Nothing is released today. As you know, the telephone company not only has smartphones in its catalog; It also has interesting headphones with a good legion of fans. So much so that he has not hesitated to continue expanding the family and today launches two new proposals: the Ear and the Ear (a), of which we can now tell you our impressions. Take note.
Nothing Ear (a), the economical option of the house
I'm not going to beat around the bush: the best thing about these headphones in-ear It is undoubtedly its price. And the new ones Ear They contain all the essence of the firm with a more adjusted cost, thus being the most economical model available right now within the young company's offer.
We thus find a proposal that respects that so special and original design of the family, with a very attractive swab with transparent areas that reveal the internal circuitry - there is also a version in opaque yellow. His adjustment In the ear it is incredibly comfortable, with silicone pads that adapt perfectly to the ear and feel very light (its weight is 4,8 grams per earbud).
Pairing is immediate with your smartphone, even if you don't use the dedicated Nothing app, although it is true that with it you will be able to get more out of the headphones thanks to the usual configuration options it offers related to equalization, noise control and bass reinforcement. It even comes with more Advanced such as a low latency mode or its well-known fit test to sharpen the audio quality or noise cancellation in a more personalized way.
In terms of sound, few faults can be found. These Ear (a) sound really good, with a fairly balanced sound and a good punch from the bass, also enjoying very effective isolation taking into account its in-ear design. Even the Transparency mode is quite well done and although it suffers from a slightly "canned" effect, it is quite subtle and not very different from what we can find in other competing models.
Su charging and carrying case It is possibly the "least pretty" part of the set and not precisely because of its appearance - in fact, I loved the shape of a small box with a transparent lid. The materials used feel simpler and cheaper, "more plastic", and they even give me that "cheap" feeling that the headphones themselves (luckily) do not offer. They had to cut somewhere so that the beads came out and without a doubt the box (next to the lack of wireless charging) has been one of those chosen for it.
The gesture controls They also respond well and in terms of their autonomy, we are talking about numbers without surprise: about 5 and a half hours with noise cancellation and almost 10 if it is not activated. The figures multiply if we have its case, of course, in which case we are looking at 24 and a half hours with ANC.
In short, a well-resolved proposal by Nothing, which presents them as an ideal model for "everyday life" and for music lovers. With its price, 99 Euros, I see them perfect For a majority audience that seeks good performance and does not want or can spend a lot - not overcoming the psychological barrier of 3 figures is crucial.
Nothing Ear: the discreet renovation
Along with the Ear (a), Nothing has also presented the new Ear today - yes, I admit that the names can be a bit confusing. This new generation comes to replace the ears (2), improving some of its qualities.
We thus find a improved noise cancellation (now reaches 45 db), a new Transparency mode, better autonomy (we went from 4 hours to more than 5 with ANC activated) and new gesture controls that you can also customize to your liking from the app.
We still have wireless charging, the weights of headphones and box are very similar, and the design also remains quite faithful to what we are used to. Furthermore, these headphones, like the Ear, Are compatible with chatGPT, a feature that they have introduced through the Nothing OS for their phones and that therefore only works if you pair them with them - be careful about that.
A little push to update the specifications sheet that translates into a price of 149 Euros (just what the Ear (2) cost).