Urbanears' Bagis earbuds don't wow you acoustically, but at least they'll coordinate with your ensemble thanks to their wide array of Rainbow Brite hues.
These are traditional earbuds, not in-ear monitors. The design offers enough noise reduction that I was able to listen at a comfortable volume on my daily bus commute while still being able to hear when my stop was announced. Also, the backs of the earpieces snap together, a simple, functional addition that makes them easier to carry – just snap the earpieces together and wear them around your neck. It's also especially useful when you run into a friend mid-workout and want to chat for a minute without holding the buds or stowing them away.
Like most cheap earbuds, the bass in these guys is virtually non-existent. Mids and highs are decent, but overall, the sound quality lacks the fullness and clarity other buds under $50 were able to produce.
The Bagis buds have an inline mic and one-button remote for pausing and un-pausing music and taking calls, but no included volume controls. The call quality is definitely reduced when talking with these – the person on the other end sounds canned, and high-frequency interference is more pronounced. At least they're a bit clearer than Apple's standard white earbuds.
WIRED Wide color availability means these buds can be as aesthetically brash – or discrete – as you'd like. Clever plastic snap secures the earpieces together.
TIRED Crappy audio quality isn't that much better than your iCruds.