Samsung unveils Galaxy Buds On, its first clip-on open-ear earbuds
Samsung's first clip-on Galaxy Buds leave the ear canal open, add audio-leakage reduction and reach Korea on 27 October for 299,000 won.
Samsung has unveiled the Galaxy Buds On, the first clip-on, open-ear model in its Galaxy Buds line. The earbuds were announced on Samsung's Korean newsroom on 1 October 2026 and reach South Korea on 27 October for 299,000 won, with global markets to follow in stages.
A clip that skips the ear canal
Rather than sealing the ear, the Galaxy Buds On hook over the side of the ear and leave the canal open. Samsung says the design keeps long listening sessions comfortable and lets wearers stay aware of traffic, pets and other people, which is the pitch for runners and cyclists who want music without cutting themselves off from their surroundings. The company analysed ear-shape data and ran simulations to place the speakers and battery, widened the contact area to spread pressure and tuned the band's elasticity so the buds hold on through movement. Playback and call controls sit on a touch strip at the back of each bud.
Fighting the open-ear trade-off
Open designs normally leak sound in both directions. Samsung's answer is a TwinBoost speaker to prop up the bass, automatic volume adjustment that reacts to the surroundings, and an Audio Leakage Reduction system that the company says it is applying to a Galaxy Buds product for the first time. The claim is that you can listen in a library or a cafe without broadcasting your playlist to the room.
The buds run on Qualcomm's Snapdragon S7 Gen 1 Sound Platform with a Class-D amplifier, which Samsung says stretches playback to up to 9.5 hours on a single charge. Calls lean on the existing Intelligent Clear Call chain, adding three microphones and a voice pickup unit that senses the vibrations of your own speech, with machine-learning separation to pull the voice clear of wind and vacuum-cleaner noise.
Galaxy AI, worn on the ear
Paired with a Galaxy AI phone or tablet, the Buds On work as a hands-free interface for voice conversation, memos and notification checks without reaching for the screen. Saying “Hey Google, let's talk Live” launches Gemini Live through the earbuds, and holding the touch area triggers a Quick Voice Memo that Bixby can search later. Volume and equaliser settings can be changed from the phone's settings and quick panel without installing the Galaxy Wearable app.
Price and release date
South Korea gets the Galaxy Buds On first, on 27 October, in a single black finish at 299,000 won, with other markets to follow sequentially and product details landing on Samsung's Korean store on the launch day. Samsung's MX business CX office head Kim Jung-hyun said the model was designed as a form factor for a range of everyday situations, keeping listeners comfortable while staying naturally connected to what is around them.
Our opinion
The case for clip-on earbuds has always been comfort, and the case against them has always been leakage and bass. Samsung is attacking both at once, and the audio-leakage reduction is the interesting part: if it genuinely holds, that is the difference between a pair you wear on a run and a pair you can wear at a desk. The price is the harder sell. 299,000 won is premium money in a form factor that specialist audio brands have been selling for less, in a category where Samsung arrives as a follower rather than the incumbent. Watch two things: whether the leakage claim survives independent testing, and how quickly “global markets thereafter” turns into an actual date for the UK.