal-centric content like podcasts. If you prefer a different sound, their companion apps offer EQ presets to help you adjust their sound to your liking.
Unfortunately, our unit's firmware was auto-updated when connected to our Android phone, so we weren't able to run a pre-firmware update spot check, and don't have the results of our original firmware with ANC and Ambient Sound off. However, you can see a comparison of frequency responses when the ANC is on versus off using firmware R510XXU0AWI2 here. Overall, there's a little more bass when the ANC is on, as well as a dip in the high-mid compared to ANC off, which weakens vocals and instruments a bit. However, subjectively, ANC off doesn't result in lower audio quality, and the difference in sound can be due to the lack of active noise cancelling and a slight difference in sound profile.
Their frequency response consistency is excellent. Once you get a good fit, you won't experience significant deviations in bass and treble delivery.
These buds have great bass accuracy. The entire range is overemphasized but still very flat. Mixes have extra thump, boom, and warmth. However, the extra bass muddies vocals and instruments.
The Samsung Buds Pro 2's mid accuracy is great. For the most part, the range is flat and neutral, so in songs like Iron by Woodkid, vocals and instruments sound clear and natural throughout the mix. That said, there's some overemphasis from the bass range creeping into the mid range, which muddies and clutters the mix.
The Samsung Buds2 Pro have good treble accuracy. The treble is a bit overemphasized across the range to compensate for the extra bass, so vocals and instruments are detailed but harsh. Sibilants like cymbals are bright but not piercing.
They control their sound profile very well. There's a bit of mismatch present between the L/R drivers, particularly in the mid-range. However, for the most part, it's somewhat minor. A peak in the low-mid slightly clutters vocals and instruments, while a dip in the mid-to-high-mid is more prominent in the right driver and nudges them backward. That said, a dip in the high-mid affects the left driver more, weakening vocals and instruments. A peak in the low-treble primarily affects both drivers makes the upper harmonics of vocals and instruments sound harsh, while the uneven mid-treble turns sibilants like cymbals alternatingly weak and piercing.
The imaging performance is excellent. Samsung's higher-end products generally have well-matched drivers, which indicates the brand's good ergonomics and quality control. Our unit's L/R drivers are matched in group delay, phase, and frequency response, which is important for the accurate localization of sound objects like voices in the stereo image. A bump in the phase response's mid-range makes audio skew slightly to the left and sound a little louder than the right driver. There's also a slight amplitude mismatch present, which can cause issues with the balance of the stereo image. These issues can be audible with real-life content but are still quite minor and won't be very distracting. Imaging varies from unit to unit, so you may have a different experience.
Their passive soundstage is bad, which is expected for in-ear headphones. To create an out-of-head listening experience, your outer ear has to be activated by sound resonances. However, earbuds bypass the outer ear by design, so the soundstage seems closed-off, small, and as if sound is coming from inside your head.
These buds are compatible with 360 Audio, which you can access in the companion app, and is intended to create more 3D, immersive soundstage. There's a head tracking feature, which allows sound to follow your head as you move it. The volume of audio sounds louder than when this feature is off. There doesn't seem to be a difference in sound quality whether this feature is on or off, though.
They have a great weighted harmonic distortion performance. Distortion falls within good limits, resulting in clean and pure audio reproduction.
These are the settings used to test the Samsung Buds 2 Pro. Our results are only valid when using them in this configuration.
These buds have an excellent full-range noise isolation performance. Their ANC feature helps them block out more ambient sound than the Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Truly Wireless and the Samsung Galaxy Buds Pro Truly Wireless. They can cut down bass range noises like the low rumble of bus engines as well as mid to treble range sounds such as office chatter and the hum of AC units.
They have a similarly excellent noise isolation performance when it comes to common scenarios. They can reduce a lot of rumbly airplanes and busy street noise. They can also block out a lot of office noise, like AC units and coworker chit-chat.
Wind noise differs from sounds like ambient chatter or traffic as it interacts with the ANC's microphones, causing the ANC system to create a loud and annoying sound in response to a sound that doesn't reach your ears. In addition, the amount and impact of wind noise can vary depending on the angle. Unfortunately, the Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Pro are prone to a lot of wind noise when the ANC is on. They also lack a wind reduction feature to help reduce it.
They have an excellent leakage performance. Leakage is mostly concentrated in the treble range, but it's not that loud, and escaping audio sounds fairly thin. If you like to listen to audio at high volumes, others around you won't hear it.
The mic's recording quality is okay. Overall, your voice is fairly easy to understand but sounds a little veiled. While the mic's recorded speech file sounds very similar to that of the Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Truly Wireless, the next generation Buds2's mic is a bit more pitchy.
Because the three-mic array in each earbud also includes 'voice pickup bone sensors,' which aren't necessarily compatible with our testing rig, we also made a comparison demo recording with a person wearing the buds to see if the sensors make a meaningful difference to the recording quality. Comparing the standard test demo with the unscored human demo, subjectively, we don't hear an improvement, but have a listen for yourself.
Their mic's noise handling performance is poor. The mic struggles to separate your voice from background noise. If you're taking a call from a busy street or office, your voice can get drowned out by louder sounds. The earbuds' voice pickup bone sensors possibly help the buds determine whether you're speaking by detecting your jaw movements to separate your voice from external noise, but our testing rig isn't compatible with the sensor.
The Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Pro's battery performance is sub-par. The manufacturer advertises them to last five hours continuously, and we measured just under that. Their carrying case supplies roughly 2.6 additional charges if you need it, but this is shorter than that of competitors like the Apple AirPods Pro (2nd generation) Truly Wireless, which have four extra charges. Keep in mind that battery life can vary depending on use. While they don't have a power-saving feature to help conserve battery life when not in use, you can use one bud while the other charges. Consider the Samsung Galaxy Buds FE Truly Wireless if you're looking for Samsung buds with a longer continuous battery life.
The Samsung Wearable app is good, but it isn't available on iOS devices. That said, it offers a variety of features for Android users. You can access EQ presets, an earbud fit test, and the 360 Audio feature for a more immersive sound. You can also remap controls and toggle between ANC on, off, and ambient sound. There's a 'Game Mode', which helps lower latency on mobile devices, but this feature is only available on compatible Samsung devices.
In addition to the Samsung Wearable app, you can also access the Galaxy Buds app on Windows. It offers many of the same features as the mobile app, like EQ presets, control remapping, and noise control. However, this app doesn't have a low latency mode.
The Samsung Buds 2 Pro's Bluetooth connectivity is satisfactory. Unlike the Status Between 3ANC True Wireless, these buds don't support multi-device pairing, so you can only stay connected to one device at a time. They also have high latency on PCs, so you'll notice a delay between your audio and video if you're gaming or watching a movie on PC. However, they have lower latency with iOS and Android devices, so you won't have the same issue watching a video on your phone. They also support Google Fast Pair, so they're worth considering if you're looking for the best earbuds for Android. They have a 'Game Mode' only accessible on Samsung phones via the Samsung Wearable app. With Game Mode, they have low latency, similar to their performance with Android phones when you're not using that mode. Also, keep in mind that some devices and apps compensate for latency.
These headphones also support Seamless, Samsung's proprietary codec, which the manufacturer advertises to improve audio quality. However, it's only available on select Samsung devices, and we don't have a device that can currently test it. These headphones can also connect to compatible Samsung TVs. We measured 189ms of latency when connected to our Samsung Q80T but didn't notice any delays while watching TV. If you need to take a call, audio will switch from the TV to your phone and resume once the call is over.
The Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Pro have full audio and mic compatibility with Bluetooth-enabled PCs. However, you can't connect these buds to your PC in any other way.