Nothing Ear Stick review: what’s the difference with the Ear?

Over the past few weeks we’ve had the pleasure of getting started with the new Nothing Ear Stick. They sound fantastic, especially compared to the Nothing Ear 1’s, but WANT editor Dennis Mons now has doubts about the shape of his (big) ears.

Nothing Technology Limited is a curious and intriguing brand. In 2021, CEO Carl Pei announced that he would stand on his own two feet after co-founding smartphone brand OnePlus. And it was immediately clear: Nothing is really a different animal than the rest.

Nothing Ear 1 vs Nothing Ear Stick

Anyway, it caught my attention. I was therefore one of the first to buy the original Nothing Ear 1s for only 99 euros (later they became more expensive). I was extremely happy with those in-ears, despite some drawbacks.

The good thing was that they sounded excellent for the price, the see-through design of the caps and case was intriguing, and they were damn comfortable. That’s why my interest was also piqued by the company’s newest product: the Nothing Ear Stick.

The lipstick earplugs from Nothing

The first thing that stands out is the (again) intriguing design of the Nothing Ear Stick. It is a cylinder that rotates open to get to the caps. It also has a red detail around the USB-C connection, and it feels premium. An absolutely unique design.

The unfortunate thing about the case, however, is that it doesn’t fit very easily in the watch pocket of your jeans (a bit of an unwritten rule). In addition, dirt is not easy to remove if you accidentally screw it into the cylinder.

Furthermore, the earplugs look remarkably the same as the first Ear. The protrusions, as I call it, are a bit longer. But that has a function: Nothing has improved touch controls more compared to the Ear 1, which sometimes falter.

In fact, they went on a break every time I ate something, despite the fact that I had touch control turned off. That is no longer the case with the Stick and touch controls can be set again in the accompanying app.

But how do they sound?

In short: very impressive for earplugs in this price range (they cost 119 euros) with a lot of bass and balanced highs, treble and mids. This is also partly due to the fact that the drivers have been improved compared to the first Ear.

The Stick also has a so-called on-ear design, which means that you don’t stuff caps in your ears, but they rest in your ear. That gives a much more spacious, full sound. I also use open back on ears from Teufel (Cage) and that gives sound a different dimension. It’s great that Nothing approaches that with the Stick.

That sound can, by the way, be set in the Nothing X app, as with the first Ear. There you will find information about the headset, for example, and you can adjust your own equalizer settings. All I can say is that this works flawlessly.

Weird ears for the Nothing Ear Stick

Here comes the biggest drawback (in my case): I have weird ears? Unlike the Ear 1’s, the Stick has replaceable rubber caps. So if they don’t sit right, you’re out of luck. I was constantly walking around with the feeling that they would fall out of my flappies, so exercising with them was not an option for me. (Actually, a great excuse not to exercise, but whatever.)

In addition, the on-ear design is rather ‘bleed’-sensitive. If you are on the train with it and you are blowing some music, there is a good chance that the compartment can also enjoy it. So you can get quite a few looks. On the other hand, they see that you are enjoying very special earplugs.

Another point to point out: the Stick has no noise cancellation or transparency mode. And not an insurmountable fact, and some people like to get something from the outside world.

Still, I think it really should have been optional because the Ear 1s do it so well.

Yet they are my number one choice for a walk, or when using them in the office or at home: they really do sound better than the predecessor. In a busy rush-hour train, however, I still prefer the Ear 1s because they don’t pop out of my ears and have noise cancellation (that’s nice).