The build quality and aesthetics of the Apple Earphones are good, the sound quality and comfort are CRAP. Apple makes quality products, but the earbuds just SUCK. I admit, the earbuds that come with most other products aren't any better or even worse, but come on.
I just can't get people that say 'they are fine to me' or 'i don't want to spend money on earbuds'. Like what the ****, you spend 100+ dollars on an iPod, but you don't want to spend money on the devices that make you actually HEAR the ****ing music?
You don't have to spend a lot of money on good earbuds.
- If low on budget: Get the Creative EP-630, about 30 bucks but they have the best price/quality for sound i've ever heard. They even come in white.
- If more budget: Sennheiser CX-300, I think you can get em for about 60 bucks, more clear sound then the EP-630.
- If even higher budget: Shure SE215, I currently own these, SUBLIME sound and they are not even THAT expensive about 100 bucks. Don't go any more expensive than this by the way, your iDevice will become a bottleneck in sound quality.