Are Nothing Ear 1 the Budget AirPods Pro You've Been Looking For?

Nothing Ear 1 truly wireless stereo (TWS) earbuds launched last week as the first device from the newly venture created by OnePlus Co-Founder Carl Pei. The earbuds offer a series of distinctive features to attract consumers. One of them is obviously the design that is largely transparent. The Nothing Ear 1 price in India is also something that is quite competitive against other TWS earbuds that offer a similar list of features and specifications. The company essentially aims to take on Apple's AirPods Pro with the Ear 1 earbuds. But how well is it able to do that?

On this week's episode of Gadgets 360 podcast Orbital, host Akhil Arora speaks with our in-house audio expert Ali Pardiwala, along with MySmartPrice Editor-in-Chief Ershad Kaleebullah and Headphone Zone Founder and CEO Raghav Somani, to discuss the Nothing Ear 1 in detail and how they fit into India's TWS market.

Nothing was launched earlier this year, just months after Carl Pei left OnePlus. However, instead of continuing the journey that Pei left at his Chinese company, the London-based startup chose TWS earbuds as its first product category and unveiled the Ear 1 as the very first offering in that category.

Before the official announcement, Nothing did a lot to create hype for the Ear 1 earbuds — just like how OnePlus initially gained popularity among enthusiasts. Hyping the product was, however, not the only thing that Pei's team did. It also brought the unique transparent design in collaboration with Swedish audio startup Teenage Engineering. The firm also partnered with Flipkart specifically for the Indian market to cut down its logistics and variable expenses to some extent and bring the Ear 1 earbuds at a special pricing of Rs. 5,999. It is significantly lower than the global price that is set at GBP 99 (roughly Rs. 10,200).

Nothing Ear 1 True Wireless Earphones First Impressions: Something Out Of Nothing​

The Ear 1 also come with features including active noise cancellation (ANC) and wireless charging (in addition to regular wired charging) to deliver a full-fledged TWS earbud experience. Although the pricing of the Ear 1 brings it into a crowded segment that has options from companies such as Anker Soundcore, Realme, and Oppo, Nothing is also aiming at Apple's premium AirPods Pro that are currently priced at Rs. 24,999 — you can get them at around Rs. 18,000–20,000 during an online sale, though.

We discuss how well the Nothing Ear 1 fare against the competition and whether they can truly fight the AirPods Pro and its ilk. We also talk about things like the sound experience and the battery life. And that takes us into the biggest concern with TWS earbuds: their tiny (custom-made) batteries reduce their lifespan and contribute to e-waste, a growing problem for the world today.

So, without further ado, hit the play button on the Spotify player embedded above to listen to our discussion.

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