Odi Productions
In this article, I’m going to share my HONEST Sony WF-1000XM6 vs Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 Pro comparison, as someone who has purchased both pairs of earbuds with my own money.
I’ve conducted thorough testing of both wireless earbuds, and I will break down a winner for each category including:
- Comfort and Fit
- Features
- Battery Life
- Microphone Quality
- Noise Cancelling Performance
- Sound Quality
- Value
I’ll be sharing my critical opinion with 10 years of experience as a professional music producer, audio engineer, and tech journalist. I also run the RecordingNOW YouTube channel with over 17,000+ subscribers and over 4 million+ views, where you can watch the video versions of all of our reviews and comparisons.
Let’s dive right in!
Sony WF-1000XM6 vs Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 Pro Comparison in Short
The newer (and more expensive) Sony WF-1000XM6 is superior to the Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 Pro in almost every way, aside from effortless comfort and fit. The Sony WF-1000XM6’s sound quality and tuning is much more audiophile than the consumer-friendly Galaxy Buds 3 Pro. Although the Samsungs have above average noise cancelling and mic quality, the WF-1000XM6 is at the top of the class or near it.
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Comfort, Features, Microphone Quality, and Battery Life
Comfort
The Sony WF-1000XM6 comes with 4 pairs of hybrid silicone-like and memory foam eartips.
The Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 Pro comes with 3 pairs of soft silicone eartips.
For comfort and fit, I prefer the smaller Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 Pro over the Sony WF-1000XM6.
The Samsungs are designed similar to the AirPods Pro 2, and the earbud is simply much smaller in dimensions than the XM6 earbuds.
What I like about the Galaxy Buds 3 Pro is that they don’t need to go as deep into the ear canal to form its physical seal, as the eartips don’t go as far.
The XM6 earbuds need to be pushed a little further in to truly form a proper physical seal, and its eartip material is stiffer than the softer silicone on the Samsung earbuds.
To improve the comfort and fit of the XM6, I’ve really enjoyed using these aftermarket ones I tested from SpinFit (note that this entire review is using the stock eartips):
Features
When it comes to features, I find the newer Sony WF-1000XM6 to be more feature-rich than the Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 Pro where it matters.
First off, Sony has native support for both iOS and Android devices with native apps for each ecosystem. The Samsungs, on the other hand, only have an Android app. That leaves a lot of iPhone users without the ability to effectively manage or customize the Samsung.
Second, for high-res codec support, the Sony XM6 support LDAC while the Samsungs support “SSC” seamless codec.
While both codecs on paper are high-res, LDAC is more accessible, since SSC is exclusive to Samsung Galaxy devices only.
Now if you have a Samsung smartphone, neither of the above applies to you.
But for everyone else, I find these features to actually make a noticeable difference.
Microphone Quality
The Sony WF-1000XM6 and Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 Pro have two of the best microphone quality in the class, thanks to multiple microphones per earbud and AI technology.
In my testing, the newer Sony XM6 earbuds have better overall mic quality versus the Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 Pro, perhaps due to its bone conduction sensors.
Either way, you can’t go wrong with either pair of earbuds for call quality.
The only contender here that may be superior to both is the AirPods Pro 3.
Battery Life
Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 Pro Battery Life
- With ANC on: 6 hours of battery life on a single charge / 26 hours total with charging case
- With ANC off: 7 hours on a single charge / 30 hours total with charging case
- Fast Charge: 10 minutes = 2.5 hours of playback
Sony WF-1000XM6 Battery Life
- With ANC on: 8 hours of battery life on a single charge / 24 hours total with charging case
- With ANC off: 12 hours on a single charge / 36 hours total with charging case
- Fast Charge: 5 minutes = 1 hour of playback
The Sony WF-1000XM6 earbuds have a decent advantage over the Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 Pro when it comes to battery life.
Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 Pro Score: 8.5 out of 10
Sony WF-1000XM6 Score: 9.0 out of 10
Winner: Sony WF-1000XM6
Sony WF-1000XM6 vs Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 Pro Noise Cancelling Performance Compared
Sony’s consumer audio products for both headphones and earbuds have been some of the best noise cancelling technology outside of Bose.
The newer Sony WF-1000XM6 continues that trend and is seriously impressive in this arena.
I find the Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 Pro’s noise cancelling to be above average, but the Sony XM6 earbuds are arguably now the best-in-class, tied with the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds 2nd Gen.
Aside from ANC, the Transparency Modes are pretty good on both the Sony and the Samsung.
Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 Pro Score: 8.0 out of 10
Sony WF-1000XM6 Score: 9.0 out of 10
Winner: Sony WF-1000XM6
Sound Quality
When it comes to sound quality, I think Sony has the experience advantage on paper.
Of course Samsung is a seriously impressive company as a whole, creating excellent products in countless markets, but Sony is more well-versed in niche audiophile products like earbuds and headphones.
Starting with high-res codec support, the XM6 supports the Sony-developed LDAC, while the Galaxy Buds 3 Pro supports the Samsung-developed “SSC”.
To conduct this test, I used my Questyle QCC Dongle Pro to unlock LDAC support:
If you’re an iPhone user, or if your phone doesn’t support aptX codecs, then I highly recommend you pick up the dongle above which will cover both LDAC and aptX Adaptive high-res codecs. It’s the only one of its kind that supports both, to my knowledge.
Starting with the stock sound profiles, the Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 Pro clearly leans consumer-friendly, while the Sony WF-1000XM6 is tonally balanced and fairly neutral. I think most audiophiles would gravitate towards the more “refined” and reference-like tuning of the XM6 earbuds, over the more mainstream Galaxy Buds 3 Pro.
The Samsungs are clearly aimed at the mass market, similar to the AirPods Pro 2 it was originally designed to compete with.
And in that sense, I actually think the Galaxy Buds 3 Pro achieved their goal of delivering better sound quality than the AirPods Pro 2.
The consumer-friendly tuning of the Galaxy buds 3 Pro translates to an emphasized focus on bass and treble. This is somewhat opposite of the XM6 earbuds that have a full midrange, while still delivering detail in the bass and treble.
Sound profiles aside, I hear a clear step up in overall sound quality with the Sony WF-1000XM6 over the Samsungs.
The WF-1000XM6 shines where the Galaxy Buds 3 Pro fall short, and that is in having a large soundstage, realistic timbre, and overall fidelity as a whole.
Simply put, the Galaxy Buds 3 Pro sound good “for a mainstream earbud”, while the WF-1000XM6 sounds great, period.
We’re talking audiophile-worthy territory for the XM6, which is not a phrase I throw around lightly.
Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 Pro Score: 7.9 out of 10
Sony WF-1000XM6 Score: 8.6 out of 10
Winner: Sony WF-1000XM6
Value
The Sony WF-1000XM6 is a new release that retails at $329.99 USD.
The Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 Pro retails for $199.99, but can be found on sale for cheaper.
Overall, I do think you are getting what you pay for with each earbud.
The $130 premium for the Sony WF-1000XM6 is fairly justified due to its audiophile-level sound quality and noise cancelling performance that is in a level above the Galaxy Buds 3 Pro.
That said, if you are specifically a Samsung smartphone user, the Galaxy Buds 3 Pro presents a pretty solid value for the money at a cheaper pricepoint.
Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 Pro Value Score: 8.5 out of 10
Sony WF-1000XM6 Value Score: 8.5 out of 10
Winner: Tie
Overall Scoring Breakdown
- Best noise cancelling performance
- True audiophile sound quality
- One of the best mic quality
- Pricy
- Comfort could be slightly improved
- Amazing comfort and fit
- Strong noise cancelling performance
- Fun sound profile
- Relatively good value
- No native iOS or Apple support
- No high-res codec support
- Not audiophile-level sound quality
Our Verdict: Sony WF-1000XM6
Samsung will need to try again with their next-generation Samsung Galaxy Buds 4 Pro to contend with the elite Sony WF-1000XM6, arguably the best all-arounder in the market today.
Don’t get me wrong, I like the Galaxy Buds 3 Pro for Samsung smartphone users specifically, and I was surprised that they were pretty much superior to the AirPods Pro 2 in every way.
That said, the WF-1000XM6 takes everything to a whole new level, from sound quality, to noise cancelling performance, and even microphone quality.
Lastly, if you’d like to save some money and keep supporting RecordingNOW.com’s 100% independent, unbiased reviews, do consider using some of our affiliate links below to shop and even just compare prices. We purchase all products we review with our own money to maintain the highest level of integrity, and your support goes into that plus a continuously improving site experience.
Order HERE for the LOWEST PRICE AVAILABLE (Do NOT pay retail):
Disclosure: These affiliate links may provide a discount and in return, give us a commission in order to keep this website 100% independent to ensure honest unfiltered reviews 🙂
How We Tested and Our Methodology
RecordingNOW.com is a 100% independent publisher with over 10 years of experience testing and reviewing consumer electronics and headphones.
We currently purchase the products we test with our own money, and are not paid by any company or manufacturer to influence our opinions or decisions.
After purchasing the product, we conduct up to hundreds of hours of detailed hands-on testing in a controlled, acoustically-treated environment.
ODi Productions is our resident expert and author of this article, with 10 years of experience as a professional music producer, tech journalist, and audiophile.
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