Apple Earbuds (White with Gray Earbuds)
by Apple Computer
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Our Price: $64.18 Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Category: Network Media Player See more product details |
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Customers in the UK,
Buy this product at amazon.co.uk
for British Pounds
Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Apple Earbuds (White with Gray Earbuds)
Customer Review: Probably the best in-ear buds for the price
Summary: 4 Stars
I got these to replace the ones that shipped with my nano, which were OK, but pretty uncomfortable. I looked at and tried a few other brands (Sony, Panasonic, others I don't remember) and none of them were really great. They all mostly suffer from poor bass or were very uncomfortable. A few like the Sony pair had irregular lengths for the cord. I guess you're supposed to wrap it in back of your head and only listen to your stuff on your left (which annoyed the hell out of me since my nano always rides in my jeans' coin pocket). And the cords were either ridiculously short or long. All that said, these are probably the best I tried. But not perfect. Here's a run-down:
The Good
)Pretty comfortable when worn properly. MUCH more comforable than the stock iPod buds.
)Great dynamics. Especially highs and mids. These have a great range and sound better than much more expensive phones I've heard. Even sounds great at very low volume.
)Match the iPod look and style.
The Bad
)The bass can be lacking. If the buds shift a little out of your ear, all of a sudden you're in tin town. If you cram them in there really good, the bass is there, but I'd never describe it as "booming".
)Can be cumbersome to get it in your ear properly, and seems to want to fall out pretty easily.
) THIS IS MY LEAST FAVORITE THING ABOUT THESE EARBUDS. When you have them crammed in your ear correctly, it creates an ear plug-like seal. Unfortunaly, this means that every little move, bump, or shift of the cord BOOMS in your ear. It's EXTREMEMLY distracting. Just breathing moves the cord along my shirt which creates pretty loud thumping. If you're going to listen to these perfectly still, you'll be good. Otherwise, it can be an issue. I can't imagine trying to use these at the gym or while jogging.
Overall, for the price, I don't think you'll find a better set of ear buds.
Customer Review: Great for me, but I can see why people are critical
Summary: 4 Stars
I spent a ton of time on Amazon looking at these earphones as a replacement for the ones that came with my 40GB iPod. I found that the standard ear buds weren't great at blocking out sound and tended to come loose when I was running or riding the exercycle at the gym. I wasn't convinced to buy these until I got so sick of the old pair coming loose that I was willing to spend money to try something else. These headphones definitely solve that problem, and provide improved sound as well.
As some of the other reviews have indicated, Apple's In-Ear Headphones aren't as simple to use as standard ear buds. You have to play with them to get a good seal. If you don't, the sound is actually worse than with the standard ear phones. However, once you figure it out (which didn't take me more than 15 minutes or so), the sound is vastly improved, as the seal blocks out extraneous sound. With the old ear buds, my volume was always all the way up, but with these, around 50% gets me plenty of sound.
I wound up trying all of the different ear pieces that come with the In-Ear Earphones, and wound up going with the largest size. For my ears, the seal is best when the earphones are worn upside down in my ear, so that the wire sticks straight out of my ear perpendicular to the ground. They stay in securely when I'm doing active things.
So why 4 stars instead of 5? Well, there are a few issues with these earphones. First, how many sets of earphones do you own that you actually need to learn how to use? Second, there's some resonant noise that comes the wire brushing against things. I got used to it and don't really hear it anymore, but it is an issue. Last, I was kind of hoping that these earphones would be a more compact replacement for the powered Bose Quiet Comfort 2 noise canceling headphones that I use for air travel. That's simply not the case.
Customer Review: Amazing bass, but only if you put them in right!
Summary: 5 Stars
I just picked these up as I found the standard ipod headphones good but lacking in low end bass.
I was horrified at first how nasty the more expensive earbuds sounded, but searching around found Stephen "svogelpohl"'s review which had perfect instructions on how to fit them - I've been listening for a couple of hours now and other than a quick re-fit they've been amazing - in fact you'll want to listen to all your favourite songs again due to the fantastic quality - not only in the bass but the mid and highs too, and the stereo seperation is head and shoulders over other headphones I've tried.
Just so you don't have to scroll through 10+ pages of reviews to find the instructions, here they are:
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If you are trying to insert the RIGHT headphone, use your LEFT arm and put it over your shoulder, behind your head, and grab the top of your right ear. Pull your ear upward so as to "straighten" out your ear canal. Then insert the headphone and swivel it in a circular motion to slide it into your ear. The orientation of the chord from the ear plug should be downward just like with the ear-buds. Once they are in you should be able to pull lightly on them and they will not move. If when you pull on them they move, then you either have not put them far enough in your ear or you should try a different size cup. I would recommend trying all three sized cups and use the one that fits the best. Do the similar thing for the other headphone and you should be good to go.
As a note, if you buy a pair of earplugs, they have a similar (albeit better then mine) instruction on how to insert them into your ear. You will see that you get a much snugger fit and better seal if you lift your ear as described here. I hope this helps and gets those one-star reviewers to change their mind!
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Hope it works for you as it did me!Customer Review: No way five stars
Summary: 1 Stars
I got really excited when these babies finally arrived after reading all the reviews. At first plug-in I had my set that came with the IPOD and listened to those for about 10 seconds. Then I put in these and listened. My face probably looked like the kid who heard there was no Santa Claus. The bass dropped clear off the picture and the overall sound was extremely tinny (o.k. maybe tiny too). In desperation I tried jamming them in my ear canal in all possible manners as indicated by other reviewers. When I got them to finally sound acceptable I replaced them with the original pair to check the sound difference. Again I was dissapointed. I then tried every size ear cap and had the same results. Maybe if I have my ear canals surgically reconstructed to properly match the delicate form fitting shape of these finicky earphones they will sound like they were designed to. Otherwise, these were not an improvement. I will continue to try to get a good sound out of these before I finally toss them but should I really have to try THAT hard to make headphones sound good? I don't think so.
UPDATED REVIEW ONE DAY LATER I really wanted these to work so I tried again. Most people will probably have the same experience I originally had. The second day I got them to sound about the same as my original set except I really had to jam those suckers in pretty deep. There really was not an improvment over my original set but I thought they might actually cut out more outside noise than the others. Helpful in airplanes, while cutting the grass etc. They basically are going to fit like tight earplugs when you finally get them to sound good. Considering day two I would change my original one star rating to a three but I don't think I can. I wouldn't buy these expecting a monumental improvement over your original set.
Customer Review: Apple drops the baton
Summary: 2 Stars
I've had my iPod for several months and am still completely in love with it. The only thing I wasn't in love with were the earbuds that came with the iPod. They refused to stay in my ears and I always felt like so much of the sound was leaking out. I decided to look into a pair of in-ear headphones, and I went with the Apple set because they matched the iPod perfectly and Apple has a such a great track record in terms of quality of products. Now that I've had my headphones for nearly a week, I must say I am thoroughly unimpressed. While the sound is no doubt wonderful, the headphones simply WILL NOT stay in my ears. I have tried every size, every way of inserting them (including the 'lift your ear to straighten out the ear canal' method mentioned throughout several of these reviews) - nothing works. The small size covers seem to not even fit in my ears without falling out, while the large pushes it way out after I force it in. The medium goes in, but after just a minute or two pushes itself out so that it sits far out from the ear canal, creating a very tinny sound. I thought perhaps I just had crazy-shaped ears, but I've read too many instances of improper fit to think that it's me. Just looking at the design of the headphones, they seem designed to slip out. The slope of the ear piece is downward, ensuring that they will slip out. Even when the headphones first go in the ear and stay momentarily, they are far from what I would consider "comfortable". In fact, putting them in can actually be painful. I truly wish I had listened to the sizeable group that recommended against these headphones because, as a student on a small budget, it looks like I am now stuck with the earbuds that I hate but prefer to these truly awful in-ear headphones. $40 for these things is robbery, and unfortunately I'm stuck with them.