Samsung's intriguing "bean" headphones, the Galaxy Buds Live, have arrived in Israel - and we got them for review • What did we like best and what were we really disappointed with? • Full review

• Photo: Yinon Ben-Shoshan

It's been three and a half years since I first put Apple's Airfoods in my ear and fell in love. "Who cut your headphones?" They told me mockingly at first. Some even added, "It looks like you have a cigarette in your ear." And since then the world has progressed, abandoned the wired headphones, and most of the population walks around with cigarettes in their ears.

Why am I telling you this? Because since that day in January 2017 I have not found a real replacement for Airfoods (if I do not consider the upgrade to Airfoods Pro as such). All this time I was looking for headphones that would really challenge the sound and experience I know from Apple.

Then earlier this month, after too many leaks and rumors, Samsung announced a line of new devices including their new flagship series, the 20 Galaxy Note and Galaxy Note 20 Ultra, alongside new bean-shaped headphones called the Galaxy Buds Live. And I think this is one of the products that we reviewed the most recently - and rightly so.

The Galaxy Buds Live are a new version of the company's not-so-successful Galaxy Buds Plus headphones, and Samsung seems to have taken the time, tested the competition and tried to do what no competitor has really done: try to bring an innovative design, understand what the customers really are Want, and find something that will surprise them like the Airfoods. And the truth is, she almost succeeded.

Design and comfort

Samsung gets quite a few points for the comfort and design - they sit well in the ears, are designed in style and will fit any ear, and are comfortable even after hours of use. In initial use, by the way, it took me about a minute or two to figure out how they get into the ear, but after practicing there is a situation where you will not even feel like they are there when you listen to music. 

On the headphones there are touch buttons that respond great to hard, but in this case it seems a little too much. The advantage of using a touch instead of a button on cordless headphones is obvious because pressing a physical button will push the headset even further into the ear (which is unpleasant).

The problem with Galaxy Buds Live is that while listening to music more than once the earphone hit hard when I was just trying to place it better in the ear, and then either the song I heard suddenly stops, once the iPhone also skipped my next song, or a phone call was disconnected - and I very much hope so That Samsung will solve by updating a version.

Spectacular sound - simple connection

So far, as in the previous generation, Samsung's collaboration with AKG has not proven itself. This time, the result is very different. If in my last review of the Galaxy Buds Plus I summed up the experience as a "reasonable sound", this is a pretty big change.

The audio quality is great and it can easily be said that they are almost comparable to AirPods Pro. Unlike the previous generation, the bass is bold and close to perfect, the sound is very deep, sharp, and even as soon as you get to the higher notes the quality of the music is not compromised - something that happens with quite a few other headphones.

Like on AirPods, when you take one of them out of your ear, they stop playing, but it takes them a second-and-a-half. Meanwhile, another resemblance to Airfoods is already in the first phase of use, but is mostly relevant to Galaxy users. If you have the company's smartphone as soon as you open the case (case) of the headphones, an indicator alert will pop up on a screen inviting you to connect them quickly.

Noise filtering?

At the announcement event Samsung boasted of incorporating active noise filtering in Galaxy Buds Live, something it has so far avoided for no apparent reason. From the first listen I followed the instructions and pressed and hold until I heard a short sound that signaled to me that the mechanism was working.

And I was disappointed. Although I got an indication that the filtering was working I did not notice a difference - neither in a noisy environment nor in a quiet environment - so I pressed again, then again, and then again. I also asked my partner to talk in the background, to shout, and every little sound around I could hear.

That's how I realized that while Samsung has promised active noise filtering, this is not something you will feel. If I compare the noise cancellation to that of the AirPods Pro, or even to a cheaper model like the Anker Liberty Air 2, Samsung is losing out huge. This is because, among other things, the headphones do not come with silicone rubber bands that seal the ears.

battery

Here the headphones do not disappoint at all. According to Samsung, a full charge will be enough for up to 6 hours of listening, and 15 hours with the case, which also supports wireless charging. In addition, 5 minutes of charging will suffice for a full hour of listening. In practice, the battery time is very impressive and from the moment I took them out of the package until the first charge, almost two days passed.

Bottom line

Their price at the official import of Sunny is 699 shekels, and if you want to part with headphones with the cord, but on the other hand do not want to compromise on quality and spend too much money - the Galaxy Buds Live are a great alternative. If you are a true audiophile and do not want to compromise on a perfect sound experience you should look for something else.