Nothing Headphone (a) Review: Better Value Than Expected
My Nothing Headphone (a) review after a month is pretty simple: these are really solid over-ear headphones if you care about unique design, proper physical controls, and class-leading battery life. They are not the most comfortable headphones I have used, and they do not replace my Sennheiser Momentum 4s, but if I were buying fresh and wanted to save a little cash, they would be a really compelling option.
The physical controls are the biggest everyday win
The design is a serious selling point here. I know looks are not the most important part of a pair of headphones, but I also think design matters more than people give it credit for. Nothing has already made a more budget-friendly over-ear option with the CMF Headphone Pros, but those look much more generic. The Nothing Headphone (a) carries over that striking Nothing design language, and that gives it a lot more character.
The bigger practical win is the return of proper physical switches. If you struggle to remember all the different swipe and tap gestures that every earbud and headphone brand seems to use, these controls are just better. There is a physical toggle for power, a paddle for skipping forward or backward, and a roller for volume. Pressing the roller plays or pauses, while a long press toggles between noise cancellation and transparency mode.
The only control I found slightly awkward is the Bluetooth pairing button because it sits fairly flush inside the headphone. Honestly, that is probably fine, because it also means I am less likely to accidentally press it. Everything else feels seriously incredible, and the physical controls give the Nothing Headphone (a) a real edge over a lot of the competition.
Comfort is good enough for travel, but not the best
I used the Nothing Headphone (a) as my only pair of over-ear headphones for the past month, including a 25-hour flight from Australia to London and the whole flight back. On the first leg over to the UK, I wore them for about 8 hours straight and had no real problems. So no, they are not painful after long sessions.
That said, they can feel a little heavier on the head than some other over-ear headphones. They also have the same general comfort issue I noticed with Nothing’s flagship headphones: they are fine for extended use, but they are not the most comfortable option if you plan to wear headphones for really long sessions all the time.
There is also one sweaty-person warning. If you are a bit of a sweater like I am, the ear cups are not the best at hiding it. After long periods of use, I sometimes took them off, looked at the ear cups, and immediately felt like hiding them from everyone around me.
Battery life is a huge selling point, partly because features are missing
Battery life is one of the most interesting reasons to look at the Nothing Headphone (a). It is much, much better than the battery life on Nothing’s flagship headphones, and I would call it class-leading based on my time with them.
The reason is not just a noticeably bigger battery, because the battery is not that much bigger. Part of it comes from an updated Bluetooth chip with slightly more efficient power management, but the bigger factor is probably what the Nothing Headphone (a) does not include. There is no proper spatial audio or head tracking, and the audio processing chain is simpler.
That trade-off actually works for me. If you care about spatial audio, head tracking, and the more advanced features from the flagship headphones, these probably are not for you. If those extras do not bother you, you get the benefit that matters every day: very, very good battery life.
Sound quality is very good, just not quite flagship level
I had a funny moment chatting with Nothing CEO Carl Pei during the launch of these headphones, because even he said the Nothing Headphone (a) does not sound quite as good as the flagship model, at least in his opinion. I found that honesty pretty refreshing, and I think it is a fair description.
To my non-audiophile ear, the Nothing Headphone (a) still sounds very, very good. It is definitely not quite as premium sounding as the flagship headphones, but some people might actually prefer the way these are tuned straight out of the box.
Nothing also includes equalizer options inside the Nothing X app. You can use simple or advanced controls, so if the out-of-box tuning is not your thing, there is room to fine-tune the sound to your liking. Personally, I have been really happy with the sound quality.
Noise cancellation is strong on planes, weaker with voices
The noise cancellation is really solid for this price point. The Nothing Headphone (a) is especially good at cutting out low-frequency noise, probably helped by the seal from the ear cups and some solid noise cancellation tech. On the long-haul flights to and from the UK, they were tremendous, and they also did really well on a 4-hour train ride from Edinburgh to London.
The main trade-off is higher-frequency sound. People’s voices still leak through a little bit, so these are not perfect if that is the kind of noise you are trying to block. Transparency mode is also pretty solid. It is not as good as what you get from higher-end headphones, but for the price, it does a decent enough job.
Nothing Headphone (a) vs Sennheiser Momentum 4
The clearest comparison for me is against my Sennheiser Momentum 4 over-ear headphones, because those are the headphones I have been using for a couple of years. The Nothing Headphone (a) does some things better, but the Sennheisers still win in the areas that matter most to me personally.
| Area | Nothing Headphone (a) | Sennheiser Momentum 4 |
|---|---|---|
| Battery life | Much better battery life | Not as strong by comparison |
| Comfort | Good, but a little heavier on the head | Slightly more comfortable to my ears |
| Audio quality | Very good to my non-audiophile ear | Slightly better audio quality |
| Controls | Physical controls are a big win | Touch gestures are something I really do not like |
Will the Nothing Headphone (a) replace my Sennheiser Momentum 4s? No, probably not. The Sennheisers are a little more comfortable to my ears and have slightly better audio quality. But I far prefer the physical controls on the Nothing Headphone (a), and the battery life is much better.
If I didn't own either of these and was looking to save a little cash, then the headphone A's are a really, really compelling option.
— Sam BeckmanFrom Sam Beckman
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