Samsung has delayed the launch of the Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 Pro in response to some quality issues noted by those who received an early pair, and one in particular that we've been able to replicate with our unit, which we're in the middle of testing right now.
In the US, the current promised shipping date for the Buds 3 Pro on the pre-order page is August 28, 2024, for both colors. In the UK, it's now listed as August 16, 2024, for both colors. Samsung Australia currently says it'll be July 29 for the white version and August 26 for the silver.
According to Android Police, these issues include “earbud seams not lining up, blue tint stains, loose case hinges, scratches or scrapes on the case lid, earbuds not sitting properly inside the case,” but one of the most notable issues turned out to be the earbud tips, which are a bit delicate and difficult to securely swap out (via The Verge).
This last issue is one we immediately investigated with our unit, and it hadn't come up yet because we hadn't had to change the earpads until now. The earpads are attached very firmly to the earpieces using a clip system, similar to the one used on the AirPods Pro 2.
The problem is that the ear tips are made of a material that seems too soft and the clips are very firm. This causes some people to break them completely when pulling on the more delicate ends or to accidentally pull a piece out with a nail when trying to get a better grip to pull on.
Our reviewer said the only safe way to remove the tip is by holding your fingers as close to the earpiece as possible, being very careful to use your fingertips and keep your nails away. He said pulling while holding further away from the tip definitely felt like the material was going to break, so he didn't keep trying because he still needed to use the tips for our review.
This is consistent with Samsung's own advice to remove the ear tip in a support article on its Korean site (as noted by The Verge), but we're of the opinion that removing the ear tips shouldn't require also Lots of study and safety instructions beforehand…
However, while experimenting with the pull, when our tester accidentally let their nails get too involved while searching for the optimal grip, the material instantly cracked when they scraped it off. Obviously, you don't want the chunk visible below (and in the red circle at the top of the page) to fall into your ear once it's loosened.
Samsung responds
In a statement to Android Authority, Samsung said:
“To ensure all products meet our quality standards, we have temporarily suspended deliveries of Galaxy Buds 3 Pro devices to distribution channels to conduct a full quality control assessment before shipments are made to consumers. We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.”
“If any customer who already owns Galaxy Buds3 Pro experiences any issues, they should contact Samsung or visit the nearest Samsung service center.”
Yesterday (June 18), Samsung issued a statement in Korea suggesting that it still hoped to meet the original June 24 launch date. The statement read: “We are currently strengthening the quality inspection of products currently being produced and are conducting a new examination, so there will be no problems with the official launch on the 24th.”
We expected the Samsung Buds 3 Pro to be among the best earbuds of the year – their predecessors were excellent and the improvements sound impressive. We'll bring you our full review when we've finished testing the earbud tips and the rest of the earbuds…
