The Nothing Ear (2) earplugs have been improved on many points compared to the first version, such as a new design, new chipset and stronger magnets. The English Nothing wants to compete with the higher segment.
Adam Munsterman
The Nothing Ear (2) earplugs are the successor to the Nothing Ear Sticks that saw the light of day in August 2021. The set comes in a nice transparent plastic box with a built-in battery for up to 36 hours of listening pleasure. Charging is via a USB-C cable of 30 cm or wirelessly via Qi. The earbuds charge in the case via the contacts. The white push button is to activate Bluetooth 5.3, now with two-point connection. The earplugs are white with a silicone tip. The control stem has a semi-transparent design with black accents.
Improvements
Supplier Nothing reports a number of technical improvements including a new chipset, stronger magnets and a larger air-space for the 11.6mm drivers. All of this should result in improved ANC (noise reduction) functionality, which has had its microphones relocated, and which now operates over a wider and flatter frequency range and up to 40dB of rejection. In addition, the Transparency mode is more linear and closer to the original source signal. Music is flatter and less aggressive. The sound can, if desired, be adjusted to your own taste via a 3-band equalizer. For hi-res enthusiasts, the LHDC codec has been added in addition to the SBC and AAC codec.
Wearing comfort
The earbuds are light at 4.5 grams and can be fitted with three sizes of silicone tips. On the left we see a white dot and on the right a red dot. They fit well in the ears and thus close out a lot of external noise. They do not fall out when shaking the head violently.
Service
The earplugs work in combination with the Nothing app and the buttons on the stems and are IP54 dust and waterproof. Squeezing the side of the stem executes the command as defined in the app. You get a click as an audible feedback per squeeze. The feedback after changing ANC/Transparency/Off are sounds that you first have to learn to recognize. Personal tests are available for adjustment of ANC and hearing on which the display is optimized.
Listening test
The listening test gives surprisingly good results with a balanced and clear reproduction. Compared to other top models around 300 euros, the sound sounds somewhat forcefully clear and therefore cooler, but with a bit more punch. The ANC works well as well as the Transparent and Phone modes. Nothing has listened carefully to the wishes of the 1st generation users. We have not yet been able to activate and test the LHDC codec on our test phones (Samsung Galaxy and iPhone). So it remains to be seen whether this hi-res codec is a good choice.
Conclusion
With this new generation of earplugs and the competitive MSRP, Nothing takes another step up to the top.
Nothing Ear (2) earplugs
Price: € 149,-
Pros
+ beautiful appearance
+ good price-performance ratio
Negatives
– no volume adjustment on the caps
– Limited availability of LHDC codec
