Introduction:

Griffin Technology TuneBuds Mobile for iPhone

   Today I have for review another accessory for the iPhone. However this one will work with many mobile and portable devices like the iPod. The Griffin TuneBuds Mobile headphones are tailored for the Apple iPhone, but not exclusive to it. These were designed to be an in-ear upgraded design over the standard earbuds that come with the iPhone. A standard 3.5mm headphone plug will allow this to work with many devices but the special controls on the wire will allow full control with the iPod and even iPhone. Let's take a look at the features and specifications.

TuneBuds Mobile combines the powerful lows and crisp highs of Griffin’s TuneBuds comfort earphones with Griffin’s new ControlMic: a high-sensitivity microphone and control module. TuneBuds Mobile give you great sound and one-button control convenience.

TuneBuds Mobile's slim headphone/mic plug connects to the headphone jack of your iPhone or iPod, allowing you to talk, listen, or control your music, recordings, and phone calls.

Important Compatibility Info

TuneBuds Mobile is capable of acting as a microphone, as well as track controls for music playback. This extra functionality works with 4th generation iPod nano, 2nd gen iPod touch, and 120 GB iPod classic.

A Closer Look:

Front	Back	Inside
Travel Case	What's Included	Instructions / Manual

    The packaging was typical Griffin, using a thick clear package. Thankfully this one isn't as hard to get into, or as dangerous. The first thing I noticed when taking these out of the package was the nice braiding on the wires. No grippy rubber or cheap plastic feeling here. Griffin also saw fit to throw in a nice little zipper travel case with the TuneBuds Mobile.

    The Griffin TuneBuds Mobile have a high quality feel with the added braiding to the wires and tight connections. The 3.5mm headphone jack is a slim design in order to fit in tight spaces and cases. The ControlMic button worked perfectly during testing in both music playback and voice controls. The mic worked great as others had no problem hearing me during calls.

The earpads that came pre-installed worked perfectly for my ears and Griffin includes a couple extra sizes for your convenience. Everything fits nicely into the included travel case so you can just drop it in your gym bag or purse and hit the road.

Audio quality was excellent during music playback and voice calls. The TuneBuds mobile are as comfortable as in-ear designs can be and that's a personal preference on whether you can stand something inside your ear canal. My top choice is over the ear design, but that design is 10x the size of small earbuds so you have to decide what's most important to you; size or comfort. Although some would say you get both with in-ear designs like this. To each their own.

Conclusion:

   The Griffin TuneBuds Mobile are a high quality replacement to the simple white earbuds that came with your iPhone. They're black, braided and include Griffin's ControlMic button for full control with the Apple iPhone. For the same price or less than the cheap white OEM earbuds, you can get a sleek black set that sounds and feels much better, not to mention is more secure in the ear with its in-ear design. These can be found on Buy from Amazon.com for $21 at press time, which is about 1/3 of the price of Apple In-ear Headphones. What do you want to pay?

The bottom line is these sound great, look great and are extremely affordable. What else do you need? All you need to do is decide if this is the kind of product you're looking for. If you're a fan of the in-ear style of headsets, then give the Griffin TuneBuds Mobile a close look for your next pair.

A big thanks go out to Griffin Technology for supplying these for review. Check out their site for all your iPod and iPhone needs.

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