Hi Everyone! This is my first tryout here on the heyup community. First of all I want to thanks Heyup for sending me this pair of true wireless earbuds. These will be my first impressions.
UNBOXING EXPERIENCE
The Ear (stick) arrive in a neat and very premium looking packaging. It’s very aestethically pleasing and it’s a nice unboxing experience. Only thing I don’t like is the fact that in order to open the box you have to “destroy” it.
The content is simple and straightforward: the buds in their sweet rotating case, a usb-c charging cable and a couple of manuals, one of them has a QR code that redirects you to the App Store/Play Store to download their Nothing X app to manage the buds.
Only thing I didn’t like was that, to open the box, you have to destroy it, as shown in the unboxing video:
DESIGN
These Ear (stick) are gorgeous. Incredible industrial design, store inside a “lipstick-like case” that opens and closes a very fidgety way, and the buds themselves look amazing. I just have to see how is the transparent plastic gonna hold up (I’m scared of scratches and dings). This is THE real selling point of this product, and maybe the real reason you should even consider it, since there’s nothing (no pun intended, maybe…) like this in the market.
BATTERY LIFE
Battery life is (almost) as promised: I managed to get 6,5 hours of battery life on a single charge (even though in calls they drain faster), and the case charges them I’d say 2-3 times. The case and buds themselves charge very fast through USB-C, so no complains there.
SOUND QUALITY
Nothing declares the (stick) pack a 12,6 mm dynamic drivers, and support for SBC and AAC audio codecs. Despite the amazing promises made by the manufacturer (the most advanced , these earphones sound very average.
The fit, at least in my ears, is terrible. The buds are too big for my ear canal, so when i’m in silent environments i can hear the music and the sound quality is fine, although a bit bass-lacking, which i guess is in part normal considering the style of the buds, but also is in part a consequence of the terrible fit. The problem comes when i’m outside, in loud environments, like when walking on the street or on public transportation: i can’t hear anything without turning the volume to the max.
I don’t think i can judge sound quality because of this fit problem, but if i had to i’d say they sound a bit tinny, the highs are a bit harsh and the lows are a bit missing, but overall they don’t sound that bad. I just wish i could really experience them as intended.
Comparing them to the Nothing ear (1) which i listened side by side, the first pair of earbuds made by Nothing win for sure: they actually fit my ears pretty well with medium sized tips, which isolate pretty good even with no active noise cancellation toggled on. And then, in loud environments the ANC feature of the Ear (1)s really elevates them as the better choice, at least in the sound quality department.
CALL QUALITY
Nothing says this pair of earbuds packs 3 microphone per bud, an enhancement compared to the only microphone per bud present on the Nothing ear (1). In call everyone told me they’d hear me fine, no problem, even in loud or windy environments, so no complain here. Probably on par with the other competitors in this price range, but also pretty on par with the Nothing ear (1) call experience.
APP AND UX
The Nothing X app is very well made, available for both iOS and Android. I had no problems connecting the buds my phone and configuring them. The controls of the Ear (stick) earphones are fantastic and way better than the competition (which often uses touch controls) since they mimick the control scheme of the Airpods Pro, in my opinion the most realiable controls in the market. You have to actually squeeze the stem of the bud:
single squeeze: play/pause or answering phone calls
double squeeze: next track or declining phone calls
triple squeeze: previous track
squeeze and hold: lowers (sx) or highers (dx) the volume
The controls are actually kind of customizable from the app, but the default ones are pretty well suited already.
In the app is also available a section with simple EQ settings which are ok for casual users but may be a little bit restricting for experienced users. Also notable is the find my earbuds feature, which makes the buds chirp, and and option geared toward gamers to reduce latency.
Being an iPhone user i wasn’t able to try the quick pair function, but as i already said, the pairing was painless, even though not as seamless as Airpods pairing (rightly marketed by Apple as “magic”).
VALUE PROPOSITION
For 119 euros, i’d say these earbuds are a bit on the expensive side. Apple Airpods (2nd gen), for roughly the same price, sound better in my opinion, have better features and integration (at least with apple devices, which are my choice) and their case, despite being less gimmicky and aesthetically pleasing, is way smaller and comfortable to carry. I like these earbuds, i really like the concept, but, a part from the fact they don’t fit my ears, i think they’re a bit overpriced and underdeliver on the promises made by the manufacturer. I’m a huge fan of the Nothing ear (1) though.
My rating is ⅗: a good product but not one I’d recommend consider the enormous market of true wireless earbuds that exists. Only recommended if your main objective is to have the best looking buds out there, but at this point I’d say spend a little bit more and go for the ANC-capable Nothing Ear (1).
