The earpieces of the Smokin' Buds are fairly typical: rather small and made of cheap plastic, with a "C" hook that attaches the 'buds to the arm. One 'bud features a skull logo, while the other spells out the brand name in its entirety. Skullcandy includes three silicone ear sleeves in a variety of sizes to help with fit, but we had some problems there. The smallest size didn't form enough of a seal with our ear to produce the desired low-end response, and the medium size was too large and didn't fit comfortably.
As for audio quality in general, the Smokin' Buds aren't going to blow you away. Clarity and high-end detail suffer the most, and while the midrange has reasonable warmth to it, it's far from the rich response we really crave. The standout is the bass, and even that is mostly underwhelming, at times suffering from distortion. Still, these earphones are only $30, and they do sound better than stock earbuds. Plus, they offer a durable, funky design that's suitable for their teen audience, specifically those who are constantly active. And we applaud Skullcandy for offering a built-in mic at this price range.
