nothing more than good earplugs

On paper, the Nothing ear (1) is an interesting and, above all, affordable alternative to the AirPods Pro. But how do the wireless earbuds work in practice? You can read it in this review.

This is our Nothing ear (1) review

As an Apple user, the name Carl Pei probably means little to you. However, if you are deeper into the technology world or if you also follow Android news, then you have probably seen Pei pass by. Carl Pei is the co-founder of the Chinese smartphone brand OnePlus, but earlier this year left the company and started a new brand: Nothing.

The first product from Nothing is the ear (1): wireless earplugs with a striking design and active noise suppression. The price of the headset is also striking, because at 99 euros they are very affordable and much cheaper than Apple’s AirPods Pro. We’ve been testing the Nothing ear (1) for a while now to see if they’re a worthy alternative to the AirPods.

Design is a real eye-catcher

The most striking feature of the Nothing ear (1) is undoubtedly the design. The earbuds have a transparent design, which allows you to see the internal parts. For example, you can see the tiny batteries of the earplugs and the magnets with which you click them into the box. We can really appreciate the special design of Nothing, although the caps secretly still look a bit like the AirPods due to the white top.

The transparent design is also reflected in the charging case that you get as standard with the Nothing ear (1). Because the box is transparent, you can see the earbuds when they are being charged. The case is fairly compact, but not as handy as the charging case of the AirPods (Pro). This makes it less easy to fit in your pocket.

It is also a bit of a shame that the box of the Nothing ear (1) is very sensitive to scratches. After a few days, there are many minuscule scratches on the case, which you can only see if the light is good and you get close with your eyes. The case is also handy and has a USB-C connection for charging.

Charging is smooth and the ear (1) lasts a long time: on a full charge you can listen to music for four hours with the noise reduction on. This is shorter than with the AirPods Pro, but it is sufficient. Do you put the noise canceling you can listen to your favorite songs a little longer.

It is very nice that wireless charging is available; we rarely see this feature with earplugs of around 100 euros. It did take some getting used to in the beginning that you ‘lay down’ the caps in the box. With the AirPods, you can simply ‘slide’ the earbuds into the case. A red dot indicates where the right earpiece should be.

Sound is good for most people

In terms of wearing comfort, the Nothing ear (1) is very reminiscent of the AirPods Pro. Both headsets are in-ear and therefore go into your ears in the same way. I like the Nothing ear (1) and AirPods Pro in my ears, although the ear (1) is slightly lighter. As an avid AirPods Pro user, I was so used to the Nothing caps.

You will notice differences in the sound quality. The Nothing ear (1) sound good, but the AirPods Pro produce a nicer sound. Music especially sounds a bit more balanced with the Apple caps, although the sound of the ear (1) comes fairly close. If you’re an audiophile and really want the best sound quality, the AirPods are a more logical choice. However, for most people, the EAR (1) are more than fine.

In the ear (1) app (more on that later), after listening to some songs, I turned on the ‘More Bass’ option, so that the music sounds a bit fuller. However, you can also choose to leave the equalizer on the standard ‘Balanced’ option and you will still have good sound.

Active Noise Canceling and Control

An important and nice feature of the Nothing ear (1) is the noise reduction, in other words: active noise canceling. If you enable this function, ambient noise is filtered out so that you can focus on the music. This is also a signature feature of the AirPods Pro and something that the Apple earbuds excel at.

The noise cancellation of the ear (1) works very nicely, but not as well as the AirPods Pro. There is also the price difference, but you have to take into account that the noise canceling is not so strong that you can’t hear anything at all. In a busy office, on the train or in the living room (when the television is turned up loud, for example) you always get something from your surroundings.

The operation of the Nothing ear (1) works well and intuitively. You tap an earbud twice to pause or play the music, and tap three times to skip to the next song. You can adjust the volume by swiping up or down on the stem and that usually works well. Finally, you can switch between the different modes (noise canceling, transparency and off) by tapping and holding on an earbud.

Bugs and the ear(1) app

The Nothing ear (1) suffers from a few teething problems. During my test period, for example, the earbuds switched between noise canceling and off mode by themselves, but the connection with my laptop was also occasionally lost.

However, a few seconds later, everything was back to normal. Furthermore, I regularly got to see on my phone that the battery of the charging box would be empty, even though I had just charged it. This is not very disturbing, but a bit sloppy. Hopefully, Nothing will fix these bugs with a software update.

You can also update with the accompanying ear (1) app, which you can download in the App Store. The application looks sleek and works fine in itself, but is a bit too simplistic. You have little choice to adjust the sound that comes out of the earbuds: with the equalizer you only have four modes to choose from.

You can also slightly adjust the controls and that’s where the options of the app stop. The ‘Find my Earbud’ option is handy, which you can use if you have lost an earbud, for example. The ear (1) will then play a high, loud beep so that you know approximately where they are.

Conclusion Nothing ear (1) review

The Nothing ear (1) are fine earplugs with a very reasonable price. For 99 euros you get wireless earbuds that are comfortable, look very cool, sound good and also have noise canceling.

It’s not all as good as with the AirPods Pro, but for most people it doesn’t have to be. If you’re looking for good wireless earbuds without having to pay the top price, the Nothing ear (1) are an excellent choice.

buy nothing ear (1)

The Nothing ear (1) are for sale in the Netherlands at Belsimpel. As mentioned, you pay 99 euros for the wireless earbuds.