Nothing just launched the Ear (2), the company’s latest flagship TWS earbuds in India and global markets, as it had promised. It still has a transparent design, but adds several features such as Hi-Res Audio certification and LHDC 5.0 technology, transmitting frequencies up to 24 bit/192 kHz at speeds of up to 1 Mbps.
Audio, AI noise reduction and ANC
The earbuds feature an 11.6 mm custom driver with a new dual-chamber design enhances the overall sound quality with smoother airflow. It also has Dual Connection for easy device switching, improved wind-proof and crowd-proof Clear Voice Technology that uses an AI noise reduction algorithm that can filter out over 20 million sound samples. The Personalised Active Noise Cancellation adapts to the unique shape of a user’s ear canal.
Nothing X App
The Nothing X app brings several new features, such as Personal Sound Profile with their hearing ID, option to adjust the equaliser settings in real-time to match the user’s hearing for an optimal listening experience.
It still has up to 40 dB of noise reduction, but the Personalised Active Noise Cancellation offers noise cancellation according to exact shape of a user’s ear canal and Adaptive Mode that automatically adjusts the noise reduction level based on your environment in real-time.
The touch controls have been replaced with press controls to avoid any accidental touches and discomfort of tapping into the ear canal. This lets you skip tracks, switch between noise cancellation modes, and adjust volume – all with a press. The controls can be customised in the Nothing X app.
Build and Battery Life
The earbuds have IP54 dust and water-resistance rating, compared to IPX4 in the predecessor, and the case is also IP55 rated. Since the case is smaller, it has a battery of 485mAh compared to 570mAh in the Ear (1), but the improved audio chip promise up to 36 hours of total music playback without ANC compared to 34 hours in the older model.
The standalone battery life has also been improved from 5.7 hours to 6.3 hours without ANC. It also has fast charge that can deliver up to 8 hours on a 10-minute charge. It still has Qi wireless charging up to 2.5W and can reverse-charge on compatible devices like the Nothing Phone (1).
Nothing ear (2) specifications
- 11.6mm dynamic driver, dual chamber design
- Bluetooth 5.3, AAC, SBC, LHDC 5.0 codecs, Hi-Res audio, compatible with Android 5.1 and later and iOS 11 and later, Google Fast Pair, Microsoft Swift Pair, Dual Connection
- Low Lag Mode (Automatically enabled in Phone (1) can be enabled from app for others)
- Up to 40db Personalised ANC, Environment Adaptive ANC, Frequency range: 5000Hz
- Smart Adaptive Noise cancellation with 4 modes (High, Mid, Low and Adaptive), Transparency mode
- Clear Voice Technology for call noise cancellation with 3-mics, improved wind noise resistance
- Press controls for play/pause, skip forward, skip back, answer/hang up calls, reject calls, switch between Active Noise Cancellation and Transparency Mode, launch assistant, control volume
- Water-resistant (IP54 for buds, IP55 for case)
- Dimensions Earbud: 29.4×21.5x 23.5mm;Charging box: 55.5×55.5×22mm
- Weight: Earbud: 4.5g; Charging box: 51.9 g
- 33mAh battery in buds offers up to 6.3 hours (without ANC) / 4 hours (with ANC) music playback, 36h (without ANC) / 22.5h (with ANC) with 485mAh charging case, Qi wireless charging up to 2.5W
- Fast charging– 10 mins for 8 hours (without ANC)
Price and Availability
The Nothing Ear (2) is priced at Rs. 9,999 in India and £129 / $149 globally. It will be available from Flipkart and Myntra online as well as select offline stores starting 28th March at 12 noon.
Commenting on the launch, Carl Pei, CEO and Co-founder of Nothing, said:
We are excited to introduce Ear (2) as a significant upgrade to our debut product Ear (1), which sold over 600,000 units. With Ear (2), we’ve re-engineered everything from the ground up and utilised cutting-edge technology to create the ultimate personal listening experience.