Nothing Ear (a) headphones review: Sounds sweet

The world of in-ear headphones was once fairly isolated. There were headphone brands – like Sony – and there were brands you’d never touch. Many tech companies offered headphones, but they were rarely worth considering. But the world has changed, with big brands like Apple now a dominant force in true wireless headphones and smaller brands now having a much better chance of getting noticed.

When the performance is as good as the Nothing Ear (a), that’s understandable: to discount Nothing because it’s not a headphone brand would be mistake, because these budget in-ear headphones have plenty to offer.

---

The Disconnekt Downlow

The Nothing Ear (a) is a shining example of how to make a good pair of true wireless headphones. The app is simple, there’s support for hi-res music through LDAC and they sound great too. But beyond that, this is a set of headphones that look good, with keen Nothing design, while the battery life and performance from the ANC and calling is good.

The squeeze controls can lead to some errors in control and there’s no wireless charging offered, but these are minor points considering the price.

Buy from £99 on Amazon

---

Why you should consider the Nothing Ear (a)

When the Nothing brand launched, founder Carl Pei said that the aim was to make the technology fade in to the background. While this was a conceptual idea, the design language that Nothing has since pursued has played on that metaphor; transparency removes some of the visual barrier allowing the background through, but at the same time, Nothing is producing devices dripping in geek appeal.

The Nothing Ear (a) – and sibling headphones the Nothing Ear – aren’t too dissimilar to Apple’s AirPods Pro. An in-ear body with silicone tip to seal in the ear canal, with the stem allowing squeeze controls. But Nothing eschews Apple’s white plastic for something that’s more attractive. There are choices of black, white or yellow, with the stems finished in a translucent plastic and the colour coming from inside the body. On closer examination you can see some componentry on the inside. The case is designed in a similar vein, a transparent lid meaning you can see your headphones inside.

Design is obviously core to Nothing’s mission – just look at the Nothing phone where the unique feature is the transparent back with “Glyph Interface” lights – and that’s one of the things that are attractive about these headphones. They just look better than a lot of rivals, including from some major brands that focus on black or white buds usually with a uniform texture.

I found the fit and comfort of the Nothing Ear (a) to be great, a good seal formed within my ear from the silicone tip to create that isolation and secure enough to stay in place when exercising. They carry an IP54 rating.

I found them fast to pair with my Android phone thanks to Google Fast Pair, with the Nothing app needed if you want to access all the options the headphones offer. You can turn on LDAC for higher fidelity music, while there’s an equaliser and a couple of presets to customise the sound.

You can also customise the controls, too, allowing you to tailor those to your requirements or add volume controls, which aren’t there by default.

Then you come to the performance. The Nothing Ear (a) offer great performance and I found then to have a nice bassy sound good for pop and dance music. Whether it’s the crump of the bass from Fred Again’s Places To Be or punching low with Chase & Status and Stormzy’s Backbone, the Nothing Ear (a) don’t feel out of their depth.

I’ve also spent a lot of time listening to radio coverage of the 2024 Paris Olympics, where these headphones didn’t feel like they lacked clarity in spoken word either.

Active noise cancellation is great on a device that’s not too expensive and it makes a noticeable difference here. There are some interesting sound effects that come through the headphones when engaged – a sigh when putting them into ambient mode – and a bassy tone when turn noise cancelling back on. I tried them flying, on busy London trains and through many weeks of outdoor use and found the noise cancelling to be good, but not the best.

What the Nothing Ear (a) could do better

Noise cancelling performance is one of the holy grails of headphones and while the Nothing Ear (a) do a good job in this department, they’re not class leading. At this price that’s not something to really complain about, but it’s worth knowing: get yourself the Bose QuietComfort Ultra in-ears or the Sony WF-1000XM5 and you’ll get better performing noise cancellation.

That can also make your music sound better in busy environments, because you can lower the volume, with the backdrop of whatever else is going on around you. But, as I said, for the Nothing Ear (a) this is a minor gripe rather than a deal breaker and given the attractive price, it would be hard to recommend that you spend more, when the Ear (a) are this accomplished.

Of course, other headphones do more, for example, there’s no support for apt X codecs here – which some might want for higher quality music – and you don’t get the sort of clever voice detection that Apple AirPods Pro or Sony’s headphones now offer, where they will detect when you start talking and adjust the noise cancelling and music accordingly so you can have a conversation.

Then you come to the controls. These can be customised and it’s well worth adding volume control as it isn’t there by default. The controls rely on a pinch of the stem which is fine, but I have found that I’ve often hung-up on a call when trying to engage noise cancellation, for example, because the Nothing Ear (a) didn’t differetiate between the pinch (end call) and the pinch and hold (cycle through noise cancellation).

A word on ChatGPT (and Gemini) on Nothing Ear (a)

In April 2024, Nothing announced that it was adding integration for ChatGPT into the Phone 2 (and subsequently other devices) and that means the Nothing Ear (a) as well. That extends to some supporting widgets on the Nothing Phone, as well as enabling conversation through the Nothing Ear (a) with ChatGPT.

That might sound like fun, but it does have some practical limitations. ChatGPT isn’t the sort of useful assistant that Google Assistant or Siri is. The inability to access device controls, get information on location or open apps means that it doesn’t really do, well, anything. Sure, you can have a conversation with ChatGPT, but why you’d want to isn’t clear.

While on the subject of AI, Google has been prompting Android users (in some regions, like the UK) to “try Gemini”. That then leads to a similar situation, although Gemini is better and can access some device controls and your location, it lacks the music control that Google Assistant offered, so it’s not much better.

If you’re using an Android phone and want the best voice assistant experience, I’d stick with Google Assistant.

Should you buy the Nothing Ear (a)

It’s hard not to recommend the Nothing Ear (a). I’ve used a lot of different headphones from a lot of different brands over the years and as a buyer, the options that you have are only getting better and better. Nothing makes itself stand apart by looking different. Sure, the overall form might be close to the AirPods Pro, but the final design is refreshingly unique.

As a tech fan I often play spot-the-tech when out in public. The streets of London are dominated by AirPods; Apple’s headphones are by far the most common sight. But you’ll also see Bose in the ears of commuters, which is often the choice for someone who wants a little more. I have, also, seen some Nothing Ear headphones.

And that’s an important thing, especially in a market where performance is narrowing and there are fewer real differences between products. The best part is that choosing the Nothing Ear (a) because they look good and they are an attractive price is exactly what you should do, because the experience these headphones offers comes recommended too.

FAQs