The Samsung Galaxy Buds+ arrived only a
couple of months ago as an updated version of the original pair. But it seems
the South Korean giant is already hard at work on an overhauled
third-generation product that could arrive in the coming months. WinFuture
claims Samsung is developing an all-new pair of Galaxy Buds under the internal
codename ‘Bean.’ The latter is a direct reference to the chosen design – the
earbuds resemble kidney beans – but it probably won’t be used in marketing
material.
The renders seen both above and below are
based on “actual 3D design data” use to manufacture the new earbuds. Samsung is
currently in the Engineering Validation Test phase, however, and the design
could still change a little before launch. These new Galaxy Buds are
fundamentally different to the ones on sale at the moment because they don’t
stick out from your ear. Instead, Samsung has shaped them to fit comfortably
inside the ear without any protrusion.
It has also chosen to replace the interchangeable
tips with a universal design for the ear canal that is carved out of plastic, a
decision that could prove controversial among customers. Similar designs have
been seen on Apple’s AirPods and Huawei’s FreeBuds 3 but not everybody loves
it.
Another downside to this decision comes in
the form of noise isolation. Rubber tips provide a tighter ear canal seal and
can therefore block out ambient noise with ease, but this sort of design could
struggle to achieve the same. Of course, Samsung could try to fix this by
combining software trickery with the data gathered by microphones.
The all-new Galaxy Buds measure in at
around 2.8cm and use the model number SM-R180. Samsung appears to have included
a total of three microphones for video calls and noise cancellation in addition
to two speakers. One of these speakers is paired with an external canal and
acts as a subwoofer to produce low-pitched audio frequencies, something more
commonly known as bass. Samsung already introduced some audio improvements on
the Galaxy Buds+ but hopefully this new pair will take things further.
Active noise cancellation is becoming an
increasingly popular feature in the true wireless earbuds segment. Samsung was
largely expected to introduce it on the Galaxy Buds+ but this ultimately never
happened. Samsung executives have said the feature is being evaluated and needs
to be introduced at the right time. Whether that time will be the all-new
Galaxy Buds launch remains to be seen, but the bean-shaped design and lack of
silicone tips does make skipping the feature seem more likely at this stage.
Other details such as the battery capacity
remain a complete mystery at the moment. That is because Samsung hasn’t yet
completed testing on the product, but hopefully the information will be made
available in the near future.
WinFuture says the next-generation Samsung
Galaxy Buds will be introduced at some point in the coming months, yet no
specific timeline is available at this stage.
