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Accessory Review
by Cindy Comeau and Moe Comeau

Cerulean Xi earphones
Product:
Cerulean X1 earphones — in Onyx

Company: iSkin
URL: http://www.iskin.com/ceruleanx1

Price: $99.95

System Requirements: Anything with a a stereo mini jack

Test Systems: iPod Video, iPod nano, various Sansa MP3 players, Walkman CD player, and more

Overall Rating: 2.5 out of 5 Apples

The Cerulean X1 earphones by iSkin offer both great sound and pleasing looks. Their first impression is awesome, in that they come in a black and silver box, reminiscent of Apple's packaging of the iPod Video. They come in two colors: Onyx or Blizzard. Wikipedia says onyxes come in colors ranging from white to almost every color (save some shades, such as Purple or Blue), but Onyx can also be used to mean the color black, especially "jet" black; and these are most definitely-black ones.

X1 Box & iPodVid box
The jet-black Cerulean box is strikingly similar to the iPod video's

They have a clear, clean sound accompanied by rich bass. They feature neodymium magnets, the strongest permanent magnets known, which aid in giving the listener a strong bass sound. iSkin's website boasts a wide range of frequency response, from 20Hz to 20kHz. Cindy tested their promise by letting her keen ears listen to an Internet test designed for testing multimedia loudspeakers. Check out that test at: http://www.eminent-tech.com/music/multimediatest.html.

While performing all the tests beautifully, she was pleased that the Cerulean earphones were able to produce the 30 Hz tone, something that the web page said most speakers (including her $120 multimedia speakers) are unable to play.

We compared them in sound tests with Apple iPod earphones, and a pair of Razer m100 Pro|Solutions Protone In-Ear Earphones, bought on Woot for $29.99 for a 2-Pack. Not surprisingly, they did outperform the sound quality of the iPod earbuds, which retail for $29.99. Unfortunately we were both unable to tell any difference between the less expensive Razer m100 earphones, and the Cerulean earphones. Both sounded equally great.

The biggest plus to these earphones are the silicone "ear-buds" (The Razer Company calls them ear plugs), which come in three sizes to fit most ears. When fitted correctly, they help block out outside noise. Most quality earphones now come standard with three sizes of silicone ear-bud/plug.

It is very difficult to tell the right earphone from the left; the only clue is a very, very small letter L or R on the inside of each bud. By contrast, the m100s have asymmetrical cable lengths, so it's easy to tell: Left is the short cable.

We have to give these earphones 2.5 Apples. While they do produce very rich and crisp sound, and do fit quite comfortably, the hefty $100 price tag seems a bit steep for earphones that are really no better than cheaper ones. Another downfall of these earphones is that they seem quite heavy. Moe found that they seem to fall out of your ears easily, no matter which size bud you use.

Cin/Moe on iPod

Reviewers:
Cindy Comeau and Moe Comeau

The father-daughter team of Cindy and Moe Comeau are avid Apple product users and MLMUG members. Cindy uses a MacBook and Moe plods along on a PowerBook G4.

Both use iPods and other MP3 players. Cindy favors listening to her favorite tunes on an iPod nano, while Moe listens primarily to audio books on a Sansa MP3.

This site has many more reviews, all written by MLMUG members.
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© 2007 by Cindy Comeau, Moe Comeau & MLMUG
Posted 11/22/07
Updated xx/xx/07