Cheap versus cheaper
Upstart British tech brand Nothing has always specialized in offering tech that won’t break the bank but comes packed to the gills with unique features nonetheless, and it’s now offering its earbuds in cheap and cheaper options in the form of the Nothing Ear and Nothing Ear (a).
The Nothing Ear is actually the third-gen version of Nothing’s flagship series of earbuds – you might as well call them the Nothing Ear (3) since they follow the Nothing Ear (2), but the company has apparently dropped that naming system here. The buds provide some upgrades over their predecessors but are very similar in many ways.
Then there’s the Nothing Ear (a), which are slightly more affordable earbuds. These follow the firm’s push to create more lower-cost options within its gadget arsenal, which we already saw with the Nothing Phone 2a or Nothing Ear (Stick), for instance, but with some features from the top-tier Ear cut alongside the lower price.
Announced together in April 2024, these two sets of earbuds are very similar in a lot of ways, so prospective buyers might not be able to decide which is worth buying. Don’t worry though, I’ve tested both the Nothing Ear and the Nothing Ear (a), and I can help you figure out all the meaningful differences.Nothing Ear vs Nothing Ear (a) price
Of these two earbuds, the Nothing Ear (a) is the cheaper offering, which you may have been able to tell given that (a) is a frequent suffix in tech to signify a budget alternative. The Nothing Ear (a) will cost you $99 / £99 (roughly AU$190) or even less if you find them in sales.
You’ll be paying a little more for the standard Nothing Ear as they retail for $149 / £129 / AU$249, which is roughly how much their predecessors cost too.
By veering into the triple-digit price territory, the Nothing Ear distinguish themselves as belonging to a slightly different price bracket to their (a) siblings – the Nothing Ear (a) could be considered cheap earbuds, among many rivals jostling for the attention of price-conscious buyers. The pricier buds, not so much, though they’re still very competitive for sound and features at that price level.Nothing Ear vs Nothing Ear (a) design
An ocular patdown might not reveal much of a difference between the Nothing Ear and Nothing Ear (a) buds other than the color: the former is black and the latter is yellow (also available in white). But there’s a tiny bit more going on here.
The Nothing Ear (a) are ever so slightly heavier at 4.8g each, which is 0.18g more than their darker counterparts in these images.
