
Samsung’s New ‘Fan Edition” Earbuds Beat the Pricier Buds 3 Pro in One Key Way
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Samsung’s New ‘Fan Edition” Earbuds Beat the Pricier Buds 3 Pro in One Key Way
The $150 Galaxy Buds 3 FE have a 6-hour battery life with ANC on and off. They also have a dual-driver design, which is different from the $190 Buds Pro. The earbuds also come with hands-free access to Samsung’s voice-activated assistant, but only if you have the Samsung Galaxy S7 or S7 Edge. They are not compatible with the iPhone 6 or iPhone 6S, but they are compatible with Samsung’s Galaxy Note 5 and Galaxy Note 3. The Buds FE 3 are available now from Samsung and are available in black, white, and blue. They will be available in the U.S. in the coming weeks and are expected to go on sale later this year.
According to Samsung, the $150 Buds 3 FE offer 6 hours of battery with active noise cancellation (ANC) activated and 8.5 hours with ANC off. That’s compared to the $190 Buds 3 Pro battery life, which clocks in at 6 hours and 7 hours with ANC on and off, respectively. I would have liked to see the ANC battery life get a bump here too, but it’s nice to know that if you need to, you can get an extra hour and a half for less money. Those battery life numbers aren’t mind-blowing in the general field of wireless earbuds, but they do put the Galaxy Buds 3 FE on par with comparably priced buds from OnePlus.
The other category that the Galaxy Buds FE 3 excel in is weight. These wireless earbuds are actually 5 grams lighter than the Galaxy Buds 3 Pro, which isn’t an enormous difference but is enough to give the FE a slight edge if you’re comparing the two against each other. It’s also worth noting that Samsung managed to decrease the weight while upgrading the battery life, which is always a feat worth mentioning when it comes to any gadget, earbuds included.
The next biggest selling point is the fact that the Galaxy Buds FE 3 match a lot of the Pro features while keeping the starting price lower. The first thing you’ll probably notice is that the new Buds FE 3 borrow the same AirPods-like design as the Buds 3 Pro, which is nice if you like Apple’s white earbuds but maybe not so nice if you’re looking for something different. There is a slight difference here in that the Galaxy Buds FE 3 come with a matte finish as opposed to the Galaxy Buds 3 Pro’s glossy one, though, and they don’t have any LED lights on the stems—sorry, blades—themselves.
On top of a similar design, the Galaxy Buds FE 3 also come equipped with real-time AI translation features (only if you have a Samsung phone) and hands-free Gemini compatibility so you can activate and use your voice assistant without unlocking your phone. AI features probably won’t be make-or-break for most people, but it’s nice to know that they’ll be there if you should need/want them.
As is the case with any pair of wireless earbuds, the biggest question will be in the sound. One notable difference between the Buds 3 Pro and Buds 3 FE is that the former has a dual-driver design while the latter has just one driver. It’s hard to say what kind of difference that will make without hearing them back-to-back, but I’m guessing the Galaxy Buds 3 Pro will have an edge when it comes to fidelity and dynamic range. Even with that difference, however, the Buds 3 FE feel like a good deal for the price, and if you’re looking to save a little bit of money but not make any major compromises, this could be the pair of Samsung wireless earbuds you’re looking for.