I’ll never buy earbuds without this Galaxy Buds feature

I’ve been using Samsung’s Galaxy Buds for a long time. In fact, I’ve owned six of the ten versions of the Galaxy Buds that Samsung has released since 2019. When I upgraded to the Galaxy Buds 3 Pro, it wasn’t the improved sound quality or ANC that impressed me the most. Instead, it was a software feature I initially wrote off as a gimmick, but now I wouldn’t want to use any earbuds without it.

Voice commands that work everywhere

The feature in question is voice commands, which you can turn on in the voice controls menu in the Galaxy Wearable app. Voice commands let you play and pause music, change tracks, adjust volume, and answer and reject calls. My only criticism, as far as what you can do with voice commands, is that you can’t change between ANC and ambient mode.

Voice commands aren’t tied to Samsung products or even the Galaxy Wearable app, either. Once you’ve turned voice commands on, they work on every device I’ve tested, including an iPad, my NVIDIA Shield TV, Chromebooks, and Windows PCs.

These commands also work for more than just music. Even though you have to say “play music” or “next song,” these actions will work for non-music apps, including YouTube and some streaming services (Paramount Plus doesn’t work), with the next song command skipping to the next episode of what you’re watching.

Why you should use them

As I said at the outset, I initially wrote voice commands off as a gimmick. I thought it was an impressive feature, but I couldn’t imagine a situation where I’d ever use it. But as I used my Buds 3 Pros, I found myself using voice commands without thinking — it became a subconscious part of my routine. So, what do I use them for?

The most amusing benefit to having voice commands on my earbuds is that I don’t get startled every afternoon when my wife gets home from work. I’m usually still at my desk when she gets home, almost always listening to music, and the only way for her to get my attention would be to tap me on my shoulder. I’m embarrassed to say this almost always made me jump. And, honestly, my wife probably enjoyed it. Since I’ve had the Galaxy Buds 3 Pro, that hasn’t happened. Now, she comes into my office and says “stop music,” pausing what I’m listening to and alerting me to her presence in a less heart-stopping way.

The other scenario in which these voice commands prove invaluable is when you don’t have hands to spare. Recently, I travelled to London for work and, to the surprise of no one, it was pouring with rain and incredibly cold. Thanks to voice commands, I could keep both my phone and my hands in my pockets to keep them warm, all while maintaining full control over the music I was listening to. It’s a small thing, but keeping your hands warm and your phone dry is a nice luxury. During more mundane tasks, like sitting at my computer working, it’s nice to be able to quickly change what I’m listening to without having to look away from the task at hand.

The voice commands on the Galaxy Buds 3 and 3 Pro are a prime example of the little things making a big difference. It’s easy to find earbuds that sound good and have solid ANC, so it’s features like this that make a product stand out. When I bought my Buds 3 Pro to replace my old 2 Pros, whose battery life had deteriorated over the years, I expected it to be a marginal upgrade. In the end, the voice commands have changed how I use earbuds forever, and I love using these earbuds every day.