Since the launch of Nothing’s Ear (1), the brand has competed at the dense budget end of the true wireless headphone market, where hundreds of rivals vie for second place behind Apple’s ubiquitous AirPods. However, before the Ear (2) emerged, the London-based startup had already had to abandon the £99 price tag on its flagship, and the Ear (2) was launched at £129.
With the brand’s Community Update and the newly announced Nothing headphone range, there’s now a true successor to the original Ear (1) in a pair of lovely buds for under £100. Ear Nothing (a) It’s small and compact, with a stylish, transparent design and great sound. Read on for more on my initial thoughts after using it for a week paired with the Minimal Nothing Phone (2).
Ear Nothing (a): First impressions
In many ways, this is a major overhaul for the Nothing line of headphones for 2024, replacing the Ear (Stick) as the “fun and affordable” model in the range. Nothing Ear (a) comes with a new charging case for a super-compact design, support for high-res audio, and adaptive noise cancellation; And all for the whopping price tag of £99.
Like everyone else, I was wondering if there was something wrong, but after testing it for a week, I don’t feel like there’s much missing here; I miss wireless charging and some of the clever app-based extras it gives you. Along with the new flagship Nothing Ear, these products deliver excellent performance for the price, offering sound quality, noise cancellation and comfort to rival high-end brands.
Nothing in Ear (a): Design and comfort
The Nothing Ear (a) comes in white, black, and a new yellow tint that reminds us of Thunderbird 4. Unsurprisingly, they’re just as transparent as the brand’s other products, from the clear lid to the pocket sleeve and clear plastic on the bodies to show off the inner workings.
It might seem like a big departure that this is the brand’s first product to come in a color that isn’t a variation on black or white, but we don’t think it matters too much, especially considering there are so many colors available. Red in Nothing Ear (Stick) design. As you can tell, I’ve been testing the new yellow color, but if you opt for white or black, you’re unlikely to be able to tell the difference between these and the other Nothing buds just by looking at the headphone unit itself.
The case has a different form factor but still has a solid metal hinge and a satisfying snap to close it; As mentioned, it doesn’t have wireless charging, but it’s easy to refuel via the USB-C port on the back. There are a few parts of the case that feel a bit “first generation product” and lack the Nothing’s characteristic attention to detail; for example, the magnetic clasp on the front is off-center (shown in the image below) and this plastic is more prone to fingerprint marks. Not a deal breaker, but worth noting.
When it comes to the buds themselves and their comfort, it’s safe to say that these follow the existing Nothing design book, very similar in size and weight to the class-leading AirPods Pro, with added industrial flair. It is extremely comfortable to wear for hours with its small design that you will not notice in your ears. You get all three typical ear tip sizes. That’s enough for most people, but rivals now offer a fourth extra-small size; This size is not available on both these models and the Nothing Ear. Almost full marks in terms of comfort; They are great for me but may not be for everyone.
Nothing Ear (a): Sound and noise canceling
I must say, the sound quality these offer is impressive. They don’t sound like most £99 in-ear headphones, offering a balanced, engaging signature that appeals to most listeners. As with the Ear from Nothing, I find them most convincing when I turn off the “bass boost” feature that’s on by default with these – there’s too strong a bass boost for my tastes, and enough fullness for the low end without needing to. Everyone is different, though, and if you appreciate the ability to add lots of sounds to your playlists, go for it.
The dynamic driver material in the ear is (a) made of PMI and TPU (so… plastic?) and is not as high quality as the ceramic in the renewed Ear, but I think it is good enough to reproduce tunes without distortion. and if you’re worried about whether your hi-res music from Tidal or Qobuz will technically sound its best, they support the LDAC codec.
Codecs aren’t as important as marketing would like you to believe; Whether you’re listening to LDAC, the highest bitrate supported on Android phones, or AAC on iPhones, you probably won’t hear the difference. But these buds are well-built and well-tuned, and that’s what makes them sound much better than most of the budget-friendly competitors in this category. To our ears, they sound very similar to last year’s Nothing Ear (2), which we still rate as top performers in terms of dynamic sound, detail and clarity.
How about active noise cancellation (ANC) and transparency? These have the same ANC power as the Ear model, and when using them on the busy London Underground and quieting office noise I couldn’t hear any difference between the two. They’re great performers, but if you want seriously game-changing noise cancellation, you’ll need to consider options from Apple, Bose, or Sony instead. Transparency is more of the same, a solid mode for ambient awareness, but I wouldn’t use it while having a conversation, which is something you can do with the AirPods Pro.
Ear Nothing (a): Controls and app features
When it comes to bud control, nothing is caught in the pinching system from Ear (2) and Ear (Stick). This simple and intuitive approach isn’t too far off from how AirPods Pro work; it allows you to control playback and switch between ANC and transparency modes by squeezing the buds’ stems. Within the app you can also enable an extra gesture to “double pinch and hold”, which we set to control volume (on the left to lower the volume and on the right to raise it) – although this works, I find it more difficult than I’m used to on the AirPods, Nothing Ear (2) and Ear It requires faster spinning. This is a little more complicated than I’d like, but it could potentially be fixed with a firmware update.
Nowadays, app control is very important for headphones. Even if you’re just loading up to adjust the sound and get the controls working the way you want, it’s a big help. Each of the compression controls mentioned above can be customized in the Nothing X app, which has a clean and logical interface for customizing your buds.
You can change the noise canceling level or adjust it to suit your environment; You also get access to low latency mode (ideal for gamers), LDAC high-resolution pass-through, eartip fit testing, and multi-point controls. bilateral connections. It’s surprising how many expensive headphones still lack Bluetooth multipoint, a great cross-platform feature for maintaining simultaneous connections and automatically switching to the device playing audio. It’s maddening that class-leading noise cancelers like the Bose QuietComfort Ultra don’t have this feature.
If you compare these side by side with the Nothing Ear like I do, there are a few notable missing features. You won’t get a personal sound profile or hearing test, and there’s only a basic equalizer, no advanced equalizer. But be honest with yourself, would you still use it? I didn’t find that I was missing too many features. Ear’s (a) vocal abilities are on par with Ear’s; This means both can compete with the types of headphones aimed at serious audio enthusiasts. They sound great even without any tinkering or tweaking. Trust me, you will be pleased with these.
Nothing Ear (a): Battery life
These are small headphones compared to many competitors, so I don’t think anyone should be surprised that they don’t pack the extra battery life. They claim to last slightly longer than the Nothing Ear, providing a battery life of five and a half hours with ANC on. When you add the extra battery in the charging case, you’re looking at just over 24 hours of playtime. Considering that most of us don’t leave the headphones in our ears all day long, this battery is more than enough to keep you going. It’s also worth knowing that it gets even better with ANC off, getting up to nine and a half hours from the buds alone and up to 42.5 hours with the case included.
I think this is sufficient and can compete with AirPods Pro which have a similar compact form factor. Can it beat other competitors in this price range? No probably not. If you’re ready to trade the compact design for more battery, you can get much more life out of rivals like the Soundcore Liberty 4 NC or JBL Live Pro 2, but we also find the combination of audio, ANC and app features here. Its small size and cute bubble case are attractive enough to make us choose these among the closest competitors.
Nothing Ear(a) decision
If it wasn’t already clear, I think these are great little buds and I’m surprised they’ll sell for £99 at launch. The features here put them head-to-head with Nothing Ear, and we don’t think most users will miss the app-based features for audiophiles or wireless charging. Beyond these shortcomings, the Ear (a) is extremely similar to the new Ear model, offering the same level of upgraded noise cancellation, comfort, and much better battery life as the Ear or Ear (2).
Overall, the sound quality of these pumps is much better than you’d expect from most models offered at this price from other brands, and the reliable app still offers the connectivity and features we’ve come to expect in some cases. Some of the flagship headphones cost well over £200. Nothing Ear (a) is fun, compact and affordable, with a reasonable price that will leave you feeling like everyone is being overcharged by the big brands.
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