Nothing headphones (1) Review: a star value, but not the sound I expected

At this point, nothing does not get eyes for its smartphones, but it is the audio that puts this brand on the map. Over time, nothing has created a reputation for the supply of an excellent value in its audio products and a rocky solid sound quality at the same time. The Nothing Ear series swept away my expectations last year, so I was thrilled to hear that the company was working on a pair of headphones for over-ear. After hours of listening, however, I have contrasting feelings on anything of the headphones (1), since they do not provide the same charm as the earphones.

The charm of nothing and Orero and Nothing (a) was largely in a combination of value – with prices starting alone $ 99 – and audio quality, together with a solid hardware and software to support everything.

With No headphones (1)Let’s start with the hardware.

Nothing design here is unique, not to mention anything else. The partially square and partially rounded design emanates the cassette vibrations, which I prefer. His a look at At the beginning, but it grew up with me over time. I’m not yet sure I prefer it on more traditional design such as Sony’s XM series, Bose or others headphones, but it is unique at least in a good way. Nothing had a vision and creates a product that stands out and adapts to their usual aesthetic, and I can at least applaud in this.

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I think the design is also much submissive in its black variant. The white option that I used mainly seems beautiful and stands out more, but the design seems rather docile in black.

The hardware itself is also very well built despite not using most Premium materials. The shiny portion is plastic and the metal frame does not have the expected weight. The latter part is good news, because it is a couple of comfortable headphones over time. Both in wearing headphones (1) through a working day and on a transatlantic flight, they remain at ease for hours at a time. They only became uncomfortable for me about 7 hours in a 9 -hour flight home from the London launch event, but even then I only needed to take a break of 10 minutes and I was fine. There is very little, if necessary, the effort of the ear thanks to the cups of memory foam and the band through the top does a good job to maintain the weight. These headphones are decidedly heavier than many others, but the hardware does a good job in hiding it. There is something to say about the sweat you wear these in a warmer environment, but this is my only real complaint to wear them.

By touching the software, the Nothing X app remains quite large. While it has a distinct design, the app works well. It makes it easy to pass between the modalities and transparency, as well as the change of sound presets. To put it succinctly, there are some Terrible headphones app outside and nothing x is beyond the curve.

That app is mainly necessary for the personalization of the ANC. While you can activate it and turn it off with a long pressure of the roller button-that triggers a frankly terrible sound of someone who breathes if your ear for some horrible-niente x allows you to adjust the strength. And you will surely need it in some cases. The predefined “adaptive” mode works well in most environments, automatically regulating according to the surrounding environment. But in some situations, it is necessary maximum. This is what I found on a flight, since “adaptive” has never been strong enough. “High” is As soon as Enough for a flight, but it is not as strong as some other headphones I have tried. It is more than good enough, but I hoped in a little more. Nothing says that the anch can manage up to 42 dB.

And this leads us to sound quality.

It is a mixture. By default, the sound quality is rather solid overall, but its predefined settings do not seem as balanced as the clear and pleasant sound of the null of the ear, with perhaps just a little too emphasis on the minimum. To be clear, it is not BadOnly what makes nothing of other audio products so good is missing. This was my greatest disappointment in the use of nothing (1): it only loses charm. Why did it happen? The obvious finger to indicate whether the new audio partnership with KEF. This brand is known for high -end audio products, but I cannot help but want that nothing had limited itself to its consolidated sound. By changing this, these do not feel as if they adapted as they should with the rest of the range.

Having said that, joking with EQ settings can do a lot here. The incorporated presets do not make much to compensate for the underlying point, but Max Weinbach, occasional 9to5 Collaborator, he found a preset that sounds great. By adding a victory to the software column, you can easily share the personalized EQ presets with a QR code. After going to these new settings, I became increasingly fond of headphones (1).

The other thing with which I was quite enthusiastic is the battery life. Nothing promises 35 hours of listening with the ancho, a figure that seems realistic since even my 9 -hour flight mentioned previously has just made dents in the completely charged battery. What is most impressive is the 80 -hour figure for when you are not using the ANC. This is well above the sector standard. Quick recharge is also really fast, with my initial listening days that are recharged in about 15 minutes before my trip.

And this leads us to value.

No headphones (1) retail for $ 299, putting them WELL Under that of AirPods Max and even Sony Wh-1000xm6. And while I still have contrasting feelings for sound quality, they continue to control a ton of boxes for their price.

It is also important to remember that this is only the first generation. If nothing has shown anything through its history of the product, it is that the company learns many lessons over time and I can’t wait to see how nothing appears (2). In the meantime, however, nothing of the headphones (1) is a first solid step.

Nothing of headphones (1) Preordains are open starting today with the units that send on July 15th.

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