Creative EP-630i In-Ear Noise Isolating Headphones for Apple iPhone (Discontinued by Manufacturer)

These are decent IE phones. I've bought 3 of the Sennheiser CX-300's and really liked the sound but the cable has worn out on all except one of them that was not used in the same fashion. The two that went bad were from the typical stretching and bending at the strain relief. I had noticed the EP-630I in my many searches and thought from the pictures that it looked like it might be the same earphone rebranded (Someone else has noticed this in a review also). It is not. The Creative is decent sounding but will drive to distortion much more quickly then the Sennheiser. Probably due to Impedance and other factors. The Sennheiser does have a smother quality to it and a little better bass (MUST FIT PROPERLY). I must have large ear canals because I have to use the largest tips on both.I'll also mention the a-jays one plus, I got them from Fry's as somewhat of an impulse buy, they looked like good build quality with the flat cables and it had a R/A connector to the iPhone. Bad choice, the ear fittings that came with this, even the largest would not fit unless i turned it and pressed it to my ear canal. To uncomfortable for longterm listening. They do however come in a beautiful box, but try them before you buy them.For the price ( lower then the Sennheiser) the Creative EP-630I are useable low-mid range quality and most people would not be disapointed unless they have high expectations.I've given up on most IE phones except for the Creative for possible travel and use of the iPhone control.The Sennheiser for casual home listening and for use with a Sony BT reciever.I recently got tired of looking for a mid range IE phone and started exploring Ultimate Ears (now owned by Creative. The Triple Fi10's look interesting but reviwers mentioned issues. I was guided by a freind to anther company for high end IEM's (In Ear Monitors) and finally settled on the Westone UM3X Triple Driver Monitor Earbuds (with Removable Cable, Westone appears to be connected to the original Ultimate Ears Co. also.These are $400 IEM's and I'm done trying various cheaper IE phones unless my Creative or Sennheiser breaks.The UM3X are miles beyond the $20-$50 IE's, three impedance mathed drivers on each, full balanced sound. Sound best to me when using the iPhone line out and the Fiio E6 external headphone amp that will work with most any headphones, IE or over the head.Build quality; Typical of the price rangeSound quality; Average or better for price.Durability; Yet to be determined.Edit, added 12/1/12. Disregard the "proceed with caution" review. He obviously has never used IE's with a mic and switch. the switch IS multi funtional as on all of these types of phones i've had. 1 click to answer a call (clarity is fine BTW). 1 click to pause and restart your music. 2 quick clicks to jump to the next track. And I haven't had reason to try it but I believe 3 quick clicks to jump back. None that I have used control volume. As to one of his earbuds being beat up, I have no response because that's a vendor problem. These are decent all around traveling ear buds and a good value for the money, even though personally I prefer the Sennheiser CX300B Mark 2 Enhanced Bass headphones for sound. They don't have a mic or button though.There is the Sennheiser MM30i that does (and probably uses the same ear pieces), and seems to have a couple extra buttons that the other reviewer might like. The specs say the remote controls volume too!My summary, these are very good for the money, but for a few $ more the Sennheisers are better IMO.

Im a previous owner of a Beats Tour earphones with control talk, and i also own a pair of Creative EP-630 which is the same as the ep-630i but without the mic.I am buying this mainly for my iPhone4s, which we all know the stock Apple headset just sucks so bad (except for the mic which has unbelievable clarity).I live in NY and so I'm constantly using my earphones going from point A to point B, and while riding the subway everyday.Let me start by talking about the Beats Tour. I bought it back then for almost $180 and will compare that to my current Creative EP-630 (the one without the mic) which goes for only $16.When i got the Beats Tour, I had to say I was so excited and thrilled. The quality was awesome, the mic was awesome, and it looked ballin' too. I already owned the EP-630 that time and so that was the only earphones i was able to compare it to. Honestly, i had to say that i was disappointed with the Beats Tour because sound quality wise compared with the ep-630 was so minimal. They both delivered deep bass and crisp clarity. The Beats Tour just had a little more extra clarity than the EP-630. $180 to $16 all for a barely noticeably clarity difference and for the cosmetics? i would go for the Creative no questions asked, not to mention the durability.The EP-630 that i own right now has been with me for over 7 years! I'm a hard party-er and i love to listen with the volume pumped up. The Beats Tour under the same circumstances lasted only 3 months before the left earpiece died. The EP-630 however is phenomenal!!! All the testimonials and reviews are true about this thing. I use it when i jog, snowboard, at work, gym, practically everywhere. It got snagged off my pocket, pulled out from my ear, tangled, name anything that can happen to a set of earphones. I never had a problem with it. It feels so comfy that you can even sleep with this thing stuck in your ear and wont hurt your ears the next day. all i can say is that durability wise, this is the most durable of all the earphones i have ever come across. and that is the main reason why im getting another pair just for the mic for my iphone.The only thing that bothers me is that why did the price go from $16 EP-630 without the mic, to $50 EP-630i with the mic. That is the only thing that bothers me. Still, i think it's well worth the price and it will last you a long long time without bogging sound quality. I hope this review helped you out in getting the over all idea of this earphones.

In Ear / Earbuds anything relating to that category will never be something I recommend. I only purchased these to ease commuting and travel. Id never pay more than ~$20 for these type of headphones so it was a good deal. So when I tried them out I was surprised by how well they sounded. The sound quality is enjoyable though you can not really hear what they have to offer unless you are listening with the volume (on an iphone) at least half way up or more). That is when the bass and treble comes out. So in my case when I need to hear my surroundings (regardless of it being noise isolating) that kind of sucks. The other negative I have and I am not sure if it is due to Apples patents and etc. but it does not have a volume rocker. Just pause/skip forward/pick up & end call. It does work with an iphone 4. The other sizes of padding are nice to have. Some days I like the smallest and others I prefer the medium size. How these compare to apples ear buds is like this. I want to enjoy what I am hearing I will use Creative. If I am on the move/expecting to use the phone but need hands/listening to something for a short time I will use Apples ear buds. So it really comes down to your need of quality listening(creative) or quality in voice(apple).