The Nothing Ear (2) earbuds have been generating buzz for their distinctive design and features. In this review, we’ll delve into these earbuds, focusing on aspects such as sound quality, controls, battery life, and performance. Read on to determine if they’re the right choice for you.
Sound Quality
Well, first off, you can’t get the best out of these unless you have a phone that supports LHDC codec – and there aren’t that many of them. Curiously, most of them Chinese brands like OnePlus. So that’s kind of a letdown. Having said that, these still sound fine on the standard (SBC) codec. The sound quality of the Nothing Ear (2) is generally good. There’s a clear EQ shift when you turn ANC on, which is a bit unfortunate, adding a bit of bass when you’re in ANC.
The Nothing X app (or just the settings panel if you have a Nothing Phone (1)) looks nice and has a bunch of features. To start of with, there’s three-band EQ aids in adjusting specific frequencies to your liking. The custom hearing test tailors the listening experience to your own ears and their particular deficiencies. Curiously, instead of boosting the treble, the app decided to lower the bass – an interesting way to adjust for my hearing deficiencies.
🎧 Buy the Nothing Ear (2): https://geni.us/NothingEar2-DHRME
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The bass is solid, and the mids offer a realistic timbre, particularly for vocals. However, we found that guitar distortion gets smoothed out in some cases, making it ‘too pleasant’ for rock and metal genres. When compared to other earbuds, the Nothing Ear (2) ranked below the Oppo Enco X2 and OnePlus Buds Pro 2, Samsung Buds 2 Pro and tied with the JBL Live Pro 2.
Controls
The Nothing Ear (2) features pinch controls rather than touch controls, similar to Apple’s approach. The Nothing Ear (1)’s controls were much better in this regards, with a swipe. While this design choice results in convoluted volume controls, it’s possible to adapt to them over time – and other controls do work all right. It’s worth noting that volume controls are disabled by default and must be enabled through the accompanying app. And the volume controls are also a bit strange and can be a bit confusing.
ANC and Transparency Modes
These earbuds offer decent ANC, ranking in Tier A on a transparency mode tier list. They perform well enough for short conversations and can be used comfortably in various surroundings. However, they may struggle with wind noise. In terms of ANC, they fall short of the performance offered by top-tier earbuds like the AirPods Pro, but still deliver a fairly decent noise cancelling experience. While we put the overall level of ANC at Tier B, it still should be noted that these do let in a fair bit of mid and higher pitched sounds like voices. They do very well at lower end sounds like engine noises and air conditioner hums.
Phone Calls
The Nothing Ear (2) earbuds are suitable for phone calls, with decent microphone quality. They allow users to switch between ANC and transparency modes during calls, which is a helpful feature and the volume control also works on call. However, it’s important to consider that it’s just ‘ok’ in wind noise.
CLICK HERE to listen to the mic test.
Battery Life and Connectivity
The battery life of the Nothing Ear (2) may not live up to the manufacturer’s promises, reached just around 4 hours instead of the advertised 6 hours. Keep in mind that the best performance can only be achieved with a phone that supports the LHDC codec. This codec enables high-quality audio streaming, but it’s not available on all devices.
Here’s our summary on whether or not to buy these earbuds.
🎧 Buy the Nothing Ear (2): https://geni.us/NothingEar2-DHRME
Affiliate link above helps financially support our work
To Buy
- Unique design
- Good sound quality
- Decent ANC and transparency modes
- Suitable for phone calls
Not To Buy
- Convoluted volume controls
- Potential wind noise issues
- Requires a phone with LHDC support for optimal performance
- Battery life may not meet expectations
Conclusion
The Nothing Ear (2) earbuds are a unique option for those seeking a new pair of earbuds. With good sound quality, decent ANC and transparency modes, and suitable performance for phone calls, these earbuds have a lot to offer. However, potential buyers should consider the convoluted volume controls, wind noise issues, the need for LHDC support, and potentially underwhelming battery life before making a decision.
