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Open wireless earbuds have become a hot trend. Ideally, you can hear everything around you without compromising sound quality (as you might with lower-end buds like basic AirPods) or relying on battery-draining transparency modes. You can talk to a friend at the gym without removing an earbud and pay attention to nearby traffic during a morning run.
The Nothing Ear Open I’ll review potentially hits a sweet spot in this rapidly growing niche. For $149, you should get quality audio in a design that’s as much a fashion statement as a listening companion. But is it worth buying this over other open designs, let alone conventional earbuds? Yes, if you’re the right kind of listener.
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Nothing Ear Open Design: Beautiful But Quirky
Nothing hasn’t strayed from its signature look. The Ear Open has transparent plastic that showcases the technology inside and a monochromatic appearance aside from the red dot on the right earbud. If you like the vibe of the Phone 2a Plus or virtually anything else in Nothing’s lineup, you’ll love this. It certainly beats the generic all-white of the AirPods or even the unexciting designs of more direct competition like the Sony LinkBuds or Bose’s Ultra Open Earbuds.
The over-ear hooks are a welcome addition in a category where they’re not often present. The Ear Open was relentlessly stable in my ears, even when I was running at full tilt. And they’re surprisingly comfortable, both due to the angle of the buds themselves as well as the weighted hook ends where the batteries likely sit. I don’t agree with Nothing chief Carl Pei’s claim that you won’t even notice them — you definitely will — but you can wear them for hours on end, and the IP54 water and dust resistance was reassuring during a rainy UK trip.
Having said this, the fixed hook position can cause the Nothing Ear Open pain if your ears don’t cooperate. I found the right earpiece wouldn’t stay as close to my ear canal as the left one. Turning up the volume largely solved this problem, although that also occasionally affected the audio quality. In the future, I’d love it if Nothing could put the hook on a swivel so that it could accommodate more ear shapes.
You pinch the right earbud in different ways to control audio. By default, a single squeeze pauses; double- and triple-squeezes skip forward and back; you raise or lower volume by pinching and then holding a finger on the respective side of the bud. This was easy to get used to, although I found it too easy to activate while adjusting the fit. You must be careful grabbing the earbud if you don’t want to stop playback inadvertently.
The charging case produces mixed feelings. It’s wonderfully easy to put the earbuds in or take them out, and the body is comparatively slim at 0.74in thick. However, the case is also incredibly long, with both buds placed lengthwise. There’s simply no way you’ll slip it into a coin pocket, and it could get crowded if you put it in a regular pocket alongside your phone or wallet. I would rather have the buds placed side-by-side, like with the PowerBeats Pro.
Sound Quality: How Do the Nothing Ear Open Perform?
I’ll set expectations right away for the audio portion of the review: the Nothing Ear Open isn’t for everyone. You have to be willing to let the outside world intrude on your listening experience, and that could be a deal-breaker if you insist on hearing the nuances of every song.
If that doesn’t deter you, though, there’s a lot to enjoy. To start, the bass is surprisingly strong for a $149 set of open wireless earbuds; Nothing chalks that up to a custom diaphragm, a stepped internal design, and a titanium coating. It’s not Beats-level powerful, but you might enjoy a thoughtful dance track like Nicky Elisabeth’s “Memories” or the drum-and-bass assault of Danny Byrd’s “Let U Know.” These designs sometimes neuter the low end, so it’s good to see Nothing address those concerns.
With higher frequencies and subtler notes, it’s a tougher call. I could hear some of the finer details of classical music or the modern jazz of Kamasi Washington. Still, the Ear Open really isn’t well-suited to violin concertos or other treble-rich material. The mid-range is decidedly better, although ramping up the volume in a loud environment puts a clear strain on the earbuds.
Noise Cancellation Issues in Nothing Ear Open
Call quality is unexceptional, but that’s not why you’re buying these earbuds in the first place.
You’re buying the Ear Open for that hear-everything effect, and in the right circumstances, it can be blissful. I had the opportunity to walk around Bristol, England, while listening to some of the artists that defined its electronic music scene, like Massive Attack, Portishead, and Roni Size. It was surreal to literally hear the sounds of Bristol alongside the tunes.
Practically speaking, it also does wonders for situational awareness and simply being present. I can tell when a car behind me is approaching the intersection ahead of me or answer someone who insists on asking a question while my earbuds are on. Nothing’s offering might be your pick if you absolutely need to hear a coworker or don’t want to hold one of your earbuds while you’re talking to a cashier.
There are limits, just as there are with other open earbuds. The Nothing Ear Open isn’t suited to flights. You can hear the aircrew ask if you’d like a snack, but you’ll also hear the droning engines overpowering some of your music. I also find that bustling city streets can be too much between the roaring cars and pedestrian chatter. These are for moderate to quiet environments where you can still hear yourself think.
Nothing Ear Open Battery Life
Nothing estimates eight hours of playback with the Ear Open and 30 hours when you include the charging case. That’s less than the respective 8.5 hours and 40.5 hours claimed for the conventional Ear but ahead of the eight hours and 14 hours billed for Sony’s pricier LinkBuds Open.
| Product | Playback Time (Earbuds Only) | Playback Time (With Charging Case) |
|---|---|---|
| Nothing Ear Open | 8 hours | 30 hours |
| Nothing Ear (Conventional) | 8.5 hours | 40.5 hours |
| Sony LinkBuds Open | 8 hours | 14 hours |
The net result is a set of open earbuds where battery life is rarely a practical concern. I listened to music and podcasts through entire seven-hour flights from Toronto to London and back. I only had to recharge the case every few days. There’s only charging over USB-C, not wireless, but that’s expected in this price class. Just know that getting regular earbuds with wireless charging cases doesn’t cost much more, such as Apple’s $179 AirPods 4 with ANC and Bose’s similarly priced QuietComfort Earbuds.
Connectivity and Controls in Nothing Ear Open
The connectivity is mostly standard. Bluetooth 5.3 and LE connect to two devices at a time, like your phone and laptop.
Google Fast Pair and Microsoft Swift Pair help you get setup quickly with Android and Windows devices (it’s still easy to set up with Apple products), and there’s a way to find lost earbuds.
There is one standout feature: if you happen to have a Nothing or CMF smartphone, you can talk to OpenAI’s ChatGPT without reaching for your handset first. It’s clever and certainly a better value than buying a Humane AI Pin or Rabbit R1. I just didn’t find myself inspired to use it very often.
Nothing X App: Enhancing the Earbud Experience
The Nothing X app is more appealing. You use it to set up the Ear Open on iPhones and iPads, and to manage the earbuds on both Android and iOS. It’s cleanly laid out and, of course, stylish. You can remap those finicky pinch controls if they feel counterintuitive.
More importantly, you have a surprising amount of audio control for a $149 set of earbuds. There’s a simple equalizer (EQ) that uses both a circle pad and presets (like “balanced” and “more bass”), but there’s also an advanced eight-band EQ that lets you dial in very exacting adjustments. You can even share profiles with fellow Ear Open listeners, so you don’t have to spend time fine-tuning the sound for your favorite genre. I didn’t find much need to venture beyond the simple EQ, but I appreciated having an option you don’t get with some more expensive alternatives.
Price and Value: Are the Nothing Ear Open Worth the Cost?
At the $149 price point, my money’s with Nothing. I’m willing to live with the control and fit problems, given the good overall sound quality, strong battery life, and well-done software. And the Ear Open has something the others usually don’t: character. While I wouldn’t call these buds fashion items, they look and feel special. You’ll still have to like letting the outside world in, but if you do, you’ll be pleased.
Final Verdict: Should You Buy the Nothing Ear Open?
These won’t be the best open wireless earbuds you can get. That nod generally goes to the Bose Ultra Open Earbuds, widely praised for their sound quality and intelligent design — at a premium price.
You might also want to look at the Shokz OpenFit, which isn’t as capable as Nothing’s option (there’s no multi-device connection, for example) but still sounds good and is sometimes on sale for less.
Sony had only just introduced the LinkBuds Open at the time of this review, so I couldn’t say how they compare in terms of quality. They’re more expensive at $200, and the original LinkBuds were underwhelming in terms of their sound quality and not-so-stellar fit. However, Sony is known for relentless improvement, and the Open is pitched as more comfortable than its predecessor.
