Some context here. JBL, which recently completed 80 years of hugely successful audio benchmark setting existence, and its parent company Harman International are wholly owned by Samsung. This is the foundation you need to have any conversation about the Samsung Galaxy Buds4 Pro wireless earbuds with. Basically, they all know what they’re doing, and right from the start, it’s clearly visible. While the flagship Galaxy Buds4 Pro don’t have the ‘Sound by AKG’ badge proudly displayed, the audio tuning is perfect. The fundamentals have not changed, nor has the acoustic structure.
And considering its seriousness they will have to do so ₹₹22,999 price tag which puts it in direct competition with the Apple AirPods Pro 3 (approx) ₹25,900) and Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 4 (now approx. ₹17,999). That said, keep in mind that Samsung ships the Galaxy Buds4 Pro with three sizes of eartips, but they’re all silicone. This reminds me of how Anker and even Sony for a while also bundled softer and more comfortable foam eartips – these are more comfortable if you intend to use the earbuds for long periods, either for calls, or listening to music in flight.
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Right from the start, the Galaxy Buds4 Pro design catches your attention, and it’s the mix of traditionalism with a few distinctive elements that makes it work as well as it does. I quite like the horizontal earbuds placement and design outline. It may be available in white, black and a Samsung online store exclusive pink gold, which could be the right kind of visual appeal to start a conversation. Particularly for the black color, which is also photographed here, the metallic treatment on the stem of the earbuds adds a nice touch of light reflection at different angles – something that brings a smile to the face every time you’re taking these out of the case or putting them back in.
There are subtle design changes that help broaden the comfort fit to the ear shape, and on a subjective note, I didn’t have trouble with the buds suddenly slipping off (many people do, especially in the left ear). That said, I’m still not a fan of the touch controls on the bud stems, and I’d prefer to return to the phone to raise or lower the volume most of the time. Samsung has seamlessly designed the Galaxy Buds4 Pro to fit seamlessly into the Samsung device ecosystem, especially Galaxy phones.
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For example, Samsung’s high resolution SSC UHQ code that supports 24-bit/96 kHz high quality tracks will only work with the latest Galaxy S26 series and some previous generations, Samsung’s foldable phones, and some recent Tab S series tablets. If you are pairing it with another Android device, the recovered support is for SSC, SBC, and LC3. Since I was lucky enough to have a Galaxy S26 Ultra to review these earbuds, the experience is nothing short of what you’d expect from flagship true wireless audio, especially with the “Pro” moniker in the name.
Samsung says a new wider woofer on the Galaxy Buds4 Pro has a 19.8% larger diaphragm than the Galaxy Buds3 Pro, and it laid the groundwork for tracks like Drafting by Lovin and Ismail Uluke, State of Mind by Kaskade and Lipless, and Dreams by Hamidshax. The lower frequencies have a beautiful presence amid the wide soundstage and where vocals are presented with the level of pristine touch that Sennheiser has always done so well (and Bose used to do).
Even more tweaks are available with several preset equalizers and a 9-band custom option. During the listening experience, I noticed that the complex passage of time in any given track, where a lot seems to be happening audibly, is where the Galaxy Buds 4 Pro struggle a bit to prioritize processing – there’s a flatness to certain elements, especially if you’re listening to Three Days Grace or Shinedown or Evanescence. This is compensated by the strong battery endurance, which results in a runtime of 6 hours with ANC on.
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Speaking of which, the noise cancellation on Adaptive is a balance between blocking out ambient noise while keeping minimal pressure in the ear (especially for sensitive ears). I didn’t get a chance to test it in flight, but it does a pretty good job with general home, office and traffic sounds. And the fact that this can be achieved without causing ear-numbing pressure, which is often not the case with earbuds and headphones, is a remarkable feat by the engineers.
Simple buying advice – If you have a Samsung device, especially a recent one, no true wireless earbuds (no matter the price) come even close to beating the experience of the Galaxy Buds 4 Pro. As for other Android phones, you get great sound and fairly well-tuned noise cancellation, but miss out on high-quality formats. It may just be a mistake, but that’s the price you’ll have to pay.
