Most over-ear headphones look identical the moment you pull them out of a box, which makes the Nothing Headphones (1) one of the more genuinely interesting products to land in the category in a while.
That visual distinctiveness now comes with a meaningful saving, as the Nothing Headphones (1) are down from £249 to £179, putting a genuinely feature-rich pair of cans within reach for considerably less.
Knock £70 off the striking Nothing Headphones (1) and leave the boring headphone crowd behind
Anyone after a well-specified pair of over-ears will find £179 a fair entry point, especially given the great battery ceiling.
The design is built around a collaboration with KEF, a British audio company with serious hi-fi credentials, and the result is a tuned 40mm dynamic driver that covers a frequency range of 20Hz to 40kHz with Hi-Res Wireless certification for lossless detail over LDAC.
That audio quality holds across wired and wireless listening, since USB-C audio and a 3.5mm jack mean you are not locked into Bluetooth if you would rather route through a proper source for critical listening.
Noise cancellation reaches up to 42dB of attenuation using real-time adaptive processing across six microphones, which adjusts dynamically to your environment rather than applying a fixed level of suppression regardless of what is happening around you.
Those same six microphones pull separate duty on calls, using AI-powered Clear Voice Technology trained on over 28 million real-world scenarios to isolate your voice from background noise in cafes, on streets, or anywhere else that typically makes calls difficult.
Battery life is one of the stronger arguments here, with up to 80 hours of playback available with ANC switched off, or 35 hours with it running, and a five-minute fast charge tops that up to five hours of additional listening when you are short on time.
The Nothing Headphones (1) are IP52-rated for dust and light water resistance, support dual device connection, and weigh 329 grams, which is a reasonable trade-off for a full-size pair with this level of build ambition and tuning pedigree.
Anyone after a well-specified pair of over-ears that actually stand out from the crowd will find £179 a fair entry point, especially given the KEF collaboration and a battery ceiling that most similarly priced rivals cannot match.
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Stephan is the sports journalist for the Maple Grove Report.
