Here's a mini-review of the SE210's from a non-audiophile...
In Canada they retail for $199 + tax, but I managed to get a brand new pair for $85
First - make sure to clean your ears before wearing them - otherwise - mess will ensue. Ugh...
First pair I bought had to return since the right earbud produced 0 sound at all. Second pair works fine.
In terms of the fit - the left one stays in my ear very well but the right always falls out. Perhaps I need to try changing foamies - it comes with a variety of inserts and you can choose ones you find comfortable.
Overall, they sound I'd say 40% better than the iPod ones. That's just IMO. As I said, I'm not an audiophile...the bass is definitely much better which is nice. I don't find I can get "louder" music out of them without distortion - at high volumes there's still some distortion. Again, these may be stupid comments because I know nothing about audio. Overall, the best feature by far is how once you have them on you can barely hear what's going on around you. This is an amazing quality since you can only hear your music. I find that there are so many sounds that the white iPod earbuds muffle - when you put on the SE210s the music sounds slightly different - you hear more subtle background instruments and it's just more enjoyable especially since you don't hear background noise.
I also find myself using them even when not plugged into my iPod - in the library for example and I need to have an even quieter room - put on the Se210s and you're set! (not being sarcastic, I actually do this
).
Bottom line - they're good - but not AS good as I was expecting based on their excellent reviews. Maybe they really are THAT much better I just don't realize it since i'm not an audiophile.