You may or may not have heard of the company Nothing. It launched in 2020 with one of the co-founders being Carl Pei, who was previously part of OnePlus. If you haven’t heard of it until right now, then it’s a brand worth paying attention to if you’re looking for something different to the norm.
Speaking of which, alongside the announcement of the Nothing Phone (3), which the company is calling a “flagship phone”, the company has also revealed the Headphone (1).
What are the Nothing Headphone (1)?
Competing with the likes of the Sonos Ace, Sony WH-1000XM6 and Apple AirPods Max, the Nothing Headphone (1) are a pair of over-ear cans with a design that is certainly bold. Perhaps even more so than the Dyson OnTrac headphones that launched back in August last year and they were a talking point.
IMAGE CREDIT: THE DISCONNEKT
Available in black and white colour options in true Nothing style, the Headphone (1) have rectangular ear cups with an oval-shaped element on the top that features a slightly transparent design to show some of what is inside. They are made from a combination of formed aluminium, precision CNC components, and PU memory foam, and they offer telescopic arms for smooth adjustment.
You’ll find three controls on the ear cups, with what Nothing is calling a Roller, Paddle and Button. The Roller allows you to “roll” up and down to change volume, but you can also press it to play or pause audio and hold it down to switch between active noise cancellation and transparency mode. The Paddle is a long, slim button that allows you to skip tracks or press and hold to fast forward or rewind in compatible apps.
IMAGE CREDIT: THE DISCONNEKT
Last but not least, the Button control is customisable through the accompanying Nothing X app. A single press will allow you to activate a feature called Channel Hop, which is a quick-switch feature that moves between recent audio apps, such as music, podcasts and voice notes. This feature is compatible with 25 different apps, including Apple Music and Spotify.
The Button can also be used to trigger voice commands or launch features like News Reporter or Essential Space.
Through the app, you can also adjust EQ, with an advanced setting offering an 8-band Advanced EQ to allow you to create a customised sound profile that you can then share should you wish.
What’s inside the Nothing Headphone (1)?
Speaking of sound, the Nothing Headphone (1) have been created in collaboration with audio brand KEF. They feature custom-built 40mm dynamic drivers to deliver what Nothing says will be “natural audio with deep bass, detailed mids, and crisp treble across all modes”. The modes include Active Noise Cancellation, Transparency and Spatial Audio, with the latter offering on-device spatialisation and head tracking for a 360-degree sound stage.
IMAGE CREDIT: THE DISCONNEKT
For the ANC mode, there are dual feedforward and feedback microphones, and the Headphone (1) also have a four-microphone Environmental Noise Cancellation (ENC) system on board that is said to be powered by AI and trained on over 28 million real life scenarios to allow for good voice capture for calls, even in busy environments.
Battery life is claimed to be 35 hours with ANC on, or 80 hours with ANC off and fast charging is on board, allowing for 2.4 hours of playback with ANC on after a five-minute charge. Elsewhere, the Nothing Headphone (1) offers support for Hi-Res Audio, LDAC and USB-C lossless playback. They also have a 3.5mm jack and Bluetooth 5.3 on board.
Nothing Headphone (1) price and availability
The Nothing Headphone (1) will come in black and white colour options as I mentioned and they will be available to pre-order from 4 July.
The price? £299 in the UK, $299 in the US or €299 in Europe, making them cheaper than the latest options from Sony, Sonos and Apple, though you could buy a pair of Sony WH-1000MX5 for that so that’s something to consider.
