With the reveal of the next generation AirPods Pro, Apple has shown a plethora of new upgrades to be integrated with their already impressive lineup of earbuds! But with all that, how do they shape against their apparent competitor, Samsung’s pride and joy, the flagship earbud called the Galaxy Buds Pro 2?
Today, we will pit the brand-new AirPods Pro 2 and Galaxy Buds 2 Pro earbuds together in a battle of specs and features. We’ll discuss the hardware and features that you’ll get with Airpods Pro 2 and Galaxy Buds 2 Pro in order to help you in making an informative decision.
Let’s jump into it!
Construction
Adopting a pretty similar look to their predecessors, the AirPods Pro 2, in terms of differences, comes with a new extra small ear-tip size which should be able to help create a better fit for people who have comparatively smaller ears and struggle with the regular sized buds. Despite all the rumors we’ve heard so far, Apple DID NOT remove the stems but somewhat enhanced them by providing a handful of quality-of-life upgrades, such as a capacitive touch sensor to adjust the volume.
In comparison, the Galaxy Pro 2 differ in the sense that they don’t come with a stem or such but solely depend on the traditional touch controls. Also, while Apple is apparently allergic to providing a water-resistant level that surpasses the IPX4 rating, Samsung took this opportunity to flex in a comparatively stronger IPX7, providing better protection not only from accidental splashes but sweat and dust as well.
Design
Holding the minimal aesthetic that Apple is famous for in its roots, the AirPods Pro is only available in white while weighing 5.3 grams, while Samsung is more on the colorful side with options such as black, white, and purple while having a weight of a slightly heftier 5.5 grams.
Battery and Charging
Surprisingly, the AirPods 2 Pro comes with extended battery life when compared to their predecessor, clocking in at 6 hours per bud and around 30 hours in total, trumping the Galaxy Buds 2’s 5 and 23 hours of battery backup with ease. Both buds come with a QI-compatible charging case.
Security
In this case, Apple has the upper hand since the case possesses a lanyard loop to keep the buds from getting lost, as well as a built-in speaker that’s able to emit a sound to locate the case should it get lost. Speaking of getting lost, both buds come with the Find My Feature, and those who possess a U1-Enabled iPhone can locate the case with guided directions. For Samsung, the buds also emit an audible “Chirp” to locate, alongside making use of the “SmartThings” app.
Audio Features
The most noticeable upgrade from Apple’s side is undoubtedly the brand new H2 chip that, according to Apple, offers more advanced computational audio processing in order to improve the overall audio and noise cancellation, providing up to two times the ANC power than its predecessor. The adaptive transparency mode also had a facelift, where it’s able to react in real-time to sudden audio spikes to reduce the overall sound in order to ensure an overall comfortable and natural experience.
While not providing a lot of detail on their chips, Samsung, as far as it appears to be, boasts ANC and Transparency mode as well that also comes with a voice-detection feature that switches between ANC to Transparency naturally, which is a feature we thought Apple would’ve implemented by now, but for some reason, they did not.
Apple also comes with 3D sound with personalized spatial audio that includes head-tracking to adapt the sound to each individual ear, while the Buds 2 Pro don’t fall too far behind with features such as spatial audio with their intelligent 360 Audio Mode with enhanced head tracking.
Both of these buds support the latest BlueTooth 5.3 connectivity options that come with AAC support. However, Samsung has the upper hand here since the buds also come with a Seamless Codec for a comparatively higher quality of audio. Apple did mention a higher bandwidth audio support, but we really couldn’t get much detail about that.
AirPods Pro 2 vs Galaxy Buds 2 Pro: Which is Better?
In comparison, both buds so far look incredibly premium and truly should give a next-gen experience, but in our opinion, your own personal preference will all boil down to your preferred ecosystem.
“Needless to say, the AirPods Pro 2 will work better if you have an iOS ecosystem, whereas the Galaxy Buds 2 Pro will be able to unleash their full potential with supporting galaxy products. Also, both Apple and Samsung have given assurance on how you won’t be able to use these buds to their fullest extent if you don’t belong in the corresponding ecosystem, so there’s that. And with a price tag of 249$ for AirPods 2 and 229$ for the Galaxy Buds 2 Pro, they don’t fall in the affordable category either, so we’d advise going with your corresponding ecosystem.”
