The Nothing 3A come in four color options. / Nothing
Pros & Cons
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Attractively designed earbuds for less than $100 -
Comfortable, secure fit -
Good sound quality -
Improved noise canceling from previous model -
Improved water-, dust-resistance for buds and case -
Audio recording feature
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Voice-calling performance could be better -
Sound may be a little too bass-forward for some -
Spatial audio mode doesn’t add anything
As with Google, Nothing has a history of releasing more affordable A-series earbuds the year after the launch of its flagship earbuds. The A-series models typically leave out a few features and cut some design corners, yet manage to deliver good performance at a significantly lower price. Inevitably, that leads to some debate about whether the upgrades in the flagship model are worth the higher price, and it’s not always an easy question to answer, particularly when the flagship model is seeing some discounts because it’s been on the market for several months.
On the surface, anyway, Nothing’s new-for-2026 Ear 3A ($99) earbuds look pretty similar to the flagship Ear 3 ($179), which now sells for $149, and some more metallic accents are imbued in its design. The Ear 3As have a more bass-forward sound profile. They also come with a more compact charging case that leaves off wireless charging and the “super” microphone integrated into the Ear 3’s case for boosting voice-calling performance. However, they are equipped with their own unusual feature: 32MB of built-in flash storage that allows you to record up to two hours of audio directly to the buds by pinching the stems of both buds simultaneously.
The Nothing Ear 3A buds come in four color options: white, yellow, black and a new pink color.David Carnoy/CNET
While I can’t say they wowed me for the price, they sport an appealing design that fits my ears well and offer improved noise-canceling performance from their predecessor, the Ear A, along with Bluetooth 6.0 and increased durability, with an IP54 water- and dust-resistance rating compared to an IPX2 rating. The Ear 3A are the definition of solid-but-unspectacular noise-canceling earbuds and are a good alternative to more premium options like the AirPods Pro 3 or Samsung’s Galaxy Buds 4 Pro (Samsung’s likable Galaxy Buds 3 FE are its version of A-series buds). Overall, they’re only a small step down from the Ear 3, which does offer better voice-calling performance.
Nothing Ear 3A design
Available in four colors, including a new pink option, the buds’ charging case looks similar to its predecessor but is slightly longer and has been redesigned, with “a rounder, friendlier silhouette.” While it doesn’t offer wireless charging, it has a new multipixel LED battery life indicator embedded into it that looks kind of cool.
Like the buds, the case has an IP54 rating, so it’s splashproof and dust-resistant. Those of you with small ears will appreciate that the buds come with a set of extra-small eartips. I would prefer if they came with a set of extra-large tips; I got a tight seal in my left ear with the included large ones, but didn’t quite get there with my right ear. I had to experiment with alternative tips to ensure optimal sound quality and noise-canceling performance. All that said, even with Nothing’s eartips, the buds stayed securely in my ears, and I was able to run with them.
The case’s design has been refined.David Carnoy/CNET
Nothing Ear 3A noise-canceling performance
The noise canceling on the original Ear A buds was a little weak, and Nothing says it’s improved the Nothing 3A’s ANC by 17.1%, with “stronger noise reduction across a broader frequency range, particularly between 400Hz and 2,000Hz, where much of everyday environmental noise occurs.” There are three ANC setting levels — low, medium and high — plus an adaptive ANC mode that adjusts the noise canceling based on your environment.
Once I got a tight seal, the buds did a decent job muffling ambient sound when I was using them in the noisy streets of New York. But my AirPods Pro 3, Sony WF-1000XM6 and Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds (Gen 2) were all noticeably better at muffling ambient noise (all those buds cost considerably more, however). I’d give the Ear 3A a B grade for noise canceling.
The buds get a little higher mark for their transparency mode, which also seems improved and more natural-sounding. The only problem is that the sound changes slightly for the worse when you move from noise-canceling to transparency mode.
The case’s lid has a magnetic clasping system.
Nothing Ear 3A sound quality
Nothing says the Ear 3A buds have new 12-millimeter dynamic drivers designed to deliver “deeper bass and greater detail.” Initially, out of the box at their default setting, the sound came across as noticeably bass-forward, perhaps too much so — the sound was a little too warm and lacked some clarity. You could play around with the equalizer settings to improve the sound, but interestingly, just as I was about to finish this review, the Nothing X companion app informed me that there was a firmware update available that updated the default sound setting. After the update, the earbuds’ sound is a little more balanced, though it’s not a huge change.
To be clear, there’s nothing wrong with the sound. It’s good for the price, and the earbuds are pleasant enough to listen to. The bass has some nice girth and packs a little punch; the soundstage is reasonably wide, the mids (where voices live) sound fairly warm and natural, and the treble clarity is pretty good. But there’s nothing terribly special about the sound that jumped out at me. I’d rate it a B-plus.
The buds have support for the SBC, AAC and LDAC codecs and have a “low lag” mode for video and gaming. While they don’t have spatial audio with head tracking, they do have a “fixed” spatial audio mode. I was underwhelmed with the spatial audio mode, though, even though the latest firmware promised improvements. It raises the volume slightly and plays around with the soundstage, but there’s something a little off about it.
Nothing Ear 3A voice-calling performance and battery life
In my tests, I initially wasn’t all that impressed with the voice-calling performance of the buds, as callers said they could hear more background noise when I was speaking to them from the noisy streets of New York, compared to some other buds and headphones I’ve tested recently. I was ready to grade them a B-minus or so, but then the firmware update showed up with notes that said it would improve voice-calling performance, so I had to head out and do some more test calls.
Just as I was finishing my review, the app notified me that there was a firmware update available.David Carnoy/CNET
Noise reduction did improve, but my voice also became slightly less clear. All things considered, they just eke out a B grade for voice-calling — decent enough, but not great.
Battery life is rated at up to 6 hours with noise canceling on at moderate volume levels and 10 hours with noise canceling off, and you get a little more than three fill-ups from the charging case (up to 25 hours total with ANC on and 42 hours total with ANC off). Those battery life numbers are considered fairly average these days.
The Audio Snapshot is kind of useful
According to Nothing, that special recording feature I mentioned in the intro is powered by Audio Snapshot and lets you instantly clip media you’re listening to, “whether it’s an online lecture, or saving a voice note from a friend.” You can also record calls, with recordings automatically syncing to the Nothing X app, where they can be “replayed, edited, shared and transcribed.” All participants receive an audio alert when a call is being recorded.
I wasn’t sure what to make of the feature at first, but after using it, it does seem kind of useful, though I do wish the Nothing app would stop asking me whether I want to subscribe (for a fee) to the Pro transcribe option each time I listen to a recording – I was just fine with the basic free transcription. I recorded some phone conversations along with the sound from YouTube videos and even some music from Spotify.
To be clear, the feature doesn’t allow you to use the buds’ microphones to surreptitiously record people around you; it just lets you record clips of what you’re listening to on your phone.
Nothing Ear 3A final thoughts
Nothing has made a name for itself by offering eye-catching products with good performance, including phones, earbuds and headphones, at more affordable prices than premium brands. There are plenty of earbuds in this price range that offer similar performance. The dual-driver Earfun Air Pro 4 Plus earbuds, for instance, cost around $80 and sound a little better. I also like the Baseus Inspire XP1 ($130), which feature Sound by Bose tech and frequently dip to around $100. The Anker Soundcore Liberty 5 are also solid noise-canceling buds for around $90.
The Nothing Ear 3A earbuds don’t really have a performance advantage over those buds, though you could certainly argue they have a design advantage. As I said, I wasn’t wowed by them, but they’re worth recommending for what they cost.
David Carnoy
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