Jaybird Vista vs. Samsung Galaxy Buds+

Comparison between Jaybird Vista vs. Samsung Galaxy Buds+

These two are fundamentally quite different. Vista’s are better if you want them to survive getting soaked in water. They offer IPX7 water-resistance, while Buds+ can only do IPX2.

However, Galaxy Buds+ are more stylish, turning more heads as you walk on the city streets. They have a glossy touch-sensitive surface, whereas Vista’s have to be controlled via physical buttons.

Buds+ offer a slightly more comfortable and lightweight design, making you feel as if you’re not wearing anything. On the other hand, Vista’s are bulkier, but with their larger ear fins, they provide better security.

Both are good for specific needs. But in reality, it comes down to what features you prefer.

Quick Comparison

Both models:

• Feel premium in the hand
• Have an easy to learn mobile app

Jaybird Vista

Offer a more secure fit that’s great for sports

Better noise isolation due to a better seal

Only support SBC audio codec, with the built-in JBS1 chip

6h / charge + 10h in case

IPX7 – waterproof & MIL-STD-810G

EQ settings inside the mobile app

Fun, punchy sound with good soundstage

Jaybird Vista review

Buy on Amazon

Samsung Galaxy Buds+

More comfortable after a long listening session

Ambient Aware2 feature to let the ambient noise in

Support for SBC, AAC, and Samsung Scalable Codec

7.5h / charge + 11h in case

IPX2 – sweat-resistant

Responsive touch controls

A more balanced, less detailed sound

Cheaper ($40 less compared to Jaybird Vista)

Samsung Galaxy Buds+ review

Buy on Amazon

Specifications

What’s in the Box?

Jaybird Vista

Samsung Galaxy Buds+

With packaging you’re getting:

• True wireless earbuds
• Charging case
• User manual
• USB-C to USB-A cable
• Jaybird: 3 ear gels (ear fin/ear tip combo); Galaxy Buds+: 3 pairs of silicone ear tips and ear cushions (S, M, L)

Comfort & Fit

Galaxy Buds+ provide an overall better comfort with a lightweight design and less protruding ear fins. Jaybird Vista are slightly more secure, but they start to irritate sooner in comparison.

Both wireless earbuds take a similar approach when trying to achieve a secure fit. You can install different sized ear fins. However, Jaybird uses a more protruding type. That is why Galaxy Buds+ might irritate less after a long listening session.

Comfort-wise these are also comparable, with Galaxy Buds+ having a slight advantage. Buds+ are lighter, making you forget you’re wearing them. Vista’s are bulkier in comparison.

Buds+ also come with an option to change ear tips, while Vista uses ear gels with ear tip/ear fin combo, where ear tips remain the same size.

In the end, Galaxy Buds+ wins at comfort LINKZ, with Jaybird Vista dominating the fit category.

Noise Isolation

There is only passive noise isolation. In-ear monitors are usually pretty good at isolating passively, but to achieve that, you have to create an air-tight seal.

Vista’s are better when compared to Galaxy Buds+. Despite having a “one size fits all” design of the ear tip, they seal very nicely. They block a good chunk of outside noise, whereas they completely cut off your surroundings when you start playing music.

It’s slightly harder to get the perfect seal with Buds+, so you need to experiment with the included tips to find the best for you. But even after that, isolation isn’t that good as with Vista.

However, Galaxy Buds+ can enable the Ambient Aware2 feature, which lets you hear your surroundings. You can tweak the intensity of this feature inside the app.

Bluetooth

Jaybird has a more stable Bluetooth connection, playing with no interruption right before you’re about to pass the second brick wall.

Galaxy Buds+ also works pretty well. However, if you put one wall in between you and the transmitting device, earbuds became more prone to distortion. In case you want to readjust them and cover them with your finger, they can stutter a bit.

Fortunately, there is no noticeable video delay when watching videos on both of these. Jaybird Vista uses a basic SBC audio codec with a JBS1 chip to ensure a reliable connection. In contrast, Galaxy Buds+ use SBC, AAC, and proprietary Samsung Scalable Codec, which works only with the Galaxy S20 series (so far).

Battery

Galaxy Buds+ are the clear winners here, despite their battery lasting few hours less than advertised.

If you expect to get 11 hours from Buds+, you would be disappointed. In our test, we got 7.5 hours of battery life, which is ahead of Jaybird Vista, but still 3.5 hours less than expected. There are another 11 hours of juice hiding inside the wireless charging case.

Vista can play for around 6 hours, with an additional 10 hours coming from the case.

Both earbuds provide quick charge when you need to fill them up fast.

• Samsung Galaxy Buds+ can provide 1-hour worth of playtime in just 3 minutes
• Jaybird Vista offers 1-hour battery life with a 5-minute charge

None are particularly strong in this category, but Galaxy Buds+ still wins. They last the longest and can quick-charge faster. For the ultimate battery life among true wireless earbuds, Beats PowerBeats Pro are still the kings.

Durability

Although these two earbuds are made of premium-feeling materials, Jaybird Vista sports a more durable construction, with higher protection against water and dust.

Vista’s are built like a tank. They are visually more professional and less classy than Galaxy Buds+. Their robust housing has a military-grade certification (MIL-STD-810G), which makes them shockproof.

Having an IPX7 rating, they’re also fully submergible, whereas Galaxy Buds+ can only offer IPX2 sweat-protection. The latter can still survive a sweaty day at the gym, but getting covered in water can harm them.

Both charging cases are tiny and fit inside the pocket with no problems. Vista case has a more robust look with a soft finish. While the Galaxy Buds+ box appears slightly more plasticky.

This battle goes to Vista, providing overall superior durability over Buds Plus.

Features

Galaxy Buds+ are more feature-packed, offering Ambient Aware2, touch controls, and wireless charging. All of that is missing on Vista.

However, some features on the Buds+ don’t work as well as expected. Ambient Aware2 is nice to have, but amplifying another person’s voice is somewhat modest. Regardless, Jaybird Vista don’t offer any kind of ambient sound option.

Touch controls are by far the best thing about Galaxy Buds Plus. They’re responsive, and they make a tone prompt to let you know you’ve pressed them. Vista uses physical controls, which are nice and clicky, but we prefer touch gestures more.

Another thing worth mentioning is the Qi wireless charging case that comes with Buds+, whereas Vista only relies on USB-C to charge. It’s useful to have the option to just leave the case on your wireless charger without always searching for the cable.

Both earbuds provide you with an intuitive mobile app, where you can further customize your EQ presets, controls, and other features like “find my buds”. Jaybird Vista takes a slight edge here, offering you a more extensive equalization mode, giving you full control over the sound. Galaxy Buds+ only has 5 presets to choose from.

This is how their microphones sound like:

Jaybird Vista:

Samsung Galaxy Buds Plus:

If you do a lot of phone calls, Galaxy Buds Plus are a much better buy. They use 6 microphones to pick up your voice, and the result is impressive, especially for the truly wireless solution. Vista’s are fine in that regard, but more muffled in comparison.

Sound

Even though neither of these are meant to please audiophiles, they both have their appeals. Vista’s are punchy and exciting, whereas Galaxy Buds Plus prefers a more safe, balanced sound.

Bass on both can go very low, but Vista’s are definitely the punchiest. Their low-end is controlled, with good speed for heavy genres with double bass pedals. 

Vocals on Buds+ are slightly veiled, while Vista can get harsh. The latter is fixable in EQ, where you can change their sound just the way you want. That is something Galaxy Buds Plus can’t do (at least to that extend).

Treble is about the same on both. Not great, but with a little more natural tone coming from Vista’s when applying EQ.

This round goes to Vista. You can get a much better sound quality if you spent some time tweaking the MySound app. We managed to EQ our pair to near neutral tuning.

Should you buy Samsung Galaxy Buds+ or Jaybird Vista?

Jaybird Vista are geared towards sportspeople, who what their earbuds to have a robust build, secure fit, and impressive sound quality (once the EQ is appropriately set).

Galaxy Buds Plus are more stylish, being a better pick for casual listening or commuting. They provide an overall better comfort, but slightly worse seal and noise isolation.

Price-wise, you can get the Galaxy Buds Plus for $40 less compared to Vista.

That’s it for the Jaybird Vista vs. Samsung Galaxy Buds+ comparison. Did we forget to mention something? Let us know what you’d like us to compare in the comments.

Review of Samsung Galaxy Buds+

Review of Jaybird Vista

Peter Susic

From a childhood fascination with sound, Peter’s passion has evolved into a relentless pursuit of the finest headphones. He’s an audio expert with over 5 years of experience in testing both audiophile and consumer-grade headphones. Quote: “After many years, I can confidently tell which headphones are good and which are terrible.” Find his honest opinion in his reviews.