Headphones are all about sound (duh!), which is almost always accompanied by sleekness. Because sleekness is the other ‘s’ word that sells. However, every once in a while, a headphone with a polarizing design surface (remember the Movengine Aircore OWH and the NVM One? Yeah, like those). The Nothing Headphone (1) is one such polarizing pair. The design is, well, not for everyone, TBH.
Where most headphones opt for the integrated, one-piece look for the earcups, Nothing does the opposite. Each earcup clearly has two parts: a large rectangular piece with rounded edges, and an oval section featuring Nothing’s trademark transparent aesthetic. The look is nothing short of jarring. There’s just too much going on there. Like I said, it’s not for everyone. But who knows—it may grow on you eventually. Maybe?
The transparent shell is every bit geeky; it lets you see the acoustic chambers and screws. It’s so geeky, it feels analog. And analog it is, as far as controls go. Nothing ditched touch-sensitive gestures (it can’t really implement them anyway with the transparent shell) and opted instead for a textured scroll wheel for volume control, a paddle switch for ANC and sound modes, and a button for quick actions.
Under the hood, Nothing’s first over-the-ear headphones get serious with KEF co-engineered 40 mm drivers. The legendary British audio company also optimized the acoustic chambers and refined the software algorithms. All told, Headphone (1) promises natural balance, deep bass, and crisp treble—you know, to reproduce audio “as the artist intended.”
The headphone is equipped with batteries that last up to 80 hours per charge. It comes in a choice of white or black colorways and is available for pre-order starting today for US$299.
Images: Nothing.
