Samsung Galaxy Buds Reviews

I have a iPhone 11 Pro and bought the Galaxy Buds+ so that I can fit them in my ear protection. AirPod stems are too long to fit in ear protection.
I noticed the right ear is slightly lower in volume than the left. I checked this by switching ears and it was indeed the right ear bud that was lower in volume. I googled the problem and was suggested to download SamsungGalaxyBuds to fix the volume issue. However I cannot seem to connect my Buds to SamsungGalaxyBuds . The option for Buds comes up with a black pair and mine are white. Maybe that’s the issue?? Idk I’m not familiar with Galaxy products. I’ve tried everything I can think of: unpaired them from my phone, then tried through SamsungGalaxyBuds , nothing. Tried with them paired to my phone and still nothing. Deleted then re downloaded SamsungGalaxyBuds . Basically every option in between all that I listed I tried. Nothing. I keep getting the “Device not appearing?” Screen even though the buds are already connected to my phone. There’s a YouTuber (Devin Macon) that connected his Buds to his iPhone but he has the white Bud option; mine shows up as a black pair and there’s no other option. I’ll see if the unbalance improves but I can’t seem to connect the Buds to the Buds app. Please fix ASAP.

How do you make an app that is not compatible to its original product version!! When will SamsungGalaxyBuds be compatible or when will there be an app that is compatible? I was sooo excited when I purchased the original galaxy buds from Samsung since I had done all my research and compared them to a few others including Apple AirPods, and Samsung ultimately won for its look and comfort for me and also it stated on the website that they were compatible to iOS came to find out they are not!!! I called Samsung to complain but of course nothing could be done I accepted the fact that I can only use my buds as Bluetooth with my iPhone 11 max pro but was told to periodically check for an app in SamsungGalaxyBuds Store since it might become available soon. Today I was told by a colleague that a new version of the galaxy buds was available with SamsungGalaxyBuds for iPhones I was excited when I heard the news that I quickly downloaded SamsungGalaxyBuds thinking that of course it’s compatible to the original buds how could they not right.... Not reading the fine print “not compatible with SM-R170” VERY DISAPPOINTED! NOT HAPPY AT ALL!! Not sure if I will be buying Samsung products anymore since it’s very hard to have them pair or be compatible with other devices. Please make it compatible. It’s ridiculous it’s not!

I did this on a iPhone 11 but I’m not 100% sure if it will work on all iPhone models. It should but you’ll have to give it a try to see if it works on your iPhone. There’s a Bluetooth connectivity issue with the Samsung ear bud app. The Samsung app seems to have been written by a 6 year old just starting out… To get around it simply pair your Samsung ear buds manually to your iPhone. Your phone will pick up the Bluetooth signal automatically and show in the Bluetooth settings as unpaired. Simply press pair ear buds and connect manually. The ear buds will work but you won’t be able to use SamsungGalaxyBuds to apply different settings and customize the way the ear buds sound or work. Even with out SamsungGalaxyBuds settings available the Samsung ear buds sound really good. They are much better sounding than the newer Bluetooth iPhone ear buds are… To get the Samsung ear buds to play louder than the normal loudest setting available or to add a bass boost download a sound EQ app and play around with the settings till you find what you like. Then delete the Samsung ear buds app all together because it’s worthless and can’t be used at this point. Hope this helps. 🎼

**Developers, please READ this part of my note**:
In SamsungGalaxyBuds ’s “Compatibility” section, under “INFORMATION”, it specifically states that it is compatible with the iPod Touch. This section needs to be edited, if it’s not true, as it gives false information.

I have the latest, generation 7, updated to the latest iOS (13.6.1), and I always get the dreaded “not compatible with this device” message. I have written to customer service several times, with canned responses of instructions to follow. (I know how to do that, as I previously connected the Buds+ to my iPad. I just don’t think it’s feasible to toss my iPad into my back pocket when I want to listen to music while out walking!) Never once did anyone reply that the iPod touch isn’t compatible, as some of the responses from the developer on this site have indicated. I can pair and listen to music with no problems, but I would like to be able to use the features of SamsungGalaxyBuds, to monitor the battery levels, to change the equalizer, etc. Why exclude a specific device made for music when developing an app for wireless earbuds??

SamsungGalaxyBuds doesn’t work at all if you buds are connected to the phone. What’s the point? If you connect to SamsungGalaxyBuds , the sound doesn’t play via the buds, only through the phone. If you connect them via Bluetooth, you can hear through the buds but it won’t connect to SamsungGalaxyBuds . Samsung fix this!!!

Update 1: Not sure how to respond directly to your comment but I’ll edit my review to include that info. I have the Samsung Galaxy Buds+ in light blue and my phone is iPhone 11 Pro Max running iOS 13.3.1. Everything is up to date.

Update 2: did you read my review at all? Of course I know it has to be connected to bluetooth to work. THATS THE PROBLEM! It won’t play music or anything else if it’s connected via SamsungGalaxyBuds . If you connect via the Bluetooth settings in the iPhone settings, it works fine but then SamsungGalaxyBuds can’t connect to the buds. Stop being purposefully obtuse. Read the other reviews. There are tons of other people with the exact same problem. I upgraded to the buds+ solely for the SamsungGalaxyBuds . Fix it so I don’t have to return them as defective.

It’s amazing to see how many different models of Apple products are not compatible with SamsungGalaxyBuds, and it turns out that the Galaxy Pro buds are completely incompatible with any Apple device and won’t work with SamsungGalaxyBuds. I’ve been trying and trying to figure out how to connect my Galaxy Pro buds to SamsungGalaxyBuds and finally, after hours of digging around on the internet over a couple weeks and a long chat with a support worker, I learned that the entire Galaxy Pro product line doesn’t even work with SamsungGalaxyBuds. Meaning there is no way to program my new buds whatsoever. These were gifted to me for Christmas so I hadn’t done any research and just assumed they would work with the Galaxy Buds App, because why on earth wouldn’t they right? Even on SamsungGalaxyBuds home page it only references Galaxy Buds, Galaxy Live, and Galaxy + - no mention of the Pro model at all. In my opinion, it’s absolutely ridiculous that the upgraded Galaxy Pro doesn’t have an Apple app that is compatible. Do better, Samsung, and fix this before you lose your entire market of IPhone users.

SamsungGalaxyBuds is not working. I have an iphone 11 and buds live SM-R180. Should be more accurate on the description as It doesn’t connect.
Update: thanks for the response. I have an iPhone 11 with iOS 14.4. The issue is that I cannot connect the buds live to SamsungGalaxyBuds , so I cannot reset the buds. I can open SamsungGalaxyBuds but once I click on start SamsungGalaxyBuds cannot recognize the buds and that’s all I can do. The buds live works with the regular Bluetooth but I cannot use all the features that SamsungGalaxyBuds allows me to use for my buds live.
2nd update: I follow each one of the steps suggested but SamsungGalaxyBuds still cannot find the buds live. It start searching and then just show a message that there is not a device near. They paired with the iphone but not with SamsungGalaxyBuds so I cannot use the features available on SamsungGalaxyBuds . Any suggestion?
3rd Update: thanks for the info. I followed each one of the steps and the result is still negative. The buds live cannot be found by SamsungGalaxyBuds so they only pair as a regular headphones. Not sure why it is so complicated to pair them with SamsungGalaxyBuds . They work fine as regular headphones but there is no way I can pair them to SamsungGalaxyBuds to use the features. By the moment I am disappointed with SamsungGalaxyBuds .

When my husband gets the Samsung buds for free when purchasing his Samsung S10 5G phone, you would think the product would work with SamsungGalaxyBuds that comes out for it. But NO! I have an iPhone and since the Samsung buds had great reviews and at a much better price point, it’s a no brainer which ear buds we would go with. Fast forward to having them for almost a year and losing just one of the eat buds because your cat thinks this is the coolest toy ever. How do you suppose we found the other ear bud? Not with the iPhone that it was paired to, no, with my husband’s Samsung S10 that has SamsungGalaxyBuds built into his settings. This is the stupidest app ever! Just because technology has upgraded, doesn’t mean you forget about the original version of the product! When these crap out, which is already happening, I have problems with the earbuds dropping calls, people not being able to hear me, not being able to hear the music I am listening to - it drops the music about 5 seconds into the song, and so on, I will gladly be going with another company.

I’ll start out by saying I honestly really enjoy the buds+. They sound awesome, plus the ambient mic mode and numerous other features are really nice. The issue I have is if I pair the buds+ through SamsungGalaxyBuds , my buds+ have no sound coming through them. My phone just sends the audio through the phone speakers like nothing is connected. If I just pair the buds+ through the Bluetooth connection menu in my settings for my IPhone X, they will function normally. If I pair them through my Bluetooth menu though I cannot pair them through SamsungGalaxyBuds , which prevents me from being able to use all the cool features. My phone and buds+ are both on the latest updates. I have also deleted SamsungGalaxyBuds and reinstalled it, just to make sure there wasn’t just some bad file I downloaded. Or possibly just a glitch in my download. I have had zero issues with other headphone companies and their software for their headphones. This is a sad deal for me, because I really want to be able to use these headphones to their fullest
exten. These are by far the most comfortable and best sounding truly wireless headphones I have had.

I read many of the reviews and I see so far many overlapping on the same issue, and sadly SamsungGalaxyBuds developers haven’t really made any updates or statements on these feedback, I’m facing a connectivity issue with SamsungGalaxyBuds itself, when download SamsungGalaxyBuds and connect my Buds plus,I cannot take any calls but I can listen to some of the music and sounds, on the other hand if I connect them normally, they would connect for some time but I’ve noticed switching back-and-forth between other phones or other devices could also cause an issue. For me it seems to be a software issue in the device itself, it’s not fully compatible with iPhones or Apple devices in general, I did try several devices and still facing the same issue, that’s how I came up with this conclusion. Hope this issue could be fixed on the next update.

Overall I like the device and the sound quality, and all the features it offered.

I have an iPhone 11 and the galaxy buds+ , and at first the left bud became significantly quieter and I could barely hear a thing from it. Now the right bud is doing the same and unless you’re in a dead quiet space you can’t hear any music even with The volume turned all the way up.
So I googled how to fix , very common but not easily fixed surprisingly. I downloaded SamsungGalaxyBuds to try and connect the buds to it and do it like many suggested but no success in connecting to SamsungGalaxyBuds . Buds were fully charged and ready to pair etc and SamsungGalaxyBuds never even locates them so now I’m stuck with these used to be really nice working headphones that I can’t even use. Is there a way to clean these or fix this issue were it’s compatible? Why have the option if it won’t even connect to the buds. Also I’ve uninstalled and re-downloaded SamsungGalaxyBuds multiple times no luck sadly.

Response to developer response:

It’s absolutely possible for Bluetooth devices linked to an iPhone to do everything that the Galaxy Buds+ currently do, while having volume controls that are totally independent of the volume slider in iOS. I have multiple Bluetooth headphones/speakers/receivers that do exactly this.

On those devices, their internal volume controls act like the potentiometer-based in-line volume controls that are found on some headphones—they adjust the final volume without changing the position of the slider in iOS.

That’s absolutely something that these earbuds should be able to do too, even if it’s via a manual slider in the application.

Original review:

With these earbuds, there’s currently no way to adjust the volume output of the buds independently from the single volume slider in iOS.

That artificially limits the range of output volume you can get out of them—it means that they’re too quiet for some environments, too loud for others, and that it can be difficult to get the volume level set right where you want it.

Admittedly this is mostly a deficiency within iOS, but it would be nice if this application allowed me to change it—either via a slider in the application, or by allowing the user to control the volume output of the phone via the phone’s buttons, and the volume amplification of the buds via the touch controls on the buds themselves.

Connecting them to my iPhone was pretty easy and SamsungGalaxyBuds worked great, but when I tried to switch them to my iPad I had to go to my phone Bluetooth settings and manually forget the buds so that my IPad could recognize them. I have to do this every time I want to switch between devices and sometimes I have to try 3 or 4 times for my devices to recognize them.

Edit: I tried this but my iPad only recognized the left bud and doesn’t take them as earbuds, the sound still plays through the speakers. Thank you for answering.

Second edit: the link doesn’t work, it says the video it’s unavailable

Third edit: Hi there, the thing is unless I manually unpair the buds from my phone my iPad won’t find them, even if they are on the case and my phone’s Bluetooth is turned off.

Fourth edit: it works now! I had my buds conected to my iPad and forgot to disconnect them before going out, I thought I would have to go back inside and unpair them but they just connected to my phone, now I can easily switch between devices without having to unpair them. If someone is having the same issue just get away from one of your devices with and connect them to the other.

I decided to try these after I wore out my original Apple AirPods. The battery life was what made me choose yours. When I read all the low ratings (after I got these), I worried that I’d have problems with them. But I’m one of those weirdos who reads the manual. I followed the directions, and had NO PROBLEMS with them at all. I poked around the settings, tuned them to my taste, and after a software update, am enjoying them. My main challenge is remembering what tap does what, and turning the tap sensor off until I seat them properly.

It’s a treat to get something that works as it should, right out of the box. They play well with my iPhone 11 Pro Max, and I bet they’ll run with my iPad, Windows 10 laptop and whatever else I get.

I’m using SamsungGalaxyBuds on my iPhone XS and with the Galaxy Buds +. My previous Bluetooth earbuds were the original Apple AirPods. Not only are Galaxy Buds + better in sound quality, noise isolation and battery longevity; SamsungGalaxyBuds adds so much functionality that I just love.
I am a diy sort of person so I am nerding out with what I can do with these buds through SamsungGalaxyBuds .
I’ve settled on left bud touch and hold to turn on ambient sound. Right touch and hold for Siri. Single tap pause playback. Two taps next track and three for previous. I love that I adjust how loud my ambient sound is and whether I want it on when I’m on the phone. I do by the way. I’m also digging the experimental features of tapping the outside of the buds for volume up or down.
Clearly SamsungGalaxyBuds is trying to give as much functionality as they can. You can also disable all functionality if you so choose by enabling Block Touches.
I have had no connection issues since I began using it 3 months ago.
The only thing I wish I had was a graphic eq to further dial in my audio preferences. Even without, I’d give SamsungGalaxyBuds an 11 out of 10. Just super cool what I can do with these buds especially coming from the AirPods.

I have buds+ with an iPhone 11. Follow the instructions to pair as it says on the Samsung website. Turn on Bluetooth and go to SamsungGalaxyBuds . Don’t try to connect with Bluetooth first. FOLLOW THE INSTRUCTIONS.
Still testing longevity; so far so good.
They look great and work beautifully. I’m loving my buds+. I am more sensitive to ear buds and the regular apple ear buds hurt my ears and these are comfortable with 3 sizes to choose from: small, med and large. I have been reading so many negative reviews so I worried about the experience I would have. This is why I am making this review bc so long as you understand which buds you have and which device they are compatible with you won’t have problems.
SamsungGalaxyBuds is great and I especially like the equalizer. Love the way music sounds with Dynamic.
Overall so happy with buds+. Thank you

I don't why so many people have problems with SamsungGalaxyBuds. I have iPhone 10 and I paired my buds through phone Bluetooth and then downloaded app and connected ear buds to app and everything works just fine. If you leave app for a while and go back in it does display as if no ear buds connected even through they are and I'm listening to music through them but all you have to do is just pull down in SamsungGalaxyBuds just like you do on Instagram to refresh feed and suddenly buds are connected to app and you can regulate the equalizer and ambient sound. Btw, ambience sound is amazing. I tested it out in a noisy factory I work in and the noise cancelation from off to full mode is noticeable considerably and blocks most sound when not listening to anything at all and completely when turn on music!

SamsungGalaxyBuds works perfectly, just read the instructions that pop up on the screen! After reading the comments, I noticed people have been complaining on how, when you pair the buds they don’t play the song or movie you are trying to listen to. Instead the sound comes from the speakers of the device you’re using instead of the buds. But if you’ve read the instructions that pop up right after you pair you’r buds, it’s says that Bluetooth has to be paired to Galaxy buds+ and Galaxy buds+ LE. After you pair through SamsungGalaxyBuds , go to Bluetooth settings on your device and if only one is paired, put your buds back into the charging case and take them out right after and you’ll find both of the Bluetooth pairing names. ( If you don’t see both, wait a bit till it pops up)

I was able to get Buds+ to work perfectly and immediately with SamsungGalaxyBuds by following simple, intuitive instructions available online.

Before attempting to use SamsungGalaxyBuds, ensure you own Buds+, not the original Buds. Verify your iOS device compatibility (on SamsungGalaxyBuds store for phones and online for iPads). If you do not meet these prerequisites, proceed no further and do not download SamsungGalaxyBuds.

1st step - open buds case with Buds+ still in the charging position if this is the first device you're pairing your Buds+ to enter pairing mode or take Buds+ out of their case (as long as they're charged) and put them in. Tap and hold both Buds+ until you hear a repeating chime which indicates they're in pairing mode.

2nd step - using the device that you want to have as your primary device for your Buds+ go to Settings > Bluetooth and trap on Buds+ at the bottom. Once they are connected, download SamsungGalaxyBuds if you haven't already done so.

3rd step - open SamsungGalaxyBuds and follow prompts. It will ask you to keep the case open, this is why it was necessary to pair to your primary device first as the case only pairs to one device. You're done. It's as simple as that.

Functionality of settings, controls, etc is as expected. These are among the easiest to setup non-Apple headphones I've used.

Before you turn away from Galaxy Buds because of the reviews of them or SamsungGalaxyBuds, please read below. (TL;DR at bottom)

I was skeptical when buying the Buds+ because of all the negative reviews of the product and SamsungGalaxyBuds. But let me tell you, I have no regrets buying them.

The reviews saying that the Bluetooth doesn’t connect with iPhones or that you have to give Samsung access to all your contacts just aren’t true. If you have a apple device that isn’t too old, they connect fine. The Buds+ even connected to my Windows PC with no issues, unlike every other earbuds I’ve tried.

As for SamsungGalaxyBuds, it works exactly as you’d expect it to. It makes connection even easier than just using Bluetooth, and it gives you control over almost everything. All it requested was to access Bluetooth, no location or contacts.

If you saw one of the reviews at the top saying that SamsungGalaxyBuds doesn’t work with the original Buds, (I wonder why apple put that at the top...) no duh. It’s not supposed to. You should do your research before buying earbuds to see if there is an app or the company has official said certain earbuds will be supported by an app. Samsung never claimed or even made it seem like the original Buds would be supported.

TL;DR
Personally I love my earbuds, but that’s not for this review on SamsungGalaxyBuds Store. SamsungGalaxyBuds serves its purpose and I have had no issues with it.

Whenever I write towards Samsung asking for support the submit button doesn’t even work. I’ve tried it on my phone, my friends, and families phones multiple times and it never submits. I’ve filled out everything and I know my phone recognizes my pressing that location but the request is never submitted.

You can support a not yet released product but you can’t support your current users. My buds sound very different when using an ancient droid phone than a recent iPhone. They should have never said iOS compatible. Maybe if enough of us get together in a large group, maybe we could call it a class Samsung would fix this garbage.

I downloaded SamsungGalaxyBuds and when opened it says there is anew update version. But it is not updating and not finding my galaxy wearables. Clearly SamsungGalaxyBuds isn’t working because someone else has complained about the same thing and it want let ask a question with customer service. I filled in my information and hit send an it does not send.

I hesitated buying the Buds six months ago because they have limited iOS support but went with them because they were reasonable. I had hoped eventually Samsung would add iOS support but it’s clear now that they won’t. I don’t appreciate being corralled into purchasing the + because they chose not to support their large customer base. I won’t be buying Samsung again.

Current app doesn’t work with the Samsung Galaxy Buds. My phone recognizes them through Bluetooth but SamsungGalaxyBuds itself does not. Got these as a gift and have to return them now since Samsung just made them obsolete. Would have been nice to know that before hand. Also the “wearables” app they want you to download in the instructions no longer exists. This is the current app for this product.

It is stupid to create an app for something that isn’t out for the public yet not have it support the current ear buds that are out. I love the galaxy ear buds but because I have IOS I can not update them of use all the features. When I saw that they finally came out with an app for ear buds I was excited. Then was again let down.
If this is Samsung’s way of making IOS users buy new buds, they won’t get any money from me.

So you have an iOS app for a product that isn’t even out yet? But you don’t have an app for a product that is already available? Please make it make sense! I just want to turn off my touch controls on my buds so they’re not constantly going off when I’m laying down but I can’t even do that because THERES NO APP! It’s unfortunate because the sound of the original buds are better than the headphones that came with my iPhone

I downloaded the latest version of SamsungGalaxyBuds from SamsungGalaxyBuds Store, but when I open SamsungGalaxyBuds it tells me that there is a new update available. However, there is not. In addition to this issue, SamsungGalaxyBuds isn’t recognizing my buds. I’d like to program the volume controls, but I’m unable to because SamsungGalaxyBuds doesn’t work rendering it useless. Volume controls should have been setting defaults in the first place. Instead, I’m dependent on an app that doesn’t function. Nice.

I bought these air buds on condition I can store music in them and use SamsungGalaxyBuds to control certain aspect of the sound. After I bought 10 of them for family members I try to use SamsungGalaxyBuds and it doesn’t connect. I called Samsung telling them the issue all they did i apologize a hundred times and told me sorry it doesn’t work for ios... they basically told me “ sorry but we screwed you “ now I know never to buy anything from Samsung

I download SamsungGalaxyBuds SamsungGalaxyBuds doesn’t work. It saying to update there’s no update. I continue with recognizing the device. It says no device it found, but my husband phone is able pick up the the device because he have a Samsung and SamsungGalaxyBuds it built in his phone. SamsungGalaxyBuds is useless for iPhones and the device it self is trash to me because my right ear buds is no longer working it doesn’t want to charge and how convenient it would go out right after my 30 days of my purchase. I look up the problem issues with Samsung ear buds, the known issue is that the buds want charge. I will stick with apple products and if there’s an issue at least they will try to fix it. On the other hand Samsung doesn’t.

I just downloaded SamsungGalaxyBuds and tried to pair them with it and no success. I’ve tried everything and still no luck. I even deleted the buds from my phone and re-paired them and SamsungGalaxyBuds still couldn’t find them. I don’t understand how they can be connected to my phone (11 Pro Max on 13.3.1) yet SamsungGalaxyBuds designed for the buds can’t find them. iPhone users have waited forever for these features to be available to us for them to finally be here and not function correctly, that’s a shame. This is a bad look on Samsung’s part when it comes to convincing more to switch to buds over AirPods. It receiving 1 star until this problem is fixed and would receive less if possible with it being a useless app.

The galaxy buds+ come out Friday the 14th and people are going to get some and they are going to need SamsungGalaxyBuds for them

SamsungGalaxyBuds is good but I have just one simple question, can you sue normal galaxy buds? Or is it just for Galaxy buds+, if so make the same kind of app but just for normal galaxy buds/ put both together- Thanks

I dont have a use for it. Neither does anyone in the world. This is for galaxy buds PLUS. Not original. Stop giving it bad reviews. Im giving it five stars because finally theres gonna be a way to use galaxy buds with ios

Ignore the other review, the buds haven’t even come out yet so you can’t really use SamsungGalaxyBuds until then.