The Jaybird Run XT and the Samsung Galaxy Buds are two of the newest earbuds in the market that promises a ton of features. From a uber cool touch panel of the Samsung Galaxy Buds to the quirky companion app of the Jaybird Run XT, these two audio accessories pack a solid set of features, at least on paper. But is there any more to these features? Today, we will take a look at the Jaybird Run XT and the Samsung Galaxy Buds and see how these two earbuds differ from each other.
1. Design and Fit
Let’s start with the design of the Samsung Galaxy Buds first. With a sleek and compact look, the Galaxy Buds are known to fit well into the ear canal. Plus, with light and small outer body, you do not have to live in constant fear of the buds falling out, provided you are using the right pair of ear tips. Do note that even though the Galaxy Buds fit well, they do not come with fins. On the other hand, the Jaybird Run XT sports the typical silicone ear fins aka ear gels to give a better fit. And the looks are spot on for a pair of gym earphones. The body is light and sleek without look clunky at all. In fact, the outer body will fit easily on the ear for most users. On top of that, the Run XT are IPX7 certified, meaning that you can have your share of rigorous exercises without worrying about sweat damaging the earbuds. However, an important difference between the two is the touch panel. The Samsung Galaxy Buds come with sleek new touch controls. From answering your calls to track navigation and summoning your digital assistant, these come in handy a lot. The only issue which I found is that if you are not habituated with the touch controls, fidgeting with the buds may either cause the song to skip or the volume to go down. Thankfully, you can fix that by spending some time mastering those controls. When it comes to the controls, the Jaybird has opted to go with physical buttons rather than touch controls. Though they help with volume control and track navigation (among others), pressing these buttons can turn out to be a tad hard initially.
2. App Features
Not too long ago, most of us wouldn’t have given any thoughts about the companion app. However, today, the features of the companion app are as important as the physical product. The Galaxy Wearable app of the Galaxy Buds provides plenty of features such as an EQ, find your earbuds, and the option to check the battery level. You can even activate the Ambient Noise feature or choose to change the touch actions. Do keep in mind that the EQ is limited. There are only five presets with Dynamic being the best. Unfortunately, you can’t tweak the EQ as per your preference. On the contrary, you can say that the Jaybird MySound app is loaded. It comes with a five-band EQ, curated playlists, and a bunch of presets. You can even adjust one of the presets to make a custom one. But at the end of the day, the feature that wins most hearts is Sound Profile. Once you have made your audio settings, the settings stay put even when you switch devices.
3. Battery life
When it comes to the battery life, both the Samsung Galaxy Buds and the Jaybird Run XT are not much different. While the Jaybird Run XT stays on for around four hours on a single charge, the Galaxy Buds manage to squeeze six hours at one go. Thankfully, you can use the case to charge the device at any time. So, whenever you see the earphones battery life going red, all you need to do is stick them inside the case to recharge. The Run XT’s charging case squeeze in two full battery cycles on a single charge. That means you get a cumulative battery life of 12 hours. Similarly, the charging case of the Galaxy Buds case lends an extra seven hours. Thus, on a single charge, you get anywhere between 12-13 hours. Overall, when it comes to battery life, it’s a tie.
4. Connectivity
Connectivity is one of the most vital features of any wireless equipment. After all, you wouldn’t want your earbuds (or your fitness tracker or smartwatch) to get disconnected at the drop of a hat. As far as the Galaxy Buds are concerned, I didn’t find any problem of signal drops or losing the connection with each other or my phone. Neither have I seen much lag while watching videos or movies. What’s best, you can even use only one earbud at a time.
5. Audio Quality
Last but not least, let’s take a look at the audio quality. Indeed, at this price point, both the Run XT and the Galaxy Buds produce great sound. However, dive a little deeper, and you’ll find the bass in the Galaxy Buds to be a bit better. At least, that’s what I and my colleagues thought while testing it. On the other hand, though the Run XT sound decent enough for gym earphones. But as per the folks at Android Central, the audio quality could have been a tad better for the asking price.
So, Which One Is It?
Well, it depends on what you are looking for. The Jaybird Run XT is built for the gym. They are built for someone who works out vigorously and is looking for a sturdy pair of earphones. Not to forget that you just have to open the app and play one of those curated playlists before you hit the treadmill. However, the issue of the audio and video lag can turn out to be a big problem if you plan to use these outside the gym. Furthermore, the Run XT doesn’t come with any feature for sound transparency. As opposed to it, the Samsung Galaxy Buds are not designed for anything special. Instead, they are a pair of earbuds built for the casual listener in you who wouldn’t mind tinkering with the touch controls. And even if you were to use it on your daily jogs, you may come to appreciate the ambient noise filter, which lets in a bit of the ambient noise. Also, they are priced $50 less at $129.00 compared to the $179.99 price tag of the Jaybird Run XT. Next up: Intrigued by the Jabra Elite 65T? Check out how they fair against the Bose SoundSport Free in the post below. The above article may contain affiliate links which help support Guiding Tech. However, it does not affect our editorial integrity. The content remains unbiased and authentic.
