Apple AirPods Pro 3 / Samsung Galaxy Buds FE

Apple AirPods Pro 3: MagSafe charging case (USB-C) with speaker

Samsung Galaxy Buds FE: Galaxy Buds FE (SM-R400); Graphite or White. The Galaxy Buds3 FE released in 2025 is a separate product.

Specification	Apple AirPods Pro 3	Samsung Galaxy Buds FE
Release year	2025	2023
Announcement and sale	Announced 9 September 2025; in stores 19 September 2025 Apple	—
Chips	Apple H2 in the earbuds; second-generation Ultra Wideband (U2) chip in the charging case Apple	—
Audio hardware	Custom high-excursion Apple driver; custom high dynamic range amplifier Apple	—
Noise control	Active Noise Cancellation, Transparency mode, Adaptive Audio, Conversation Awareness Apple says ANC is up to 2x more effective than AirPods Pro 2. Adaptive Audio blends ANC and Transparency to suit the surroundings and needs iOS 18 or later. Apple	—
Spatial audio	Personalised Spatial Audio with dynamic head tracking Creating a personal profile requires an iPhone with a TrueDepth camera. Apple	—
Ear tips	Foam-infused silicone tips; five sizes: XXS, XS, S, M, L XXS is new in this generation. Apple	—
Heart rate sensing	Optical heart rate sensor (PPG) in the earbuds; infrared pulsed 256 times per second Used during workouts in the Fitness app on iPhone and requires iOS 26. It is not a medical measuring device. Apple	—
Microphones and sensors	Dual beamforming microphones, inward-facing microphone; skin-detect sensor, motion- and speech-detecting accelerometers The speech-detecting accelerometer senses the wearer talking through bone vibration; Voice Isolation suppresses background noise. Apple	—
Hearing features	Hearing Test, Hearing Aid, Hearing Protection The Hearing Aid feature is FDA-authorised for adults 18+ with perceived mild to moderate hearing loss; availability varies by country. Apple	—
Live Translation	Live Translation (beta) with an Apple Intelligence-enabled iPhone on iOS 26 Apple notes the feature is not available in every region or language. Apple	—
Controls	Stem press and swipe: play/pause, calls, mode switching, volume; “Siri” voice command Press and hold switches listening modes; swiping up or down changes volume. Apple	—
Battery (earbuds)	Up to 8 hours with ANC at 50% volume; 7.5 hours with Spatial Audio and head tracking; 6.5 hours in workouts with heart rate; 10 hours in Hearing Aid mode Apple measured these in July–August 2025 with pre-production units and software; results vary with settings and environment. Apple	—
Battery (with case)	Up to 24 hours total with ANC; 5 minutes in the case gives about 1 hour of listening Apple	—
Charging case	USB-C, MagSafe, Apple Watch charger or Qi-certified charger; speaker for Find My; lanyard loop A USB-C cable is not included in the box. Apple	—
Durability	IP57 (IEC 60529); earbuds and charging case Not for water sports. Resistance may decrease over time; do not charge when wet. Apple	—
Bluetooth	Bluetooth 5.3 Per SoundGuys testing, codecs are SBC and AAC; there is no lossless wireless streaming. Apple	—
Compatibility	Latest iOS, iPadOS, watchOS, macOS, tvOS, visionOS; basic Bluetooth headphones on other devices On non-Apple devices adaptive modes, hearing features and firmware updates are unavailable. Apple	Android 8.0 or later with more than 1.5 GB of RAM Some features do not work on non-Samsung devices. Samsung
Size and weight	Earbud (each) 30.9 × 19.2 × 27.0 mm, 5.55 g; case 47.2 × 62.2 × 21.8 mm, 43.99 g Apple	Earbud 17.1 × 19.2 × 22.2 mm, 5.6 g; case 50.0 × 27.7 × 50.0 mm, 40.0 g Samsung
Driver and sound	—	1-way speaker; Scalable (Samsung proprietary), AAC and SBC codecs The Scalable codec is Samsung’s codec that adjusts bitrate to connection quality and works with Galaxy devices; other phones use AAC or SBC. The high-resolution SSC Hi-Fi codec is not supported. Samsung
Noise cancellation	—	Active Noise Cancellation (ANC) and Ambient Sound ANC picks up outside sound with microphones and suppresses it with an inverse wave; Ambient Sound lets outside sound in so you can hear without removing the buds. Samsung
Microphones	—	3 microphones per earbud (2 outer + 1 inner) Samsung says automatic personalized beamforming and a DNN separate speech from background noise. Samsung
Battery	—	Earbud 60 mAh, case 479 mAh (typical); 6 hours with ANC on (21 hours with case), 8.5 hours with ANC off (30 hours with case); talk time 3.5 hours with ANC on The case does not support wireless charging; it charges over a USB-C cable. Samsung
Connectivity	—	Bluetooth 5.2; Auto Switch, SmartThings Find Auto Switch moves audio automatically between Galaxy phones, tablets and watches on the same Samsung account. SmartThings Find shows the buds’ last location. Samsung
Fit	—	3 sizes of ear tips and 2 sizes of wingtips Wingtips grip the ear to help the buds stay in place during exercise. Samsung
Sensors	—	Proximity, Hall, touch The proximity sensor pauses music when a bud is removed; the touch surface controls playback and modes. Samsung