Nothing launches Ear (3a) earbuds with onboard storage and Phone (4b) mid-range smartphone
The London-based company expands its affordable lineup with earbuds that can record audio independently and a smartphone that borrows design cues from its pricier siblings.
Nothing has announced two new products aimed at the mid-range market: the Nothing Ear (3a) wireless earbuds and the Nothing Phone (4b) smartphone. Both devices go on sale on 7 July, with the earbuds priced at 99 euros.
Ear (3a): onboard memory and call recording
The Ear (3a) earbuds include 32 MB of built-in storage, enabling a feature called Audio Snapshot. A simultaneous pinch on both earbuds captures up to one minute of audio, including a few seconds before and after the gesture. Recordings sync to the Nothing X app, where they can be transcribed, edited, and shared. The earbuds can also record phone calls for up to two hours, with a notification alerting all participants when recording is active. This call-recording function will arrive later in some regions, including Spain.
Audio hardware includes a 12 mm dynamic driver, Hi-Res Audio certification, LDAC support, and spatial audio. Active noise cancellation reaches up to 45 dB. Battery life is rated at 42 hours with the charging case (ANC off) or 25 hours with ANC on. The case returns to the pillbox-style design of the earlier Ear (a). Colors are black, white, pink, and yellow.
Phone (4b): a blend of design languages
The Phone (4b) mixes elements from the Phone (4a) and Phone (4a) Pro. It adopts the unibody polycarbonate construction of the Pro and the horizontal Glyph Bar of the base model. The Glyph Bar uses 45 mini-LEDs with a peak brightness of 3,500 nits for notifications and charging status. A transparent polymer covers the camera module, which houses a 50 MP main sensor with OIS and EIS, an 8 MP ultra-wide, and a 16 MP front camera. The device lacks a telephoto lens.
The 6.77-inch Super AMOLED display runs at 120 Hz adaptive refresh, with 1,200 nits outdoor brightness and 2,000 nits peak. Inside, a Snapdragon 6 Gen 4 processor powers Nothing OS 4.1 on Android 16. A side button, the Essential Key, provides quick access to AI features and voice notes. The 5,200 mAh battery is the largest in a Nothing phone to date.
It wasn't necessary to launch a new high-end phone every year.
Pricing and availability
The Nothing Ear (3a) costs 99 euros and is available from 7 July through Nothing's online store and retailers such as Amazon. The Phone (4b) price was not fully detailed in the initial announcement, but it slots into the company's mid-range B-series below the (4a) models.
