During Samsung’s first Unpacked event for 2026, the South Korean outfit showed off its latest and greatest Galaxy smartphones. The company’s latest set of Galaxy Buds was not far behind. There are two new pairs, in fact, just as the prophecy foretold.
The Galaxy Buds 4 and Galaxy Buds 4 Pro join the Galaxy S26 lineup this year, hoping to be the next set of things you put in your ears. If you’re big on Samsung’s ecosystem and missed out on the third generation of ‘buds, we see little reason not to get these.
Buds in your ears — call ’em ‘earbuds’
Samsung have opted for a new design (again), this time making the stems flatter while keeping the touch, pinch, and swipe controls in the stems that the Galaxy Buds 3 used. Also similar to the Galaxy Buds 3, the Galaxy Buds 4 base model uses an open design, while the Buds 4 Pro get silicon tips to create a better seal in your ears.
If you need any more help telling them apart, the base model’s cradle is the one that may invoke memories of a certain famously ugly car.
You can expect the usual raft of features that most premium earbuds sport these days, including an adaptive noise-cancelling system that now gives you slightly more control over when and how it will function.
New to the Galaxy Buds range is head gestures, a shake of your head (while wearing them, obviously) will reject an incoming call or dismiss Bixby when it’s trying to read you something. Nod your head to accept a call or respond to Bixby positively without having to open your mouth in public.
Samsung said the drivers inside its new buds are capable of 24-bit/96kHz playback and are 20% larger, so they should provide more oomph in the low-end. We’ll see about that.
Your new bud’s in town
Just like the Galaxy S26 range, the new Buds will also feature AI in the form of a live translation feature. It’s apparently seen an upgrade to make it faster and more capable.
As far as expected battery life goes, Samsung says the Buds 4 should be good for 3.5 hours of call time, or slightly more with ANC off, and around 5 hours of music playback with ANC enabled (6 hours with it switched off). With the charging case included, you’re looking at 18 hours (20 hours without ANC) in total.
The Buds 4 Pro take those figures up to 4.5 hours of call time and 6 hours of music playback (with ANC enabled), and between 26 and 30 hours in total with the case.
You’ll have to wait a little longer to get your new set of Galaxy Buds — Samsung says they should land locally later in March. When they do, the Galaxy Buds 4 will cost R3,500, while the Buds 4 Pro will go for R4,000.
