Nothing Ear (2)

Cool minimalist design Active Noise Cancellation Wireless charging Personalization features work well

Battery life falls behind the competition Harsh at high volume

“The Nothing Ear 2 have a fantastic design, and several personalization features that make a real difference to the sound, all for a reasonable price. The battery life lags behind, though.”

Bright, immediate sound ; Distinctive, eye-catching design ; Clever, easy-to-use app

Overly harsh upper ranges ; Lacking in subtle detail ; Rhythmic drive could be better

The Ear (2) wireless earbuds are a game effort but struggle to compete at this level when it comes to delivering really great sonic performance

Transparent mode which actually works ; Cool Design ; Brilliant app with powerful sound sculpting ; Brilliant ANC

Quirky sound effects on the app

The Nothing Ear (2) builds on the brands' position as a fashionable start-up to offer a genuine knockout product. ANC earbuds don't come more complete than this, with excellent sound quality, a top-notch app interface and great battery life.

Excellent audio performance with robust lows and detailed highs ; Solid noise cancellation for the price ; App offers customizable EQ ; Dust- and water-resistant build ; Case supports wireless charging ; Cool see-through design

Below-average battery life ; Case seems prone to scratches

Nothing's Ear (2) wireless earphones offer good noise cancellation and a detailed sound signature in a supremely stylish design.

Still just as stylish ; Far more balanced sound ; Wireless charging

Hit-or-miss personalization options ; Occasional ANC bugginess ; 50 percent price hike

At $149, the Ear 2 earbuds represent a well-rounded pair of midrange earbuds. They’ve got all the style of the Ear 1s but without their rough edges. The likes of Sony, Apple, and Samsung may still rule the roost when it comes to more premium earbuds,...

Fantastic sound quality ; Powerful personalized ANC ; Battery life improvements ; Easy-to-use app ; Great call quality ; Bluetooth dual connectivity

Design remains divisive ; Exposed matte white stains easily ; No more swipe to change volume

Nothing ear (2) improves nearly everything over the first generation — making these some of the best earbuds you can buy today. The striking transparent design has been tightened up, the battery life has been improved, sound quality takes a huge step...

Good software ; ANC is new and decent ; Transparency mode is good ; Wireless charging supported

Sound is shrill ; Controls are a step back ; Isolation is not great ; Battery life is not great

Engaging, high-resolution sound ; Unique, eye-catching design ; Lots of features and customisation options

Battery life with ANC could be better ; LHDC 5.0 support is limited

Nothing has really upped the ante with the Ear (2). Although the Ear (1) sold well, they lacked the audio chops to truly stand out and were beset by buggy firmware at launch.

Energetic audio with hi-res codec support ; Streamlined software adds lots of customisation ; Smaller case made from higher quality materials

A bit treble-heavy out of the box ; Personalised sound not always an improvement ; Battery life still behind the competition

Delivers the sound quality and noise cancelling we expect for the cash – after some tweaking – while improving on the original in all the right places. And without losing what made it so visually distinctive.

Prominent midrange for great details and clarity ; The Nothing X app fine-tunes the sound for excellent results ; The clean, transparent design is subtle beauty ; New squeeze controls improve interaction

Noise cancellation and transparency mode are not the best ; No Android Spatial Audio ; Case looks cool but boxy design makes it less compact / harder to stow in small pockets