I've been using the Galaxy Buds FE every day for the past two years, often for several hours at a time, so I thought I'd share a detailed review based on long-term use rather than just a few days with them.
TL;DR: The Buds FE are surprisingly well-rounded for their price. They have very good sound quality, strong battery life, and ANC that performs much better than I expected from an entry-level Galaxy Buds model. There are some compromises, mainly the IPX2 rating and lack of wireless charging, but overall I've had a very positive experience with them.
Design, materials and comfort
Both the earbuds and the charging case are made entirely of plastic, but the plastic doesn't feel cheap.
The case has a glossy finish that I honestly expected to scratch pretty easily. After two years of daily use, hundreds of kilometers of travel and several drops, it still looks almost new.
The earbuds themselves have a matte black finish. They are somewhat on the larger side, but they are still lightweight and comfortable for me. Mine have also been dropped and exposed to water countless times and are still working perfectly.
One important thing regarding comfort: the right ear tips and wingtips make a huge difference.
The Buds FE come with several sizes of both silicone ear tips and wingtips. Finding the combination that fits your ears properly is important not only for comfort, but also for passive isolation and sound quality.
Galaxy Wearable also has a fit test that can help determine whether the earbuds are sitting correctly.
The Buds FE are rated IPX2, which is a fairly low level of water resistance. They are not officially designed for showers, swimming or significant exposure to water.
That said, here's something worth mentioning from my own experience: I've been using them in the shower almost every day for a long time, and I've never had any problems with them. I've also used them in heavy rain several times without any issues.
Obviously, this goes well beyond what the IPX2 rating officially guarantees, so I wouldn't recommend treating them as waterproof. My experience is simply that they've proven to be considerably more water-resistant in real-world use than their certification would suggest.
Another nice detail is the mesh protecting the drivers. Both the ear tips and the earbuds have a fine mesh that helps prevent earwax and other debris from reaching the drivers. The internal mesh is also metallic, which is a nice little detail for a product in this price range.
Overall, after two years, I'm very impressed with the physical durability. They've survived multiple drops, including some pretty nasty ones, daily use and a frankly unreasonable amount of water exposure, and they still look and work normally.
The main weakness here is definitely the IPX2 rating. Samsung has since improved this on newer models such as the Galaxy Buds Core and Buds3 FE, which have IP54 ratings.
Sound quality
This is obviously the most important part of any pair of earbuds.
I'm fairly picky when it comes to audio quality. I tend to notice differences in tuning and sound presentation quite easily, so I was pleasantly surprised by the Buds FE.
Out of the box, they have a relatively balanced tuning. Nothing is excessively pushed forward, although there is still a noticeable amount of bass.
The Galaxy Wearable app includes several EQ presets, and Galaxy phones also allow additional manual EQ adjustments.
With some EQ tweaking, I think the Buds FE can sound considerably better than they do out of the box. Adding some bass gives them more body, while the Dynamic preset can make the sound feel more energetic and detailed.
Personally, I recommend trying the Dynamic EQ. I ended up preferring it over the default tuning.
The bass is definitely present, but it doesn't completely overwhelm the mids and highs. Vocals remain clear and higher frequencies don't disappear behind the low end.
Another thing worth mentioning is volume. These things get really loud. I personally can't comfortably use them above roughly 75% volume.
Overall, I'm genuinely impressed with the sound quality. They don't just sound "good enough for the price". They sound genuinely good, and in my experience they compare favorably with several more expensive earbuds I've used.
ANC
This was probably my biggest surprise.
The Buds FE are one of Samsung's more affordable Galaxy Buds models, so I wasn't expecting particularly impressive active noise cancellation.
I was wrong.
Independent measurements have reported roughly 40 to 50 dB of noise reduction, although real-world ANC performance obviously depends on the frequency and environment.
In everyday use, the Buds FE do a very good job with low and mid-frequency background noise.
When I'm walking around outside with ANC enabled, traffic noise from cars, buses and motorcycles is reduced dramatically. A bus passing very close to me can still be heard, as can high-frequency sounds such as horns and sirens, but that's pretty much what I'd expect from ANC at this price point.
The transparency mode also works very well. It amplifies outside sounds clearly enough that I can have a conversation without taking the earbuds out.
It's particularly useful when walking outside and you need to stay aware of what's happening around you.
Overall, if you've never used ANC before, the difference can be pretty impressive. Even compared with some more expensive earbuds, I think the Buds FE do a very respectable job.
Software, features and Galaxy ecosystem
The Buds FE integrate very nicely with the Galaxy ecosystem.
When I open the charging case near my Galaxy phone, a connection pop-up appears automatically, making the initial pairing process extremely simple.
The Galaxy Wearable app is also worth installing if you own these earbuds.
There are quite a few options available, including the earbud fit test, finding the earbuds if you lose them, EQ settings, touch controls, ANC and ambient sound controls, and other settings.
One feature I particularly like is the ability to customize the touch controls.
By default, the touch controls are fairly limited, but through Galaxy Wearable you can configure additional gestures for things like volume control and skipping tracks.
It makes the earbuds much more customizable than they initially seem.
Samsung also periodically releases firmware updates for the Buds FE, which can improve stability and the overall experience.
Obviously, some of these features are more useful if you already own other Galaxy devices, but the earbuds work perfectly fine as a standalone Bluetooth pair as well.
Battery life
Samsung rates the Buds FE for:
- Up to 6 hours with ANC enabled
- Up to 8.5 hours with ANC disabled
- Up to 30 hours total with the charging case
In my own use, I got pretty close to those numbers.
With ANC enabled, I typically lose around 12 to 15% battery per hour. Without ANC, it's roughly 10% per hour.
Charging the earbuds themselves is quite fast. The charging case takes around two hours to fully recharge.
There is no wireless charging on the Buds FE, unlike Samsung's higher-end Galaxy Buds Pro models.
I don't really consider that a dealbreaker, especially given the price. It's one of the compromises that makes sense for a more affordable model.
Overall, battery life has never been an issue for me. I can use them throughout the day without worrying about running out of battery.
Final thoughts
After two years of daily use, I think the Galaxy Buds FE are an excellent value.
They're a very well-balanced product. The sound quality is good, ANC is surprisingly capable, battery life is solid, the software is well integrated with Galaxy devices, and the earbuds themselves have held up extremely well.
I've never had the feeling that there was one particular area where they were seriously lacking. That's actually what I like most about them. They don't necessarily excel at one specific thing, but they're consistently good at pretty much everything.
Coming from other good-quality earbuds, including models with Hi-Res Audio certification, I wasn't expecting to be this impressed with an entry-level pair.
If I had to point out two weaknesses, they'd be the IPX2 water resistance and the lack of wireless charging.
The wireless charging omission doesn't bother me much because I see it as a reasonable compromise at this price. The IPX2 rating is the bigger issue, especially compared with newer Galaxy Buds models that now offer IP54.
But overall, after two years, I'd absolutely recommend the Galaxy Buds FE if you can get them at a good price.
They've been reliable, comfortable, surprisingly durable and genuinely enjoyable to listen to.
