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Indian Express
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Indian Express
CMF Buds 2 and Buds 2 Plus: This is what value for money sounds like
Over the past couple of years, Nothing has carved out a niche for itself in the tech space, emerging as a good value-for-money brand on the cutting edge of design that appeals to a younger user. Its CMF sub-brand pushes the envelope even more when it comes to pricing and design, especially with its accessories. The new CMF Buds range is no exception. The CMF Buds 2 Plus has a unique design with a square charging case that has a circle at one corner that rotates. The circle serves no particular purpose other than housing the holes for the lanyard but does give the unit a distinct identity. The case also has a rubbery matte finish which makes it feel both durable and premium. The buds have a traditional design and are easy to wear for long hours. At the top of the stem, you can tap to control the earbuds. The CMF Buds 2 Plus come with adaptive active noise cancellation that is top of the line, sucking away the hum of my ceiling fan. However, every time you put it on, the ANC takes a few seconds to come into action. Using the Nothing X app, I could switch the ANC on and off on even the iPhone. There is also a transparency mode that works well but appears louder than the actual ambient sound. The app also gives you the most elaborate personal sound profiling I have seen. The process takes about three minutes and tries to figure out exactly how your ear is perceiving sound. There is also a full equaliser with customisation and presets. Also, an Ultra Bass calibration gives you a level of control unseen in budget earbuds. The app also lets you find the buds or change gesture controls. Usure unna thaane from Madras Matinee felt immersive with its soulful mix of strings and percussions. The bass, even at lower levels, felt like it could touch a chord along with Vijay Yesudas's baritone which has started to sound even more like his dad now. As I was trying out the gestures, the playlist shifted to Lagoon Chill from Kumbalangi Nights. I was mesmerised for a few seconds by the depth of the bass this small earbud was able to create, almost like a heart that was beating in my ears. The CMF Buds 2 Plus manages both the highs and lows well thanks to the 12mm drivers. And when it is just vocals like Billy Withers' version of Ain't No Sunshine, the earbuds do a good job too. My only point would be that there seems to be a lack of space and roominess at times and that despite these earbuds doing a good job of spatial audio. With high-end earphones, you get a sense of each channel having a space of itself, layered in the soundscape. That is sort of missing here. But then that would be expecting too much from what are essentially budget earbuds. The best thing about the CMF Buds 2 Plus is that it costs just Rs 3,299 with its super ANC, a full app with equalisers, and a good audio profile with extra bass for those who prefer that. This is what value for money sounds like. The CMF Buds 2 has a similar design as its more premium sibling, though it also seems to appeal to an even younger audience. The review unit had a light green colour which made it look trendy, at the same time making me feel a bit too old to be carrying it around. The Nothing X app works here too, though there are fewer features here as expected in comparison to the CMF Buds 2 Plus. There is noise canceling you can select the intensity or the adaptive setting, like in the other earphones. The ANC is good, though it left a bit of drone from the fan compared to the vacuum of the Buds 2 Plus. There is no personalised sound profiling here. Everything else pretty much stays the same, which is good as you are getting an equaliser with the Dirac Opteo pre-tuning. So when you hear Here Comes the Sun, the Beatles are all around you with the guitar starting on the left ear and Ringo Starr's drums getting a space on the right. The overall sound profile is balanced, though it does feel a bit cramped in comparison to the Buds 2 Plus. But then you are paying much less for this one and they have 11mm drivers. Listening to a Lossless version of Dreams by Fleetwood Mac, I was convinced that most listeners would not feel a beat missing with these earbuds. They do bass well again and that too without me amping up the same on the app. The Buds 2 manage vocals superbly, balancing it out with the BGM despite the constraints, giving a very balanced listening experience. The Buds 2 are also great for watching a movie on the phone or for gaming, especially when you are in the low lag mode. At Rs 2,699, the CMF Buds 2 are good for those who want to save a bit and not spend as much as on the CMF Buds 2 Plus. Both are good value-for-money options, though I would recommend you push your budget a bit and get the superior CMF Buds 2 Plus. It is worth the extra bucks. Nandagopal Rajan writes on technology, gadgets and everything related. He has worked with the India Today Group and Hindustan Times. He is an alumnus of Calicut University and Indian Institute of Mass Communication, Dhenkanal. ... Read More
Tatler Asia
3 days ago
- Tatler Asia
Will your next phone be as customisable as Lego blocks?
Modular phones present a radical departure from this model. Designed for longevity and customisation, these phones allow users to swap out components like the screen, battery and even camera modules, all using standard tools. The result? A phone that evolves with you, rather than expires on schedule. Also read: Doctor Anywhere founder Lim Mai Wun on creating a blueprint for a sustainable tech-enabled healthcare company HMD Fusion: modularity made simple Above HMD Fusion's modular accesories include Outfit cases with flash and a dedicated gaming controller (Photo: HMD) Finnish manufacturer HMD, best known for producing Nokia-branded phones, is venturing into modular territory with the HMD Fusion. Designed as a midrange device, the Fusion features a 6.56-inch screen, Snapdragon 4 Gen 2 chipset and a removable, modular back panel known as Outfits. These Outfits, which attach via connector pins, range from basic coloured covers to functional accessories like the Smart Outfit—featuring a flip-up flash powered by the phone—and a Gaming Outfit with dual joysticks and triggers that transforms the Fusion into a handheld console. HMD has prioritised repairability, using standard screws instead of glue. Users can replace the screen, battery and other internal components themselves. The company has also released a toolkit for developers and hobbyists to design their own Outfits using 3D printing. Fairphone 5: prioritising repairability and ethical sourcing Above The Fairphone 5 is built using ethical manufacturing with sustainable and recycled materials under fair labor practices (Photo: Fairphone) Dutch company Fairphone has been leading the sustainable smartphone movement since 2013. Its latest model, the Fairphone 5, is engineered for a 10-year lifespan, supported by a five-year warranty and eight years of software updates. Powered by a Qualcomm chipset and featuring IP54 resistance, the Fairphone 5 is designed with repairability and ethical sourcing in mind. It uses no glue in its assembly, instead relying on screws, so components like the battery, screen, camera modules, USB port and earpiece can be replaced individually. The phone's body is made from 100 per cent recycled aluminium, and its supply chain prioritises fair trade practices. It ships with a de-Googled version of Android called /e/OS, but users can opt to install other Android distributions—or even Linux. CMF by Nothing: stylish, accessible modularity Above CMF Phone 2 Pro has various attachment points for multiple accessories such as extra lenses, magnetic folding stand and lanyard (Photo: Nothing) CMF, a sub-brand of British tech upstart Nothing, has released the CMF Phone 2 Pro, its second modular phone. Designed with affordability in mind, it is powered by the MediaTek Dimensity 7300 chipset and also carries an IP54 rating. Rather than overhaul the entire phone, CMF focuses on modular accessories that attach to the back panel. Users can swap in add-on lenses (such as fisheye or macro), magnetic folding stands, or even wallet attachments. An extra thumb screw on the corner allows lanyards or other accessories to be secured. The backplates themselves can be removed with a screwdriver and 3D printed for further customisation. Better phones mean a better future Above The Fairphone 5 has components that come from fair and ethical sources (Photo: Fairphone) Despite their promise, modular phones face challenges—chief among them being the trade-off between flexibility and sleek design. Consumer habits, driven by rapid upgrade cycles, also present a barrier to widespread adoption. However, as environmental concerns gain urgency and regulations around e-waste tighten, modular designs could become the new standard. With brands like Fairphone, HMD and CMF leading the charge, the smartphone of the future may not just be smarter—it may also be more sustainable, more durable and more personalised.
Irish Examiner
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Irish Examiner
A Stitch in summertime: Shandon Street shop to host one of Irene Kelleher's plays
Cork writer and actor Irene Kelleher has two one-woman shows at the Cork Midsummer Festival (CMF) in June. One of them is site-specific, taking place in an old shop on Shandon Street. The former J Nolan Stationery shop felt perfect for Kelleher's show, Stitch, which she describes as 'haunting". The play is set in a garment alteration shop in 1989. Pins and Needles, as it is called, is about to close down and be taken over by Xtravision. 'It was a family business but the only people left are seamstress Alice and her aunt Katie who live over the shop,' says Kelleher. 'It's going to be a huge change for Alice who, when the play opens, has been down in the basement for seven months, only coming up at night when there's nobody on the street. She has been doing her work in the basement. The place has quite a history.' The play, loosely inspired by Frankenstein, is set at Halloween. Alice is particularly busy getting costumes ready for the spooky night ahead. Kelleher says that for her character, the past is lingering in the walls. Why the site specific setting rather than a traditional theatre space? 'When I performed my show, Gone Full Havisham, in the penthouse of the Clayton Hotel in 2019 for the CMF, there was something incredibly special for audiences about seeing it there," says Kelleher. "We created a world into which the audience was thrown. When I write a play, I always think of the audience experience, trying to create it in my head. I thought it would be amazing if Stitch could be done in a shop where there's ghosts in the walls. "When I went to see the shop, there was an old Singer sewing machine there which I took as a sign.' Irene Kelleher. Kelleher's other play, Footnote, set in a bookshop, will be performed by her at the Cork Theatre Collective Studio at the Triskel. The comedy already had a performance as a work-in-progress on Culture Night at Cork City Library last year. It was inspired by Kelleher's experience of working in the former Liam Ruiseal's bookshop while she was studying English, and Theatre and Drama Studies at UCC. It is directed by Laura O'Mahony who also worked in the shop as a student of drama. 'We always thought a bookshop would be a great setting for a play. Laura has done some brilliant comedic sketches set in a bookshop over the years. I always wanted to write something in that setting but it took me a while to come up with the central character.' Kelleher created the character of Noreen, a struggling writer, who lives in the shadow of her famous (fictional) mother, a poet and feminist activist. Whether Kelleher's real-life daughters will live in her shadow remains to be seen. The writer/actor is no pushy stage mom. While Marie (three-and-a-half) and Katie (two) will be free to pursue their own interests, which for the eldest child, involves attending dance classes, Kelleher says, half-jokingly, she hopes Marie will go into credit control. Such is her attitude to the insecure nature of working in the arts. However, Kelleher says she would 'go insane' if she had a more regular job. 'I always knew this is what I wanted to do. It's important for me to keep working and to keep creative. I know I'm in a privileged position in that I don't have to work full time.' Cork Midsummer Festival As the chief carer for her daughters, Kelleher says she is now very particular about what work she will take on. Writing plays was initially an outlet for performance but Kelleher has really grown to love the art form and she can work at it around her children's activities. Her husband, Denis O'Sullivan, works from home for an American IT company and Kelleher says he is very supportive. Kelleher will be busy for six weeks in the lead up to and during the CMF. 'We make it work. Denis will be off for two weeks during my busy time. After that, the cavalry – the grannies and aunties – will help out," she explains. The two shows are produced by Mighty Oak Productions, with Stitch directed by Regina Crowley. Cormac O'Connor has designed the soundscape and has also branched into lighting. Costumes are a huge part of Stitch and are designed by Valentia Gambardella. Kelleher says she feels honoured to have two shows being staged in the CMF. 'They are very different and they reflect me as an artist.' Stitch is on from June 13-22 apart from June 16 and 17 at J Nolan 21, Shandon Street. Footnote is on June 14, 16 and 17 at the Triskel. See
GSM Arena
5 days ago
- GSM Arena
Nothing CMF Buds 2 Plus review
The CMF Buds 2 Plus are the premium model among the trio of new earbuds from Nothing. Part of the entry-level CMF range, these are all meant to be relatively affordable, with the most expensive Buds 2 Plus coming in at $69. And if that's not low enough, they cost just $39 (INR 3,299) in India. Compared to the Buds 2 and the Buds 2a, the Buds 2 Plus try to provide an elevated experience with improvements to the audio and ANC side of things. There is a 12mm LCP driver along with LDAC Hi-Res Audio and a claimed 50dB noise cancellation. The rest of the specifications are mostly similar but there also isn't a vast price difference between the models. We will be taking a look at the cheapest Buds 2 model in a separate review but for now, let's get on with the Buds 2 Plus. Design and comfort The Buds 2 Plus design is nearly identical to that of the Buds 2 from last year. The only differences we noticed were a slightly smaller case and a new logo on the exterior, with the company seemingly doing away with the circular logos in favor of the CMF wordmark. Starting with the case, the fit and finish of the exterior are immaculate for such an inexpensive product. There is a lovely soft-touch texture to the shell and the panel gaps are impressively tight. The lid also opens and closes with a satisfying tension and clack. The company clearly takes its name seriously as the CMF (color, material, and finish) is done very well here. In the top left corner of the case is an aluminum rotating dial. Much like the one on the Buds 2, the rotation of the dial is purely ornamental and at best can be used as a fidget spinner. You can attach a lanyard to it but there isn't one provided in the box. It would have been nice if the dial had a function, like the one on the Buds Pro 2 but perhaps Nothing is saving it for a Buds 2 Pro model in the future. Getting to the buds on the inside, they once again have the same design as the CMF Buds from last year but without the circular logos. The back of the stalk is capacitive and supports tap-based gestures. The overall design of the earbuds is comfortable but I wasn't impressed with the material used for the ear tips. They use tackier, plasticky-feeling silicone that you find on very inexpensive earbuds. Not only does it not feel great in your ears but the material also doesn't conform to the shape of your inner ear as well as more premium and softer material. This leaves some gaps that let noise in unless you fastidiously adjust them every few minutes or if you move your head or jaw, even if you pick the correct size for your ears. The similarly priced OnePlus Nord Buds 3 Pro use the much nicer tips that feel and function a lot better and it would have been nice to see Nothing use those on the Plus model, at least. Software and features The Buds 2 Plus interface with the Nothing X app on your Android or iOS device. From here, you can adjust things like the ANC, audio parameters, touch gestures, and update firmware. Like much of Nothing's software, the Nothing X app is clean and a breeze to operate, something other audio manufacturers could learn from. The app offers a choice of ANC on, off, and a transparency mode. The ANC on mode has three manually controllable levels and an adaptive mode that automatically adjusts the levels based on ambient noise. The app has a bunch of audio options for the Buds 2 Plus. Most prominent is the Spatial audio feature, which I found the least impressive as it was a generic surround sound feature that lacks the nuance of professionally mastered spatial audio you get from Dolby Atmos tracks. There's also no head-tracking support on this model. Nothing X app Nothing is also all-in on the Ultra Bass mode on these CMF buds and it comes enabled by default set to the lowest value of 1. You can turn it up to 5 if you hate good sound (and your ears) but I did all of the testing with the feature fully disabled as there's plenty of bass without it. Next is the Personal sound feature, which we have seen on other models before. It plays a series of tones and you can pick whether you hear it or not and at the end it generates a custom audio profile for each individual ear. Audio settings For this feature to work reliably, you have to be in a dead silent environment, which is not always easy to come by. Otherwise, you will simply not hear the test tones over ambient noise even if your ears are capable of hearing them otherwise, which greatly affects the usefulness of the test. Also, these tests put far too much trust in the quality of the drivers and audio processing to ensure you hear the correct test tone, and I can't say I have that much faith in a pair of budget earbuds. This means I'm never quite sure if I'm not hearing a tone because my ears aren't good enough or because the drivers aren't good enough to produce it properly. As such, I don't put a lot of stock in these tests, but you can give them a shot if the end result is to your liking. Finally, there's the equalizer. You have a few options here with Pop being the default tuning for the earbuds (it's also what you hear if you set the custom preset to 0 values). The presets show little visualizations to show you the general type of tuning you can expect but they don't always make sense; the Electronic preset shows having more bass than Pop even though Pop has audibly more bass. Equalizer Speaking of the custom EQ, we once again have Nothing's incredibly basic and high-key terrible 3-band EQ that is arranged in an odd circular pattern. It's damn near impossible to get any value out of this because of the broad sweeping changes it makes with no fine control or nuance. It also drastically drops the volume of the sound when you adjust anything. It's high time Nothing drops this garbage that is no doubt chosen purely for its aesthetic appeal in favor of a functional EQ with at least 5 bands. Better yet, it can make the 8-band parametric EQ available on the more expensive Nothing Buds available to all models since it is just a software feature already present in the Nothing X app but hidden away from the cheaper models. Performance Audio quality The Buds 2 Plus have 12mm single dynamic drivers with an LCP (liquid crystal polymer) and polyurethane diaphragm. You get your standard SBC and AAC codecs along with LDAC with a maximum bitrate of 990kbps. There is, however, no LC3 support. The audio tuning, done in-house by Nothing, is pretty much what we have come to expect these days from consumer audio products. There is a strong emphasis on bass, even with the Ultra Bass feature disabled, along with mellow mids and highs. Starting with the low end, I found the bass on the Buds 2 Plus to be overbearing at times. This was especially true for the kind of music the Pop preset was designed for, which I'm assessing here since it's the default. In other genres, the bass paints a layer of mush over the rest of the sound, which reduces the overall clarity and makes it a bit murky. The mid-range has a good presence in the mix and is not buried all the way in the back as with a typical v-shaped tuning. However, the vocals sound slightly congested and compressed with an ever-so-slight honkiness to them. However, this is quite subtle and not readily noticeable. The high-end is unremarkable. The default tuning has enough treble for it to not be dark but it doesn't stand out in its presence or detail retrieval. When seen from the lens of a first-time buyer who is most likely the target audience of the Buds 2 Plus, the audio tuning is fine. A buyer in this segment is likely to be inexperienced and undemanding and should find the audio enjoyable. While using the earbuds while just walking around or working without paying attention to the sound, I found the sound reasonably pleasing with only a few tracks being distracting due to the overwhelming bass presence. Unfortunately, the EQ is useless for getting anything close to reference audio and your best bet is to use the Classical preset, which while not perfect is fairly close. I found the combination of the Classical preset and level 2 on Ultra Bass more balanced than the default Pop preset. In comparison, the Nord Buds 3 Pro have a similarly bassy sound but the mids have better timbre and the overall tonality is a bit more pleasing. The CMF Buds 2 Plus also don't get any points for having LDAC as you don't hear the added resolution in the sound. Microphone The Buds 2 Plus have good microphone performance. Voices sounded natural without too much garbling. The level of your voice would go up and down a bit as if you were moving further away from the mic, even though the mic is on your ear. That aside, the overall microphone quality is pretty good for voice calls. The microphone performance is also better compared to the Nord Buds 3 Pro, which continue to have a garbled noise to them months after launch. Noise cancellation The Buds 2 Plus have active noise cancellation using the six onboard microphones. Nothing claims up to 50dB of cancellation in a 5400MHz frequency range. The noise cancellation performance is good for the price. You get satisfactory attenuation in the low-frequency ranges and decent in the mid-ranges. The high frequencies aren't as well tuned out, and part of that is due to the cheap ear tips which don't always create a perfect seal. At times some high-frequency sounds also come in more prominently, which can be distracting. However, for the most part, the ANC performance is decent. Similarly, the transparency performance was also found to be adequate, with a reasonably natural rendition of the ambient sounds. There is some difference in the sound between the ANC on and off modes. I found the ANC off sound to be a bit less bass-heavy. That, along with the combination of the ambient sound makes the earbuds sound less congested and more balanced. When at home, I would prefer to turn the ANC off instead of keeping it on all the time. Latency The Buds 2 Plus have decent latency performance. When tested with a Nothing Phone (2), some titles had good latency performance while others didn't. The Low lag mode in the Nothing X app didn't seem to do much, as apps that worked well had low latency even with the option disabled and those that had poor latency saw no improvement with the option enabled. Connection The Buds 2 Plus had reliable connectivity performance. I only noticed some warbling when using 990kbps on non-Nothing phones but on the Nothing Phone (2) even that mode was rock solid. Battery life The Buds 2 Plus have a claimed battery life of 14 hours with ANC disabled and using AAC. With LDAC, that number drops down to 8 hours. In my testing, I got 14 hours and 23 minutes when using AAC and 8 hours and 34 minutes when using LDAC, so the company's figures are accurate. Nothing also claims 4.5 hours of continuous playback with AAC after a 10-minute charge. I got 4 hours 35 minutes, which was once again within spitting distance of the claimed figure. And while Nothing does not mention the LDAC figure, I got 2 hours and 51 minutes, which is respectable. Conclusion The CMF Buds 2 Plus offer good overall performance for the price. The design and build quality are good, the earbuds are comfortable, the battery life is excellent, the microphone performance is commendable, and the Nothing X app is clean and easy to use. Downsides include unremarkable audio quality coupled with a limited and clumsy custom equalizer as well as cheap-feeling and underperforming ear tips. For the price, these are easy to look past, especially since the target customer is unlikely to know any better. Still, it would have been nice if the Plus model didn't have these shortcomings to justify its higher price over its siblings. The Buds 2 Plus can't quite stand out from the crowd with similarly priced options, such as the OnePlus Nord Buds 3 Pro, which perform more or less the same. They are, however, a competent all-rounder and if you like the design of the hardware and software over the competition then that would be a good enough reason to pick them over the rest.
Nylon
22-05-2025
- Nylon
CMF by Nothing unveils the CMF Phone 2 Pro
Since its launch in September 2023, CMF, a sub-brand of Nothing, has been making great design accessible to the masses with their growing range of devices that are both beautiful and practical. Image courtesy of Nothing. Image courtesy of Nothing. Following their extensive releases in 2024 including the launch of the first-generation CMF Phone 1, the brand is looking to disrupt the market with their all-new CMF Phone 2 Pro, offering an alternative option to those who seek a differentiated approach to life and tech without having to conform. Dubbed the ultimate daily smartphone, the CMF Phone 2 Pro features a wonderfully bright display and a pro-level four-camera system that is primed to help you capture life's moments with a joyful, refined design. Image courtesy of Nothing. As the slimmest and lightest smartphone ever designed by Nothing, the CMF Phone 2 Pro weighs just 185g and 7.8mm thin, making it nearly weightless and 5% thinner than its predecessor. It comes in an elegant body with an aluminium camera surround that has evolved from the first-generation design, and features stainless steel screws to offer that authentic Nothing feel. Made with the largest display to date in the CMF range, the CMF Phone 2 Pro is built with a 6.77-inch FHD+ flexible AMOLED display that delivers nearly 1 billion more colours than the CMF Phone 1, taking colouration and vibrancy up a level with enhanced brightness. Powered by the newly upgraded MediaTek Dimensity 7300 Pro 5G processor, this device will be able to handle heavy demands, thanks to its 8-core CPU which clocks in speeds of up to 2.5 GHz. Co-engineered with the state-of-the-art TSMC 4 nm process technology, you'll be able to get game-changing power efficiency alongside 10% quicker processing and a 5% improvement in graphics. Image courtesy of Nothing. The CMF Phone 2 Pro features an advanced four-camera system that comes with a 50MP main camera with the largest sensor size in its class to capture 64% more light than the CMF Phone 1, an 8MP ultra-wide camera for an expansive field of view, and a 16MP front camera for sharp selfies. These, are in addition to the powerful telephoto lens that uses 6 stacked lenses to give you the ability to digitally zoom 20x while taking a photo — making it the only smartphone with a telephoto sensor in this segment. Together with a 5,000 mAh battery, you'll be able to power through two days of use on a single full charge, uninterrupted.
