As well as announcing its Galaxy S20 smartphone series, Samsung has also revealed its latest (and just as leaked!) true wireless headphones.
The Galaxy Buds+ succeed the Galaxy Buds that were launched alongside the Galaxy S10 phones last year, and while noise-cancellation is still left off the menu they bring with them notable improvements to battery life.
The pre-existing Buds can deliver six hours of audio playback before needing to be rejoined to the supplied charging case but the Buds+ almost double that figure, promising 11 hours from a single charge (or 7.5 hours of talk time).
That's a considerably better earbud battery than the popular Apple AirPods (five hours) and class-leading Sony WF-1000XM3 (eight hours without ANC), however their combined earbuds and charging case battery life – 22 hours – is slightly beneath its rivals.
The cherry on the cake: one hour of playback from just three minutes of charging. Qi wireless charging and wireless powershare are also supported.
Of course, our focus will be on whether the AKG-tuned two-way speaker (one tweeter, one woofer) and the three microphones (one inner, two outer beam-forming) in each bud will deliver improvements in sound quality, which was frankly poor in the originals.
Ambient Mode, which amplifies your outer surroundings so you can briefly hear, say, a train announcement, remains part of the Buds offering in a new and improved form.
The Galaxy Buds+ – available in blue, white and black – launch on February 14th, priced $149.
A pair will come free with S20+ and S20 Ultra pre-orders placed before 8th March 2020, five days before the phones start shipping.
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