Nothing's new Headphone 1 have a weird see-through design — and they could beat Sony and Bose for $150 less

There's something to be said about headphone manufacturers thinking at least somewhat outside the box, and it looks like that's just what Nothing has done with the newly launched Headphone (1). At least, to a certain extent.

They're clear, look a bit like AirPods Max with cassettes inside, and they're packed with some interesting tech for a price that could well bother the Bose QuietComfort Ultra and the Sony WH-1000XM6.

Are they going to rank among the best headphones you can buy today? I'll have to get them on my head first — but the specs list certainly looks intriguing.

There's nothing strange inside

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So Nothing is joining the headphone game — and they loook like a very interesting pair. First up, their Bose and Sony beating price. The Nothing Headphone (1) are going to launch at $299/£299, placing them around $150 cheaper than the competition.

For the price it certainly seems like you're going to get a well equipped pair of cans with some very compelling specs. We're looking at sound tuned by KEF, out of a 40mm custom driver. Now, I'm a big fan of KEF, so I'm looking forward to seeing how the headphones sound.

That sound is enhanced with so called dynamic spatial audio (although what form this will take remains to be seen — we'll find out more soon), along with excellent codec support for the likes LDAC.

Plug a USB-C cord in and you'll be able to listen to lossless audio, which is a big bonus over the Sony WH-1000XM6 and the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones.

They'll block noise with AI powered microphones, which apparently adapts to your environment every 600ms. Want to hear the outside world? Hit a button and transparency mode is activated immediately.

You'll control them with physical controls (my favorite), including a volume roller, a "paddle" for skipping tracks and taking calls, and then a button which is customizable.

That button can either conjure ChatGPT or an AI voice assistant, amongst other things. To customize the button you'll be using the Nothing X app. There you'll also find some EQ presets as well.

Battery life sounds good, with 35 hours of ANC on and a grand 80 hours if you turn it off.

And it would be completely remiss of me not to talk about that design. Personally, I love it. There's something that's loads of fun about their weird shape, cassette motif, and see through shells.

I can't wait to get a pair on my head, especially given that they might give the best wireless headphones a run for their money.

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