Following numerous teasers and even more leaks, Nothing Headphone (1) has officially arrived with its unique design, audio tuned by KEF, and a mid-July release date.
Nothing’s smartphones get most of the attention nowadays, but it was audio that built up the brand initially. Nothing Headphone (1) marks the company’s introduction into over-ear headphones.
In usual Nothing style, the design is a big point of attention here. Nothing says Headphone (1) is “designed to be seen,” with a transparent design along the outside of the earcup and paired with an aluminum frame. The build also has memory foam cushions with an oil-resistant material.
The design is also a bit out of the ordinary in terms of its buttons. Instead of relying on touchpads and generic buttons as is the usual for other over-ear headphones, Nothing is leveraging distinct types of buttons and switches. There’s a single button on the outside of the right earcup that defaults to your voice assistant, or can be customized to other functions. One of those is “Channel Hop,” a feature that swaps between your “recent audio apps.” Meanwhile, a roller button on the side allows you to change the volume by rolling in either direction, or play/pause with a tap, and adjust ANC modes with a long-press. Below that is a paddle for skipping tracks, answering calls, or seeking in the track with a long-press. Finally, there’s a switch at the bottom for on/off.
Nothing claims 35 hours of listening time with ANC turned on, with charging via USB-C. With ANC turned off, you can hit up to 80 hours. You’ll also get Fast Pair on Android and Swift Pair on Windows. In terms of the audio hardware, Headphone (1) touts 40mm drivers with 20-40KHz of frequency response. ANC can handle up to 42db and the headphones themselves weigh 329g.
Controls are handled through the Nothing X app including a full 8-band EQ. KEF powers the audio tuning, a departure from Nothing’s earbuds. Nothing says regarding the partnership:
Headphone (1) is the first product born from Nothing’s partnership with KEF – an audio pioneer with over 60 years of expertise in high-fidelity sound. Leveraging KEF’s advanced acoustic engineering and proprietary tuning tools, the custom-built 40 mm dynamic driver delivers rich, natural audio with deep bass, detailed mids, and crisp treble across all modes, including ANC, Transparency, and Spatial Audio.
Pricing on Nothing Headphone (1) will land at £299 / $299 / €299. Pre-orders start on July 4 via Nothing’s website, with units shipping starting on July 15.
We’ve got a review coming up later this week. What do you think of Nothing Headphone (1) so far?
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