Nothing has announced a new colour variant of its Ear (1) true wireless ear buds, with a moody black edition coming soon.
The stems, which revealed the inner workings of the ANC-toting buds remain, but they’re now more opaque thanks to a finish Nothing calls “smoky”. Some might say that undermines the signature look somewhat, while the colour of the earbud itself has switched from black to white.
The black version of the device isn’t available to buy yet, but will be up for grabs from December 13 at 11am GMT.
Other than the colour switch, everything else remains the same. You’ll still get active noise cancelling, 5-hours of listening time (boosted to 34 hours with the wireless charging case) and compatibility with Google Fast Pair for easy connectivity.
There’s an IPX4 sweat and water resistance rating, automatic play pause and a number of gesture-based customisable controls. They weigh just 4.7g and contain an 11.6mm speaker driver, with sound by Teenage Engineering.
The original Nothing Ear (1), brought to us by Carl Pei, a founder at OnePlus, surprised us somewhat with precise audio and ANC at just £99/$99. Our reviewer praised the distinctive design and comfort, while he also marked the buds down for connectivity issues.
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In awarding the earphones a 4.5/5 star rating, our reviewer wrote: “A good set of true wireless headphones, which deliver a strong overall performance and a distinctive design on a relatively modest budget.
“The audio is pleasingly precise, Active Noise Cancellation works well, and they are very comfortable to wear whether you’re being active or at rest.”
It’d be interesting to see how these buds have sold so far. We have no data on that front yet, but it takes some standing out in a crowded market still dominated by Apple’s AirPods. Have you snagged Nothing’s offering? Share your thoughts with us @trustedreviews on Twitter.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
