Radius Atomic Bass earphones (Black)

Colorful earbuds have become increasingly popular with headphone manufacturers, possibly due to consumer demand for something a bit more stylish than plain white or black. It's no wonder: earphones are basically accessories that serve to pipe music to your ears, so they might as well be fashionable. Radius, a new Tennessee-based company pushing out Japanese-designed earbuds, is the latest entry into the burgeoning market of fashion-forward electronics. The company has three product lines, one of which is the $40 Atomic Bass earphones. As the name suggests, these in-ear 'buds offer expansive low-end response: bass-addicts only need apply.

Like the Radius TruTune earphones, the Atomic Bass earphones feature a fashionable design. You can choose from six color options--black, blue, green, red, silver, and violet--all shaded to match the iPod Nanos and Shuffles. The color is really an accent, found only encasing the earbuds and the plug housing. The cable is white, except for the black version, which has a black cord. The cable, which measures roughly 45 inches, is the uneven variety popular with sport-style headphones. The distance from the Y-junction to the left earbud is shorter than that going to the right, allowing the wearer to string the cable behind the neck to insert the right piece. This contributes to the low-profile style of the earphones, although people who carry their MP3 players on the right may not prefer it.