Nothing Now Has a Cheaper Version of One of 2025’s Best Wireless Headphones

I’ve got good and bad news about Nothing’s Headphone A, the company’s cheaper alternative to the Headphone 1. The good news is that they are $100 cheaper than the Headphone 1 at $199, and there are also a lot more colors—the Headphone 1 only come in black and white. The bad news? Some of those colors aren’t here to stay.

While the company previously teased the Headphone A in yellow, it turns out that particular color is limited edition. Nothing doesn’t say how many pairs will be made, only that it plans to launch the yellow Headphone A for open sales at a later date, on April 6. All headphones can be preordered now, but the black, white, and pink versions will all go on sale sooner, starting March 13.

Outside of the limited edition color twist, the Headphone A are mostly what leaks leading up to the announcement had portrayed. They’re cheaper, though not as cheap as expected, and also have an entirely plastic build as opposed to the Headphone 1, which are made in part with aluminum. They also have a slightly less elaborate design. Instead of the cassette motif on the outside of the earcups, the Headphone A have plain plastic. They do still have all of the buttons from the Headphone 1, though, which is a welcome inclusion if you ask me. Those include the roller, the paddle, a power switch, and a button for pairing.

One good thing about the difference in build quality is that the Headphone A are noticeably lighter—310g compared to the Headphone 1’s 329g. With the same memory foam cushions as the Headphone 1, that should make the Headphone A marketable to anyone who likes over-head wireless headphones but doesn’t like the more noticeable feel on their head.

As Nothing had teased previously, the battery is surprisingly formidable. If you’re not using active noise cancellation (ANC), you’ll get as much as 135 hours out of a single charge, and with ANC activated, you’ll get about 75 hours on a single charge. That’s pretty damn good in general for a pair of over-ear wireless headphones, but even better when compared to the Nothing Headphone 1, which get about 35 hours of battery life with ANC on and 80 hours with ANC disabled.

One thing you won’t get with the Headphone A, outside of a more elaborate design and premium build, is the same sound tuning. While both pairs of wireless headphones have 40mm drivers, the Headphone 1 are tuned by hi-fi audio company KEF; the Headphone A aren’t.

The Headphone A are a product of the same playbook as the Nothing Ear A, which were released as the company’s more colorful and affordable alternative to the Nothing Ear wireless earbuds. Like the Headphone A, the Ear A also had differences in sound quality, but were a solid deal for the compromises. Whether the Headphone A hit the same highs as the Ear A is another question, but it’s hard to argue with a big battery and more competitive pricing.