
Nothing Headphone (1) vs Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones
Bose's ANC cans have long been at the top of the list when it comes to noise-canceling headphones. They have a slick style, a comfortable fit, and decent sound, but how do they match up against the newest headphones on the block?
The Nothing Headphone (1) are the upstart in the headphone world. They want to upset the balance between the established competition, like the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones and the Sony WH-1000XM5, and undercut them both on price. That means loads of features, a cool-looking design, and some impressive battery life.
But, for the money, the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones are still the best noise-canceling headphones that you can buy today. They feature mind-blowing ANC, impressive sound, and a very comfortable fit to go with their decent feature set.
They might be more expensive, but Nothing's going to have to do a lot to make a better set of cans.
Nothing Headphone (1)
Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones
Price
$299/£299/AU$549
$429 / £449 / AU$645
Colors
Black; Silver
Lunar Blue; Deep Plum; White Smoke; Black
Size
Not specified
Not specified
Weight
11 ounces
8.8 ounces
Battery life (rated)
Up to 80 hours
Up to 24 hours
Connectivity
Bluetooth 5.3 with SBC, AAC and LDAC support
Bluetooth 5.3 with SBC, AAC and LDAC, aptX HD support support
Special features
Adaptive ANC, Ambient Sound Mode, Bluetooth multipoint, customizable sound, quick charge, passive mode, Spatial Audio
ANC, Immersive Audio, Bluetooth multipoint, customizable EQ, quick charge
The Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones are one of the more expensive flagship offerings that you can currently pick up. They cost $449, a whole $150 more than the new Nothing Headphone (1). That's also more than the Sony WH-1000XM5, and the same as the also new WH-1000XM6.
The Bose worth the higher price, sure, but we have to give credit where credit's due: Nothing Headphone (1) just cost less. They're $299, making them one of the cheaper options when compared to the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones.
The Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones have been out long enough now that we see discounts, so you might not have to pay full price. Even then, their lowest price still doesn't match the MSRP of the Nothing Headphone (1). That's first blood for the Nothing Headphone (1).
The Nothing Headphone (1) bring something new to the table. While the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones have a nice, if standard, look, the Headphone (1) look unlike just about anything else out there. They've got Nothing's signature design style, and I think that's pretty cool — just like the Nothing ear and the Nothing phones, they have transparent panels that hide some retro future design touches.
These Nothing's design isn't for everyone and the QuietComfort Ultra Headphones look more traditional. That's no bad thing, however. They're quite stylish thanks to the use of multiple finishes, along with their subtle branding.
The Nothing Headphone (1) is built slightly better though thanks to some improved materials. There's metal in the earcups, and there's more substantial heft to them
But the QuietComfort Ultra Headphones are more comfortable. Their cushioning is more plush, and you won't suffer from the slight squeezing effect that you'll find in the Headphone (1).
Despite a better build and more interesting design, I'm going to give this to the less divisive and far more comfortable Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones.
Physical controls are my preferred way of controlling headphones, and the Nothing Headphone (1) deliver just what I'm looking for. They've got very intuitive controls, including a volume roller, a paddle for skipping tracks, a power switch, and a customizable button.
Each one is easy to find without looking, and feel wonderful under the finger. I think they might be some of my favorite controls on a pair of headphones ever, bringing innovation to the table with their tactile clickers.
The Nothing app is also good, letting you control ANC level, change the EQ, and adjust other settings on the fly. It's good that the EQ is so good given that the sound needs adjustment out of the box, but we'll get to that later.
The controls on the Bose QuietComfort are more annoying. There's a multi-control button that controls the ANC, playback, and other features, alongside a touch stripe for volume. The touch stripe is annoying to use and fairly inaccurate, while the button pulling triple duty has to do too much.
The Bose app pulls everything back, however. It's easy to use and very well laid out, letting you easily access the 3-band EQ, noise-canceling settings, and more.
Overall, though, the control section has to go to the Nothing Headphone (1).
Despite the influence of KEF on the sound of the Nothing Headphone (1), they don't sound as good as I'd hoped. They're much too dark, with an overreliance on upper-bass and lower-mids that take over the soundscape. This tuning leaves music feeling like it's being played in the next room, blocked by a wall.
You can dial in the sound quality with the Nothing X app, but I'd have preferred the core sound be good enough out of the box. Not many users are going to dive into a complicated looking EQ adjuster when they realize their brand-new headphones don't sound very good.
The Bose, on the other hand, sound good out of the box. It's a fairly bassy sound signature, with bass that can take some of the edge off the detail, but it's otherwise spacious and pleasant to listen to.
It can be adjusted with a slightly weaker EQ, but the core sound is good enough that it's not entirely necessary.
Headphones should sound good out of the box, so this round is going to go to the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones.
The Nothing Headphone (1) bring a great feature set to the table, including the EQ, USB-C mode, and spatial audio. The former two features work very well, and the USB-C mode is something I wish I saw on more headphones coming out in 2025.
Unfortunately, however, the spatial audio feature doesn't work very well. It serves only to thin out the music and make it sound less dynamic, as it stretches out what's there to make it sound much bigger. I'm generally not a fan of spatial audio modes, and this one is the perfect example as to why.
The Bose have similar features, although they lack the USB-C mode. Immersive Sound (Bose's version of spatial audio) is much better, however, and it's the reason that they're going to win this round.
The two headphones are fairly well matched for features, although the Bose just manage to eke out the victory. You can expect solid feature sets from both, however.
This is going to be a blowout for the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones. They're the best noise-canceling headphones for a reason, with some of the best ANC that I've ever experienced out of a pair of headphones.
They block out even the loudest and most disturbing noises, whether you're on the go or stuck inside the office. Fans are silenced, busy cafes subdued and bus journeys made a whole lot more tolerable. They're my choice if I want to block out everything happening in the world, and they've never let me down.
That's not to say that the Nothing Headphone (1)'s noise canceling is bad, but it's not as good as Bose's. It does a fine job of keeping out the noise, but it does struggle a bit with the wind.
Transparency mode is good for both pairs, and you'll have no problem hearing the bus driver when you go to buy your ticket. Thanks to their impressive ANC overall, though, the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones take the win at the end.
I don't need to say much here. The Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones last for 24 hours after a full charge. Meanwhile, the Nothing Headphone (1) will last you for 35 hours with ANC turned on, and then 80 hours when the ANC is turned off.
The win here goes to the Nothing Headphone (1).
The Nothing Headphone (1) get very close to being a very good pair of headphones. They've laid down the ground work, with a lovely design, solid build quality, and some impressive features for the price.
But they're let down by some very disappointing sound quality. They don't sound as good as the Bose, that's for sure, which also beat them in noise canceling and comfort. The price differential is massive, but there's no denying that the more well-rounded product package from Bose is a better way to spend your money.
I'd hoped to see Nothing arrive on the scene and bring some disruption to the table. While they got pretty close to the competition, there still needs to be some work done on Nothing's part to make sure they sound their best. As it stands, they're let down by the sound profile — and what are headphones all about if not their sound?
Nothing Headphone 1
Bose QuietComfort Ultra
Price and value (5)
4
3
Design (15)
14
14
Controls (10)
8
5
Sound quality (25)
15
22
Active noise cancelation (20)
17
20
Call quality (10)
6
9
Connectivity (5)
5
5
Battery life (10)
9
5
Total Score (100)
78
82

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Android Authority
3 hours ago
- Android Authority
Nothing Phone 3 doesn't win on value, but it won me over anyway
Prakhar Khanna / Android Authority The Nothing Phone 3 is quirky and weird. It has riled up the Nothing lovers and haters alike. Social media forums indicate that a lot of people don't like that camera layout, price, or have polarizing views on the Glyph Matrix. I might be on the less popular end for both. I liked the Nothing Phone 3's odd design choices when I first saw it in person at the London launch event. I was taken aback by the price, sure. But I wanted to give it a try nonetheless. I've now used the Nothing Phone 3 for a few days, and I like how it feels in my hand. I don't mind the weird camera setup and quite love the rest of the design. I haven't noticed its processor, for better or worse, and every time I flip it around, I pause for a second to look at that strange back layout. The Glyph Interface has been more fun than before, and the blinking red dot is a nice addition. It's all part of the quirky design. But you don't buy a phone for its quirks. Most people look for the best value proposition in their new phone, and the Nothing Phone 3 isn't for most people. It doesn't have the 'flagship' chipset, and I wouldn't rate its cameras the best in the segment. But the Nothing Phone 3 has grown on me. At $799, it isn't a good value proposition, but it won me over anyway. What do you think of Nothing Phone 3's design? 0 votes I love it! NaN % It looks odd, but I'm ok with it NaN % What in the smartphone world is this? NaN % Nothing's strong suit becomes more important than ever Prakhar Khanna / Android Authority I love Nothing OS for its widgets and clean but customizable design. It isn't the barebones Pixel-level clean or filled with customizations like Xiaomi's HyperOS. Nothing OS is a mix of both of their best parts. And it is now more important than ever with the Phone 3's polarizing design. I love the ability to add Quick Settings as one-tap widgets. For example, I have a QR code scanner for payments and a Wi-Fi toggle, which turns a three-step task into a single tap. Nothing Phone 3 is ergonomic and comfortable to hold for a big phone. I've grown used to the Nothing Phone 3 because there's not much to complain about in the software or the in-hand feel. I don't play mobile games, so I'm not concerned about the processor. And more so because I haven't had any stutters or lags in day-to-day usage that might trigger me to look for a more capable phone. Add to it, the Essential Key (with Essential Space) is a nice way to quickly save story ideas when I'm reading something on Chrome. (The Essential Search's speed needs improvement, though.) Prakhar Khanna / Android Authority The 6.67-inch AMOLED screen is big and immersive and comfortably legible in most environments, but you can get a brighter display at the same price, depending on where you live. In my usage, the Nothing Phone 3 has lasted me a full day with ease. Notably, I have the 5,500mAh battery variant, as opposed to the 5,150mAh cell you'd find on US or UK units. I got up to eight and a half hours of SoT with social media hopping, intensive Reel-watching, WhatsApp messaging, using Slack for work, and snapping a few photos. The problem is that the Nothing Phone 3a Pro offers a similar experience at a more affordable price. Essential Space, all-day battery, big screen, no-lag performance – it's all up for grabs under $500. For $799, you get the fun of the Glyph Matrix, the best cameras Nothing has put on a phone, and longer software support. More Functional Glyph LEDs and better cameras Prakhar Khanna / Android Authority The Nothing Phone 3 features some strange design choices that play around the edges of uniformity. The periscope telephoto camera sits close to the edge, away from the rest of the layout; the Glyph Matrix screen looks oddly placed when it's not in use. And yet, there is a sense of uniformity in the rest of the phone's design. The Nothing Phone 3 has a certain whimsical vibe to it that I love. I've said in the past how Glyph Lights were in-your-face and caught me off guard in certain instances in public. The Glyph Matrix, on the other hand, has been more functional and fun for me. It's like the notification light from Android phones of the past, only charged up to put the 'fun' in 'function.' I love the customizability it offers with the combination of 489 LEDs and a physical button to control it. Glyph Matrix is way more fun than I expected it to be, but I'll probably forget about it. For instance, I've set it up to notify me of calls from three contacts (with three separate icons) I never want to miss a call from. So, when I'm in the middle of typing a story, I can glance over at the small screen and decide whether to attend the call or not. Is it possible to do so with the phone placed on a table and the screen facing you? Absolutely. Always-on display can do that. But I tend to keep my phone upside down because I don't want to be bothered by every notification. With the Glyph Matrix, I can choose what gets my attention more selectively and add a personalized touch to it. Apart from the notifications, the Glyph Matrix can show a digital clock, help you take a selfie by mirroring your face in black-and-white pixels, offer a stopwatch, battery indicator, camera countdown timer, and indicate volume levels. There are also fun games like Spin the Bottle, Magic 8 Ball, and Rock-Paper-Scissors, which are party tricks for the most part. I'm looking forward to what third-party developers and the community build for Glyph Matrix. It's at a nascent stage right now, like the Dynamic Island was when it first launched with the iPhone 14 Pro series. I'd love for food delivery apps to show me the ETA of my order. Nothing Phone 3 portrait Edge detection can be unreliable. Notice my friend's sunglasses. Nothing Phone 3 black and white filter and frame Selfie shot on the Nothing Phone 3. As for the optics, I wasn't expecting much from the Phone 3's cameras because my review unit had very bad shutter lag. Nothing fixed it with an update, and the 50MP triple camera array now delivers impressive results. It isn't the best in the segment and struggles in low light, but at the same time, it shoots photos with nice colors, plenty of detail, and good exposure. I traveled with it to London, and the 3x optical zoom came in handy. The ultrawide and selfie cameras, alongside Nothing's camera filters round up the experience pretty well. I didn't expect the Nothing Phone 3 to grow on me. I still consider it expensive at $799, but I've enjoyed using it and see potential in the Glyph Matrix. It isn't a value-for-money contender but the new Nothing phone delivers top-notch software, fun design quirks, five years of OS upgrades alongside seven years of security updates, all-day battery life, and a satisfactory camera performance. You can get a more capable flagship phone with longer software support but it won't be this fun to use. The Nothing Phone 3 is now available in the US without the need for a beta program and should work with all the major carriers.


Gizmodo
3 hours ago
- Gizmodo
Sorry Haters, the Nothing Phone 3 Looks Good
The Nothing Phone 3 has one of the most outlandish designs of any device out there, and it's ruffled more than a few feathers. Frankly, it's shaken the whole henhouse. Every Nothing device, from Phone 1 through Phone 3a, all featured transparent glass backs and a 'Glyph Interface' full of winding LED strips that would light up with custom alerts or visual cues. That's gone with the Phone 3, replaced with a field of square boxes called the 'Glyph Matrix' that displays simple pixelated images and a trifecta of asymmetrical, misaligned camera bumps. To sum it up, fans hated it, and one word showed up in critiques over and over: 'ugly.' In an interview with Design Milk, Nothing's lead designer, Adam Bates, extolled the Glyph Matrix with its small field of micro-LEDs as more 'expressive,' but he failed to articulate just what the hell was going on with the rest of the device. We're still planning to share our full thoughts on the Phone 3, where we'll compare Nothing's first $800 'flagship' mobile device to other expensive phones, but I'm not here to talk about its supposed less-than-flagship chip or the quality of the cameras compared to other heavy hitters. I'm not even here to talk about how repairable it is compared to other devices. I just want to talk about how the thing looks. Guess what? It looks good. We sit here every day hearing from consumers just how bored they are with the same slab phone design. Every iPhone is practically indistinguishable from the latest Samsung Galaxy or Google Pixel phone—from the flat sides and rounded corners down to the camera bump. We want a design that tells a story, that examines the tech housed inside that chassis of glass and metal. So why is the internet so universally antagonistic to something that tells a story through its aesthetic? The manufacturers of phone cameras often combine all lenses into a single array. That's how most of the larger phone makers procure them—prefabricated. Your regular iPhone 16 Pro places each Sony-made lens in a triangular pattern, but the actual apparatus is connected to the phone's motherboard as one unit. In a teardown of the phone shared exclusively with Gizmodo, the repair gurus at iFixit showed how each camera is an individual unit on the Nothing Phone 3. The repair team said there are four press connectors that attach to the top of the motherboard, and you can remove all three cameras without needing to take out the motherboard. The Phone 3 has a 50-megapixel wide, a 50-megapixel periscope, and a 50-megapixel ultrawide lens. We don't know if Nothing procured its cameras like this because it was cheaper or for some other reason related to supply chains or its mobile design. iFixit told us the cameras are arranged so it may be possible to shift the top telephoto sensor, aligning top to bottom. It's unclear if this would cause some other issue with the device or if the parts sourced for the phone wouldn't allow for cameras to sit in a row. Either way, it comes across as eye-catching, an asymmetry that I would describe as evocative in a way that speaks to the niche online circles who love modding and pseudo-analog tech. It harkens to my growing appreciation for ad hoc-stylized science fiction, specifically all that gets laid under the umbrella of 'cyberpunk.' I've been a little too obsessed with CD Projekt Red's Cyberpunk 2077 lately, partially because I had to play the game ported to both Switch 2 and Mac in quick succession. The game holds a beauty far beyond the number of pixels it's pushing. It's all down to the inherent design ethos, which you can find in its digital art book. The game's designers took inspiration from classic high-tech, low-society genre sci-fi. Other great examples of this kind of asymmetrical tech can be seen in the many examples inspired by the anime film Ghost in the Shell, down to the Brazilian cover art of William Gibson's seminal 1984 novel Neuromancer designed by artist Josan Gonzalez (we'll have to see if the upcoming Apple TV show can match our collective imaginations). In this art, we see the tech exposed, wires exploding out of devices like exposed veins connected to an LED heart—what would be nonsense and excessive by most standards of engineering. The Phone 3 isn't that explicit, but its glass back and near-nonsensical panels are obviously drawing from this style of tech. The developers of Cyberpunk 2077 managed to encapsulate this style in their game. They crafted four separate archetypes that can help us understand where the Phone 3 fits in. One of those that stands out is 'Entropism'—the idea that crude necessity and slapdash tech can itself be a kind of 'style.' This is the opposite of what the designers called 'Kitsch,' which could be best boiled down to style over substance—or gaudy extremes and neon caked into every crevice, serving no purpose. Then there's 'Neokitsch,' a combination of the former two, extolling excess while working within the confines of practicality. The Phone 3 fits neatly into that category, though its off-white plastic almost has a kind of 'NASA Punk' appearance akin to Bethesda's Starfield. Naysayers lambaste its odd misplacement of the three camera bumps. That asymmetry is not a flaw but a necessity born out of how Nothing decided to source its three cameras. Other teardowns by YouTuber JerryRigEverything show us how the makers of the Phone 3 created a wireless charging coil that's shaped like an apple with a bite taken out of it. This odd shape means it could support the special glyph button used to operate the new Glyph Matrix. Whether or not that button is usable or even useful is another question. Instead, we can take in the design and understand more of why it was built the way it was. There's a beauty in that. It's expression through design and engineering, something that's so rarely seen in today's world of Apple-like, all-too-clean tech. The Phone 3 design isn't what anyone would call 'lo-fi,' but in ways it reminds me of how special effects designers imagine technology. Star Wars is one of the best examples of a high-tech setting with a low-tech aesthetic—born out of director George Lucas and the first film's prop crafters' need to make futuristic devices with whatever was on hand. That history of design extends to today's best Star Wars content. Andor's first season is a perfect example of this. In episode 5, the young idealist Karis Nemik extols the benefits of tech not made by the Empire, that it can be remodeled and remade by its owner. His device is blocky, asymmetrical, and dirty. That's because it was likely an old Polaroid camera, specifically an SX-70, with other bits and bobs stapled to its front and sides. We don't know what all those doohickeys are for, but it drives the imagination. Similarly, the Phone 3 wants me to wonder what each random button does, why the cameras are located where they are, or why it has a red camera light. Even if the answer isn't as engaging as the question, I'm glad it made me wonder all the same. Despite the appearance of modularity, there's nothing to say the Nothing Phone 3 is any more repairable than the company's previous devices. iFixit told Gizmodo the phone is annoying to open since it requires users to remove several adhesive components, including the back cover. If Nothing worked to make its phones the most customizable, the most repairable, and combined that with a look that emphasizes all those, it would be a winner. What if Nothing started to sell parts to its phones while maintaining its 'Neokitsch' style? That would be enough to truly set the brand apart from all the others, and maybe it would be enough to calm the haters… maybe.


Android Authority
5 hours ago
- Android Authority
Here's the real problem with Nothing's quirky Phone 3 design
Ryan Haines / Android Authority I love Nothing's semi-transparent design language. Its debut Phone 1 was the first Android phone in a long time that I can remember being just as happy to look at as I was to use (if only because it didn't work in the US). Then, I watched Nothing refine its style over a few generations of mid-range and budget phones, reworking its Glyph interface and camera placement until it found a combination so cute that Wall-E might fall in love with it. Now, though, I think it's jumped the shark. Its Phone 3 design looks like nothing (no pun intended) I've ever seen before, let alone tried to protect. It has camera sensors, buttons, and a revamped Glyph Matrix scattered across the back panel, and I've never been so scared to go without a phone case. Here's why that's such a big problem. There's unique, and then there's impractical Ryan Haines / Android Authority Like I said, the Nothing Phone 3 is one-of-a-kind. It doesn't make a single traditional design choice other than having a USB-C port on the bottom and buttons on the sides. Other than that, though, chaos. The cameras sit as far apart as boys and girls at a middle school dance, and the circular Glyph Matrix feels like I should be able to raise a Tamagotchi on it. Don't get me wrong, it's a neat look. I wasn't sure I'd like it at first based on Nothing's trickle of teasers and leaks, but the finished product tickles my design-loving brain just right. However, just because I like the look of something doesn't make it a great idea. I loved the idea of Nike's Adapt Auto Max — a shoe that you could only tighten if charged via a proprietary pad — but I would never buy one because it was in no way practical. Nothing's design is clever as can be, but did it have to put a camera sensor so close to the edge? Unfortunately, that's how I'm starting to think about the Phone 3. At times, it feels like Nothing's engineers realized they could, but didn't stop to think if they should. They didn't consider that spreading out the camera sensors and relocating the Glyph Matrix would open the Phone 3 to easier damage, just as long as the finished product looked cool. Like a shoe with moving electronic parts is more susceptible to wear and tear, a phone with too many cluttered corners feels like it's living dangerously in an adventure-filled world. And yes, I know that the now-iconic camera bar that graces the back of every Google Pixel is a less-than-practical choice too. It's a huge bump that nearly splits any would-be phone case in half. However, it also steps in where a case would have trouble, putting a thick metal frame around the cameras and using tough glass to protect all the sensors simultaneously. The Phone 3 doesn't. Its telephoto sensor is so alarmingly close to one edge of the Gorilla Glass Victus back panel. At the same time, the Glyph interface bumps right up against the other edge, making it impossible to find a 'safe' edge on which to drop your phone (not that I recommend dropping your phone to begin with). It took me years to stop stressing about keeping my phone perfectly clean and immaculately protected, but Nothing has brought back all those worries in such a short period. Please, Nothing, all I'm asking for is a good phone case Ryan Haines / Android Authority I hear you, dear reader, yelling at me from the other side of your screen, telling me to put my Nothing Phone 3 in a case. I get it — it's exactly what I should do. After all, we love to recommend phone cases for any and all devices that come across our desks because the best phone is a working, unbroken one. However, I can't do that right now, and it's not my fault — not even a little bit. Instead, it's Nothing's fault. It's Spigen's fault. It's Mous' fault. It's Nomad's fault. Right now, I can blame every case maker for making me live dangerously with my Nothing Phone 3, because none of them has decided to offer a third-party (or first-party) case for protection. Of course, I get it — it's tough to make a highly specific case for an unusual-looking phone that may or may not move decent volume in the US. And yet, if just one of them were to make a case for the Phone 3, it would automatically claim 100% of the market, and I would recommend it without hesitation. There's only one Phone 3 case on the market right now, and it's as impractical as female RPG armor. Well, if it were a normal enough case, anyway. There is one case — er, bumper — er, frame — er, something to protect the Phone 3. Arc decided to take the plunge and launch its two-piece Arc Pulse for the Phone 3, making it the only option for the most cautious of Nothing fans to protect their phones. Unfortunately, I have a hard time trusting it. I can get on board with a one-piece case, or even a two-piece case that covers my entire phone, but the Arc Pulse doesn't do that. Instead, it's more like the stereotypically impractical female armor in RPGs, somehow getting smaller and less protective the more you level up. I'd still be much too scared to let my Phone 3 take a tumble, only for its minimalist aluminum shell to bounce off and leave my phone cracked on the sidewalk. So, it's time for Nothing itself to step up. If nobody else will protect its first proper flagship-ish device, the call will have to come from inside the house. It already makes cases for the Phone 3a and Phone 3a Pro, and the Phone 3 costs as much as its siblings put together. If Nothing leads the charge, maybe top phone case brands will follow, but I need someone to take that first step.