Nothing’s first over-ears: Design speaks loudly, while sound whispers elegance

Nothing Headphone (1) looks like good value—more so when you realise the sound is tuned by British luxury audio company Kent Engineering and Foundry (KEF)

This mustn’t have been easy. Despite a fair amount of success with true wireless earbuds over the years, for the United Kingdom (UK)-based startup Nothing, beginning its headphone foray by competing with the flagships is a bold move. This is a domain with discerning consumers—cognisant of the money they’re spending and the sound signature they prefer. It is also a space overwhelmingly dominated by Sony, Bose, and Sennheiser, with Sonos and Dyson making their bids.

Physical controls galore on the Nothing Headphone (1), and while at it, very seamlessly integrated within the design and don’t spoil the overall visual appeal (Vishal Mathur / HT Photo)

Nothing Headphone (1) tries to line up the cards in its favour, foremost by getting the pricing right. Sony’s WH-1000XM5 is priced at ₹34,990, while Sennheiser demands ₹20,990 for a Momentum 4, and Bose wants ₹24,990 to be sent its way if you’d like a QuietComfort Ultra. Suddenly, the Nothing Headphone (1) looks like good value—more so when you realise the sound is tuned by British luxury audio company Kent Engineering and Foundry (KEF).

Though you may be interested in the specifics of sound, chances are the rather different design language of the Nothing Headphone (1) will get your attention along the way. It’s difficult to ignore. There is a distinct attempt to carry forward the transparency-driven design language from Nothing’s smartphones, and while it may take a while to get used to this initially, it has mostly worked. The metal housing looks good, but you’ll have to be a bit careful because it shows scratches quite easily. That’s inconvenient. But at least it remains smudge-free.

A slight design eccentricity that must be noted — the Nothing Headphone (1) folds flat in a way that, when being reseated into the carry case, the right ear cup ends up on the left side. It’s a flip every time, and frankly, it shouldn’t have been there in the first place.

I’ve never been a fan of touch controls on headphones, and Nothing seems to share that opinion. Physical controls abound, and while at it, they’re very seamlessly integrated within the design and don’t spoil the overall visual appeal. And these aren’t just buttons for the sake of physical controls. The thoughtful implementation includes roller controls for managing volume, a paddle-esque control for selecting the next or previous track, and a button that can be configured for quickly accessing favourites if you’re using a Nothing Phone (3). These, with on-point tactile feedback, simply work.

The experience of sound is built rather nicely on a robust foundation provided by 40mm audio drivers. Very much flagship-grade, if that’s what you’re wondering about. The audio signature is well recognised if you’ve used the first-generation Ear true wireless earbuds — of course, hardware differences are perceptible, but in a broader sense, you know what sort of tuning you’ll get with the Nothing Headphone (1). It is decidedly lively, without a perceptible “V” in terms of how the equaliser is tuned out of the box. The Nothing X app gives you all the options to change that, but even without it, most music genres sound good.

In my book, the sound is more versatile than Bose’s decidedly more subdued tuning, and at par with Sennheiser headphones. Once you toggle the bass controls, this easily gets into Sony XM territory (for much less money, mind you). Active noise cancellation (ANC), is really as on point as it gets. Safe to say, this is almost matching the Sony ANC implementation — and that is no mean feat, because Sennheiser and Bose haven’t quite got it all spot on, especially with no noticeable change in how the track sounds with ANC off and ANC on. Often, headphones struggle to get the lower frequencies right when ANC is off.

Attention has been paid to the little things that matter. The USB-C cable that arrives with the Nothing Headphone (1) can be used for charging and listening, and there’s the 3.5mm headphone jack with a supplied cable that can be used too — except the headphones must be powered on for this to work. Bad luck if the battery runs out. Pair that with long battery life of upwards of 32 hours with ANC on, and it gets you through most transcontinental return flights on a single charge.

You may have assessed whether the Nothing Headphone (1) suits your budget and the sort of headphone you’re looking for. Do add some more weight to the personality aspect, because no other headphone looks this good. Not the Apple AirPods Max. Not the Dyson OnTrac. And certainly nothing rolling out from the sea of sameness from the Sony, Sennheiser, and Bose lines.

Vishal Mathur is Technology Editor for Hindustan Times. When not making sense of technology, he often searches for an elusive analog space in a digital world.