Alongside the launch of its new budget-friendly Phone 4a, Nothing introduced the Ear (3a), an affordable pair of true wireless earbuds priced at $99. Available starting Tuesday, July 7th, these earbuds continue Nothing’s trend of offering playful color options and approachable audio products designed for everyday use.
The Ear (3a) arrives in four finish options—Black, White, Pink and Yellow—giving buyers a chance to choose a style that matches their phone or personal taste. A standout software feature is “Audio Snapshot,” which lets users quickly capture a short audio clip of whatever they’re listening to by pinching both earbuds. This practical tool is useful for recording snippets of online lectures, voice notes, interviews, or other important audio moments without needing a dedicated recorder. In addition to short captures, the Ear (3a) supports direct call and meeting recording for up to two hours, and all recordings are automatically synced to the Nothing X app for playback, editing, sharing, and transcription.
On the audio hardware side, Nothing has equipped the Ear (3a) with a 12mm dynamic driver that uses a lightweight, aerospace-inspired PMI diaphragm. The earbuds carry Hi-Res Audio Wireless certification and support the LDAC codec, which enables higher-bandwidth Bluetooth streaming on compatible devices. For listeners who prefer fine-grained tuning, the Nothing X app offers an 8-band Advanced EQ so you can sculpt the sound signature to match genres like pop, hip-hop, classical, or podcasts. Static Spatial Audio is also included to widen stereo mixes and create a more immersive listening experience for movies, games, and spatially mixed tracks.
Noise control features are robust for the price. The Ear (3a) offers up to 45 dB of Wideband Active Noise Cancellation (ANC) to help reduce background noise during commutes, flights, or noisy workdays. Transparency Mode lets outside sound in when you need to hear your surroundings, and a triple-microphone array in each bud aims to improve voice clarity for calls and recordings. Battery life is competitive: you can expect up to 10 hours of continuous playback from the earbuds with ANC disabled, and the charging case provides additional recharges for up to 42 hours of total listening time when you include the case’s battery.
Beyond hardware and app features, the Ear (3a) focuses on convenience. The integrated audio capture and recording workflows make it easy to save conversations, lectures, and voice memos directly to your phone without juggling multiple apps. Automatic syncing, in-app editing, and transcription tools streamline the process of turning recorded audio into searchable text, which is especially useful for students, journalists, and professionals who need accurate notes from meetings or interviews.
For those shopping on a budget but seeking modern features, the Ear (3a) offers a compelling mix: engaging design choices, coded support for high-resolution wireless audio, flexible EQ and spatial processing, serious ANC performance, multi-microphone call quality, and practical recording tools tied into the Nothing X companion app. At $99, the Ear (3a) aims to deliver balanced sound quality and convenient features typically found in higher-priced models, making it an attractive option for everyday listeners and on-the-go users alike.