A rather strange Samsung Galaxy Buds 4 leak suggests a big redesign is coming

• Galaxy Buds 4 appear to be in progress
• Newly discovered image suggests a redesign is happening
• No leaks of specs or intended release date just yet

It took quite a while for the Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 to arrive: they were launched in 2024, three years after the second generation. But it looks like we might not have to wait so long for the Galaxy Buds 4 – and a new image suggests that a redesign is coming.

As leaks go, this is an odd one: instead of a photo of a prototype or a rogue render, it’s an icon. As Android Authority reports, there’s an icon for the Galaxy Buds 4 included in a leaked build of the One UI 8.5 operating system – and that icon is very different from the one for the Buds 3.

What’s different about the Galaxy Buds 4?

The icon for the Galaxy Buds 3 in the same software – labelled “list_ic_earbuds_buds4” – is familiar and dare I say it, a little AirPods Pro-y.

The icon for the Galaxy Buds 4 is bolder, with what appears to be a smaller, more rounded ear tip and a slightly different stem too. The ends of the stems are rounded rather than triangular, and the body of the earbuds appears to have slightly different proportions.

I’ve put the images side by side so you can see the differences:

I know this feels a bit like staring into tea leaves to try and divine the future, but Samsung isn’t going to redesign a system icon if it isn’t redesigning the hardware that icon refers to: the company would just swap out the number 3 for a 4 and (ahem) clock off early.

So the leak does indicate that some kind of redesign is in progress. And alongside recent Galaxy Buds 4 Pro parts leaks, it also means it’s just a matter of time before more substantial information starts to escape.

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