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It's safe to say Apple just raised the bar on bundled / inexpensive earbuds, but we wouldn't go so far as to recommend you rush out and purchase them as a standalone set.

Even with tugging. I think $20 is reasonable given it has a mic and remote. But they're $30, and I still prefer the detail of the mono prices over the bass of the ear pods. At this point however, I would not automatically recommend that people replace their apple headphones.

The EarPods ... rectify nearly every complaint I’ve had with Apple’s white earbuds over the last decade. And while they won’t convert those spending hundreds of dollars on luxurious over-the-ear models, these new in-ear headphones do raise the bar for entry-level audio.

Apple's new EarPods are the better-fitting, better-sounding earbuds iPods and iPhones should have had all along.

If you don’t have a set of EarPods, are they worth spending $29 for? In the world of headphones, $29 is fairly inexpensive, and if you’re simply looking to upgrade from existing Apple earbuds, or to replace a lost or broken set, I can recommend the EarPods..

Apple's EarPods offer much-improved sound over the previous standard-issue earbuds, but they won't fit all ears equally well -- and that fit will determine whether you think they're great or just so-so.

Apple's EarPods sprout a better-fitting bulb design, sturdier inline controls, and improved audio quality.

We advise against purchasing individually packaged Apple EarPods from your neighborhood Apple Store. They're a little better than before, but they're still among the worst hardware Apple has ever made.

The sound is fantastically good for the size and price, and although they don't really reach Apple's own stated goal for the sound ("a person sitting in a room listening to high-quality speakers"), they do have a very similar feel, with a real impression of the sound being outside you in 3-D space.

They are comfortable to wear, sound good for the price and should mean that you don't have to worry about upgrading the headphones on your new iGadget straight away.

If you don't have a set of EarPods, are they worth spending $35 for? In the world of headphones, $35 is fairly inexpensive, and if you're simply looking to upgrade from existing Apple earbuds, or to replace a lost or broken set, we can recommend the EarPods.

Three out of four Mashable staffers think Apple's new Earpods are an improvement over what you got before. Whether it's a $29 improvement? That's up to you.

If you’re looking for a budget-priced headset, the $29 price tag is extremely reasonable for the obvious levels of sound and design quality you’ll get from EarPods with Remote and Mic.

Should you use them? For most people, the answer will be yes. They ship with your iPhone 5 and iPod and might even fit in your ears for a change. The sound isn't something to write home about but it's a big improvement from where it used to be and, like a I said, a huge improvement over entry-level...

If you listen to a lot of music, then, we'd still advise you to upgrade from the EarPods as soon as possible, and we wouldn't recommend them as a standalone buy.

Sound quality is much improved. However, while the design is novel, they won't get us to turn away from our in-ear isolating earphones.

There's no way that we would've recommended using the Cupertino brand's previous earbuds, but the EarPods do the trick if you don't want to splash out on a new pair, having just spent all your wedge on a shiny new iPhone 5.

For anyone thinking of buying these things separately for $30 – forget it. That price is utterly ludicrous. For that money you could bag yourself a decent pair of Sennheisers – low end ones admittedly – but they would still be head and shoulders better than the Apple EarPods.

First things first: they’re a solid improvement over the standard Apple earphones. That wouldn’t take a huge amount, though, but it’s a welcome change for those picking up one of today’s new devices.