Apple Earbuds (White with Gray Earbuds): Digital-Camera-Near.com

Apple Earbuds (White with Gray Earbuds)

Apple Earbuds (White with Gray Earbuds)
by Apple Computer

Our Price: $64.18
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Category: Network Media Player
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Customers in the UK, Buy this product at amazon.co.uk for British Pounds

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Manufacturer: Apple Computer
Brand: Apple
Edition: Electronics
Audio: English (Original Language)
Release Date: 2004-01-31
Model: M9394G/B
Publisher: Apple Computer
Studio: Apple Computer
Music Label: Apple Computer
Product features:

Enhances the sound quality and bass response to your iPod
Supremely comfortable for long listening sessions
Three different size caps ensure the headphones fit comfortably and securely in your ear
Block outside noise well
Universal accessory for all iPod models as well as all digital audio players compatible with 3.5mm mini-jack

Accessories:

Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Apple Earbuds (White with Gray Earbuds)

Customer Review: Buy 'em only 'cuz you're tired of the orig & only want apple
Summary: 3 Stars

UPDATED 6/3/05: The only reason to buy these headphones is because you want an official Apple replacement for the original headphone, AND you don't care about anything else. I'd reduce my rating to 2 Stars, but Amazon is not giving me that option. I most definitely would NOT buy them again.

After about two months, I have no complaints as to sound quality once the earbuds are properly seated in my ears. The problem is keeping them in my ears. I move ever so slightly, and they begin to slip out of my ears. As soon as they begin slipping out, the sound quality drops dramatically. Just a couple of millimeters, and the sound goes from concert hall to tinny. Perhaps it's because the weather is warming up and my ear canals are sweating more, whatever the reason, the headphones seem to slip out more easily. I find myself getting frustrated with them because I spend more time holding them in place while riding on BART. Try sticking your fingers in your ear for half an hour, and you'll get an idea how fatiguing and annoying this is.

Finally, they get crusted with earwax. Gross! The removable rubber tips are open in the center. The speakers themselves are about 1/2 cm in diameter. The speakers have a fixed metal mesh covering them. As I try jamming them deeper into my ear canal, wax is beginning to build up on the mesh. Cleaning them is nigh impossible, you can't just wipe the wax away because it gets caught in the holes of the speaker mesh. It eventually dries and flakes or shakes out so it's not an incredibly big deal, but unpleasant to look at.

Significantly less OOBE than you would expect from Apple Bottom line is the only person who should buy these is the obsessive compulsive who is willing to accept only original Apple equipment, and is willing to sacrifice comfort, practicality, and ease of use. I'd give it 1 star, except they do sound good when they're in, and I'm one of these obssive compulsives! I suspect all the reviewers who gave positive reviews are too. You better be one, if you want to be happy owning these.

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ORIGNAL 4/19/05 Review
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The only reason to buy these is because you're tired of losing the foam on the earbuds that came with your iPod, and you just have to have Apple original equipment. I lost my first two sets of foam pads in the first week. A friend gave me his extra pair, and they lasted a few months, but required me to be constantly vigilant for all the times they popped off.

You have to be patient when using these in-ear buds. When I first tried them, I thought the sound was horrible, tinny, like the sound from an AM transister radio. I've found that if I put them in my ear, and hold for a few seconds, the fit, and consequently the sound, gets better. I'm guessing that the rubber caps expand or mold themselves to the contours of your ear a bit as they warm up. This makes me think all the advice about turning the caps upside down, or wrapping the wires over your ears are unnecessary, and end up getting the job done only because in the time it take to do all these manipulations, the rubber molds to your ear.

Sound quality is better in that they seem to deliver clearer highs. The base is not as strong as the original, but that may be because I don't have to turn the volume as high to hear the music over ambient noise. Just like in a regular stereo, you lose a lot of bass effect when you're not cranking up the volume. If you like thumping bass, you will be disappointed even after applying the equalizer. Although I've got the earbuds seated properly in my ear, I prefer the bass from the originals. Then again, I've read where cheaper earphone and speaker manufacturers boost the bass frequencies to mask the inferior qualtiy of their products, so perhaps what I'm describing as a disappointment is actually a sign that these are higher quality earphones.

They do a great job of cutting out ambient noise. When I used the original earbuds on BART, the local subway system, I'd have to turn up the volume so that the volume bar was 1/2 to 3/4 across. With these in-ear buds, I can keep the volume at 1/4 to 1/3. And my wife usually complains that I'm deaf! Right now in the middle of the night without much outside noise, I'm listening to AC/DC Back in Black with the volumebar just touching the 10-second digit on the remaining time countdown, and the sound is more than adequate.

The downside is definitely what I've read as the "stethoscope effect" where every tap on the chord sounds like someone dully thumping your head. Stick your fingers in your ears, then tap your fingers, and you'll have a sense of what this is like Also, you'll notice your own breathing and swallowing, at least until your brain gets used to it and tunes it out. When I put them in, I can feel a change in the pressure on my sinuses which takes some getting used to. Before you buy, try wearing regular sound dampening earplugs, or stick your fingers in your ears, for awhile to see if you like that feeling.

Another downside is they stay in while running about as well as the original buds without the foam pads, which is to say not well. The chord weighs them down too much. Plus the sound of wind passing over them can overwhelm the music unless you crank up the volume to compensate. It's probably just as well because these earbuds block out traffic noise so you don't hear cars coming up behind you, or from around a corner.

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Description of Apple Earbuds (White with Gray Earbuds)

Universal accessory for all iPod models as well as all digital audio players compatible with 3.5mm mini-jack

The Apple M9394G/A iPod Earbud Headphones have great sound quality and bass response, and come with three different sized caps to ensure the headphones fit comfortably and securely in your ear. The earbud-style headphones are powered up by Neodymium transducers, made of a rare earth magnet that significantly enhances frequency response and overall sound quality for a performance five times as powerful as headphones with aluminum, cobalt or ceramic drivers. The headphones block out outside noise well and are compatible with all iPod models.

iPod Compatibility
iPod nano 1G, iPod nano 2G, iPod mini, iPod 3G, iPod 4G (Clickwheel), iPod Color, iPod 5G/5.5G Video, iPod Shuffle 1G, iPod Shuffle 2G

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