Nothing Ear Stick TWS Review: A perfect balance of style & sound?

Nothing Ear Stick TWS Review Summary:

Editor’s Rating- 3.8/5

Carl Pei’s Nothing launched Nothing Ear Stick in India. The Nothing Ear Stick TWS headphones are kind of a successor to the previously launched Nothing Ear 1 which got a good response in the Indian market. Similar to all Nothing products, the Ear Stick also has a transparent case. It has a design inspired by lipstick and claims to give good sound quality and long battery life. Is this new TWS worth the hype? Let’s find out. [ हिंदी में पढ़ें ]

JUMP TO…

• Price and availability
• Unboxing
• Design and Fit
• Connectivity, Controls & Features
• Sound and ANC
• Battery
• Should you buy it?

Nothing Ear Stick Price & Availability

The Nothing Ear Stick has been priced at Rs. 8499 in India and it will go on sale via Flipkart on 17^th November at 12 PM. It will also be up for grabs via Nothing’s official website in India. The Ear Stick is expected to come in white and black colors.

Nothing Ear Stick Unboxing

The Nothing Ear Stick comes in a box that can be opened by pulling tags at both ends. The box is not made for second-time usage, so reselling the device with the box is tricky. The box contains-

• Nothing Ear Stick Buds within the Charging case
• Charging cable
• Important paperwork

The cable and paperwork are enclosed in a cylindrical case inside the boxed packaging.

Nothing Ear Stick Specs

• Type: In-ear
• Speaker: 12.6mm dynamic driver
• Bluetooth: 5.2
• Codecs: SBC, AAC
• IP Rating: IP54
• Battery life: 7 hours (29 hours with case)
• Earbud dimensions: 29.8×18.8×18.4mm
• Earbud weight: 4.4 grams each
• Charging case dimensions: 87.1×29.8mm
• Charging case weight: 46.3 grams

Nothing Ear Stick Review: Design & Fit

The Nothing Ear Stick TWS looks stunning when you first glance at them. The charging case is equally good-looking and can easily be mistaken for lipstick because it has a design inspired by a lipstick case. The buds as well as the case is white in color and they look good.

The case is cylindrical in shape and opens with a twist mechanism to access the buds inside. If you are someone who uses lipstick, then you’ll understand what I am talking about. The case is transparent just like all other products Nothing are so the buds are always visible. There’s an audible click when the case opens or closes all the way. There is a charging port at the top of the tube which is covered by a red plastic material that adds visual flair. Coming to the buds, they look very similar to Apple AirPods 2 as they have short and flat stems. There is a tiny Ear Stick branding on the stems.

Overall the design is different from what is usually seen but the problem might arise when this lipstick-like design is preferred by one gender only. While I being a woman loved the design, my cousin’s brother did not like it at all. He felt I would look carrying the case in my hand, but he would not. I think generally too, this might be the response towards the design as females might like it, but males most probably would not. Also, if you are someone who wears skinny jeans, then you might face a tough time keeping the device in your pocket.

The Ear Stick case doesn’t have hinges so even if it slips out of your hand or from the table, the buds will not fly out of the case and get lost. The white color of the device makes it prone to dirt and grime so if you want your device to not look used, then try going in for the black variant. The buds have a good in-ear fit and are comfortable to wear for long durations. The buds sit snugly and don’t get loose even if you are finicky. Earbuds are feather-light in weight with each one weighing merely 4.4 grams.

Nothing Ear Stick Review: Connectivity, Controls & Features

Nothing Ear Stick is compatible with the Nothing X app, which has been modified to provide more options. The app provides some basic customization settings and if you are a Nothing phone user, then connecting the ear stick to your phone will be even more simpler.

The Ear Stick comes with in-ear detection which means as soon as you remove one of the buds, the music pauses automatically. Once you put them back inside, the music resumes itself. The touch controls get activated when you press the stem. Touch controls can be customized using the options in the companion app.

ALSO READ: Best 5G phones under Rs 30,000 in India

Nothing Ear Stick Review: Sound Quality & Call Quality

The Nothing Ear Stick doesn’t have ANC which might be a bummer for many people. For me as well, lack of ANC was an issue as the Ear Stick does let in a huge amount of noise when one is in crowded places like a market or a metro station. Also, the sound of what you are listening to does leak outside as there are no silicone ear tips, so you can’t listen to anything at a loud volume unless you want people around you to know what you are listening to.

The Ear Stick comes with 12.6mm dynamic drivers which is the largest you can get on an under 10k budget. The large drivers deliver clearer highs and one can hear every detail in the song precisely. Listening to party numbers with foot-tapping beats is an immersive experience. The bass is punchy and apt for songs with bass-boosted music. Even if there are too many instruments being played simultaneously, the ears don’t feel fatigued while listening to it. The slow sufi music sounded soothing with the singer’s voice being crystal clear and melodious.

The buds come with a balanced treble which means the voices don’t sound screechy even at high volumes. So one can listen to music at max volume without any inconvenience.

Coming to the call quality, the buds give a decent sound quality while attending calls. The device gets connected to the phone as soon as you receive a call and the quality of voice over the call was brilliant on both ends.

Nothing Ear Stick TWS Review: Battery

The Nothing Ear Stick has good battery life. Once you charge the case to 100%, it gives a battery life of about 28 hours. I could use the buds for almost a week on a single charge. This was when my daily usage was about 4 hours. The buds inside the case can be charged using a USB Type-C connection and there is a cable included inside the box. There is no wireless charging but a 10-minute fast charge can provide a battery for up to 2-hour usage.

Review Verdict: Should you buy Nothing Ear Stick?

With Nothing Ear Stick, the company is trying to prove that a TWS can sport a different design and yet sound good. The design is totally different from all the TWS available in the market. Moreover, the sound quality is good and it has a long battery life as well. But the problem is that design might not be liked by everyone alike. Also, there is no ANC which is a huge drawback for a TWS that costs over 8000. There is no wireless charging support as well. If you want to own a TWS that has a funky design and sounds good, then Nothing Ear Stick might be your choice.