Nothing Ear (Open)

Verdict

The Ear (Open) are a new set of wireless earbuds from Nothing, known for its smartphones and now making waves in audio. With a unique design, strong battery life, great connectivity and respectable sound quality, they certainly make a compelling case for themselves. However, their open fit means that for many people they simply won’t be a practical option, while the large case reduces their portability considerably

Introduction

London-based firm Nothing has, unusually for quite a new firm, managed to make something of a splash since starting. Many new players try their hands at the smartphone game, very few make it past the first year.

Here we are, years on however, and not only has the company seen some success with smartphones, but with audio products too. These so far have maintained the now well-known Y2K transparency effect in their design, along with other thoughtful touches, carving a distinct look for themselves.

The Ear (Open) is the latest such product from Nothing, but it comes with something of a twist. Not only does it have unique design, it’s also intended as unusual by default.

Though they cause less ear fatigue, they also usually result in a less personal, less private listening experience. These are issues which Nothing has claimed to mitigate, but as ever it is important to measure whether these claims hold up to reality.

Are the Nothing Ear (Open) buds worthy of your hard earned cash? Read on for our full review.

Design

• Open design
• Comfortable to wear
• Big charging case

Nothing, unusually, has made its name not through fighting spec wars, or through releasing dozens of handsets, but through design. It has an aesthetic, a pace and a feel all its own, carefully cultivated through software and hardware. See-through bodies, glossy plastics and analogue dials are the name of the game, as well as an LED matrix light interface, unlike anything else on the market today, quite unique.

That last part definitely applies to the Nothing Ear (Open), you’ve never seen a set of buds like them. Starting with the case, to put it mildly it’s huge, the size of a Wispa bar and a third thicker. Usually the cases that come with TWS buds tend to be small, that isn’t the tack Nothing has taken here.

There’s some positives to that, mainly battery life, but the downsides are clear in terms of storage. If you have big pockets, great, however they are just not made to fit into women’s jeans. The case has a transparent lid with some sparse ‘Nothing’ livery, and a glossy white rear. It’s made entirely from plastic and charges via USB-C.

Fittingly, the buds themselves are also a little weird and quirky. As open ear buds, they don’t actually enter your ear canal, just hovering over it, letting the outside in at the same time (hence the name, Open).

If you are used to ‘normal’ (read ‘in-ear’) buds, the difference is a little jarring. It isn’t just that the outside comes in a little, you will be able to hear everything around you. For some people, in some situations, that’s very useful, for example joggers may wish to maintain spatial awareness for safety reasons. But for general use, you won’t get the ‘personal concert’ feel that in-ear buds can provide.

There’s a big advantage to the design of the open buds however, as they don’t sit in any part of your ear, there’s little to no fatigue when wearing them. In general I have issues wearing any buds or headphones for extended periods due to discomfort and heat build-up, not so here.

I was able to wear the buds for extended periods across multiple days with little to no discomfort, which is a definite boon. If you want to drown the world out, they’re a terrible option, but if you like the idea of still being aware of your environment while listening to music, they work very well.

Features

• App support
• 8 hours battery life
• Bluetooth multi-point

Typically with a new set of buds, and certainly at this price point, the marketing material would mainly be given to talking up noise cancellation as a feature – not so with the Nothing Ear (Open). So what do the buds have?

To begin, as with many, we have touch controls. With various pinches and swipes you can pause audio, change tracks, adjust the volume and more. As with most of these options, you’ll likely never be able to do what you intend to, certainly if you’re on the move. Touch controls tend to be floaty and difficult to activate, and the Nothing Ear (Open) are no different.

One pleasant addition is the free app which you can download, which allows advanced EQ adjustment, allowing you to really tweak the buds to your preferences. There’s also eight presets, if you fancy a little experimentation but don’t want to get too technical. Overall the app is well designed, easy to navigate and quick to use, none of which are a given from any brand.

There’s also multi-point Bluetooth support, as well as Google Fast Pair and Microsoft Swift Pair. This means that connecting up the Nothing Ear (Open) to nearly any device is a quick and painless process, and that you can switch between two devices without needing to re-pair. Once connected, the connection was solid, even across 7m and two walls.

Battery life is quoted as up to 8 hours of listening time, with a further 22 hours of charging in the case, and in practice I found that to be an accurate measure. The buds are rated as IP54 for dust and water resistance, meaning they can survive a run in the rain, but can’t come near a shower or a pool.

Sound Quality

• Lack of bass
• Good mids and highs

Aside from lacking the personal feel that in-ear buds give your music, there’s one other major drawback of open design earbuds – bass or a lack thereof. As there’s no seal, bass tends to lose its power and punch, and that’s definitely the case with the Nothing Ear (Open).

Listening to Prototype by Outkast, the delicate guitar riffs and near-falsetto vocals are well represented, however the energetic, fluid bass lacks some of the warmth and a lot of the mass that it can achieve with in-ear buds.

This isn’t to say that the sound quality on the Nothing Ear (Open) isn’t good, rather the opposite. Though no frequency range is given, the 14.2mm dynamic drivers work the mids and highs well in particular. There’s reasonable detail even in more complex orchestral tracks, while vocals sound lively and rounded.

For most genres, the Nothing Ear (Open) will work well, with the exception of Dance, EDM and Punk (among other more bass heavy examples). If you like to run to a pounding beat, you’d be best to look elsewhere, but for most people, on pure sound quality alone, these buds will deliver.

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