The Samsung Buds2 Pro earbuds are excellent. In fact, they are still my favourite buds out of the company’s lineup because they saved me from going insane. Let me explain.
His real identity is a secret but for the purpose of this agonising story he shall be known as “Chainsaw”. Late last year I had to share a room with Chainsaw while on assignment. It was all going fine until it came time to sleep. I was still working on my computer when Chainsaw starting snoring.
It was loud. Very loud.
Somehow I got through the work but then it came time for me to sleep. I was tired and needed to get up early so I thought I could just crash and burn despite the hubbub happening less than a metre from me. Man was I wrong. Chainsaw was so loud, nothing I did could dampen the roar. Foam ear plugs, pillows over my head, nothing would work.
So I turned to technology. I inserted a pair of Samsung Buds2 Pro wireless buds in my ears, turned on noise cancelling and started playing some of my favourite sleeping tracks. It was just enough to overcome Chainsaw’s thunderous snoring. It wasn’t a great sleep but it you’ve ever had to put up with a super loud snorer then you’ll know that anything that reduces the impact is worth trying.
WHY DID THEY WORK?
The Samsung Buds2 Pro worked because of their shape and noise cancelling capabilities. Sleeping with earbuds can be a real problem. They either fall out or if they stay in – they hurt. Fortunately the Buds2 Pro stayed in comfortably and that was half the battle won.
ANC (Active Noise Cancellation) was essential. It would last four hours or more (hard to tell) and that led to just enough sleep. But by the end of the week I was a bit of a wreck. Long days and a snoring apocalypse back at the hotel made me realise I had to find another solution, just in case it happened again.
CHEAP SOLUTION
While there are many anti-snoring products, they are mostly aimed at stopping the person doing the snoring. It can be a serious problem and I found this recent article on Harvard’s website very informative.
As a victim of an unprovoked snoring attack – I needed to find a longer lasting earbuds solution. Turns out I already had one but didn’t have them with me on this assignment. Early in the year I looked on Amazon for the smallest wireless earbuds I could find for a story on sleep tech.
The Xmenha invisible earbuds for side sleepers with small ear canals are very small. So for this reason alone, they go a long way to blocking out any sound, They seal off the canal by sitting deep inside the ear. When you add music to this, you get a mighty noise cancelling result without fancy ANC. I’m not joking. It works really well – and I might add – the audio quality is surprisingly good. Avoid making phone calls though, your voice will sound terrible to the caller at the other end.
Of course, all of this is pointless if you can’t listen to music while falling asleep but I can and I’m sure many others do too. If music isn’t your solution then maybe white noise or rain falling could do the trick. I also find ANC tiring after a while so this feels a like a better option. AirPods and AirPods Pro do a good job but they just won’t stay in my ears.
Battery life is an issue too. You won’t get 8 hours playback on either headphones I’ve mentioned but at least with the Xmenha buds you have a solid ear plug that fits comfortably inside your ear canal.
OTHER OPTIONS
There are a number of sleep-specific buds on the market and they may make more sense if you’re putting up with a loud snorer full-time.
OZLO Sleepbuds are one of the standout options. They are normally A$499 but are currently selling for A$457. They offer all night battery life and ear comfort.
But could they handle Chainsaw? We may never know.
