Nothing

Nothing Ear (stick) launch at $99 w/ Fast Pair, 7-hour battery, no ANC

Damien Wilde | Oct 26 2022 - 7:30 am PT

After launching the Nothing Phone (1) in mid-July, Carl Pei’s latest venture has now officially released the Ear (stick) Bluetooth earbuds priced at $99.

Acting as the understudy to the Ear (1) earbuds released last year, the Ear (stick) earbuds are an entry-level model that offers some design changes and impressive battery life metrics. Nothing has ditched the silicone tip seal that was found on the Ear (1) for an AirPod-like “half in-ear” design that sits in your ear this time around. Each earbud weighs in at just 4.4g.

This may increase sound leakage, but new 12.6mm custom dynamic drivers should help drive sound within the new form factor. Three microphones are found within each Ear (stick) earbud that can filter out background noise when on calls. Sadly, Nothing’s latest Bluetooth earbuds do not include ANC (active noise cancellation). That is only present on the original Ear (1), which recently received a price hike to $149.

Nothing Ear (stick) come in a new cylindrical charge case that can be twisted to open and access each earbud. However, this new design means that Qi wireless charging is not present on the latest product. Instead, USB-C charging is the only method of topping up. Just 10 minutes of charging is said to provide two hours of listening. The earbuds are rated at seven hours – and with the case provided, a further 22 hours with a full charge.

To coincide with the launch of the Ear (stick), the Nothing Ear (1) app is getting rebranded to “Nothing X” and offers new features such as a customizable EQ, Bass Lock, Low lag gaming mode, plus more. On Phone (1) devices, you will be able to access these features via a directly integrated Quick Settings toggle. Google Fast Pair is also supported for seamless connectivity with your Android smartphone.

Open sales for Ear (stick) start at 5:30 a.m. EDT / 2:30 a.m. PDT on November 4, 2022, across 40+ countries, including the USA, Canada, and the UK, at nothing.tech and select retailers, including Farfetch. Early adopters of previous Nothing products including Ear (1) and Phone (1) are being provided with 10% off the purchase of the latest product with a unique code from November 4 to November 30.

Nothing is backed by GV (formerly Google Ventures) and has partnerships with chipmaker Qualcomm, which led to a unique version of the Snapdragon 778G+ for the Phone (1).