Earbuds: Which ones to buy?

Filed in archive Headset on August 22, 2007

If you are on the go a lot of the time I think you may just appreciate having a good set of earbuds that makes listening to music such a joy. In reviewing the earbuds out there there is certainly a good array of interesting sets.

A new set of earbuds can start around the US$250 mark. Something like the Shure SE310 Sound Isloating Earphones start at that price in most stores.


The Shure earbuds come with a variety of eartips that create an effective seal within the ear, letting you block out ambient noise and enables you to listen to your music at a lower volume thus protecting your ears.

At around US$180 you will find the new q-Jays which are miniscule earbuds that fit snugly into your ears using one of the seven different eartips.


The q-Jays are deemed to be the smallest earphones on the market and come with bass-enahcing airboosters.

In the under US$80 range comes the twisty Aiaiai earbuds with a touch of color in the market that is dominated by black and white.


Created in Denmark these earphones com in pumpkin, leaf and black colors. The actual plug is gold plated for best contact.

If you want lightweight earbuds, with a quality in-ear sound for under US$50 then you should consider the Creative Zen Aurvana.


The Creative Zen Aurvana boast good noise canceling, durable and lightweight earbuds for a low price. While these earbuds are a comfortable fit, it would be good if these came with a foam earbud option which some of the higher priced earbuds usually provide.

If all of these are too expensive then you should try WalMart's $6 earbuds. However, these unfortunately do not have the same quality sound even though they may boast some of the features of these upper-market models.