The best budget earbuds from Nothing and Sony are both at record-low prices – here’s what I’d buy this Black Friday | Daily Reports Online
Battery (buds): 8.5 hrs (ANC on) or a max 12 hrs with ANC off; max 30 hrs with case
Weight (bud): 5.2g per earbud
Noise cancellation: Yes
Spatial audio: Yes, Sony 360 Reality Audio
Water resistance: IPX4
In March 2025, Sony took its smash-hit budget noise-cancelling buds and changed the colorway, companion app, mic array, size and stamina. You still don’t get lossless LDAC or the firm’s top-tier DSEE upscaler, but you still do get the 360 Reality Audio (if you have the content) and, now, auto-off when you remove a bud. But the real star of the show is ANC: it’s superb for the level. If cheap ANC is top of your wish list, these can make your wish come true.
Pros
- ANC is much, much better
- Improved calls and stamina
- Auto-off is a big addition
Cons
- Still no LDAC
- On-ear controls could be better
- Nothing does the transparent look better
Battery (buds): 5.5hrs (9.5hrs without ANC)
Weight (bud): 4.8g per earbud
Noise cancellation: Yes
Spatial audio: No
Water resistance: IP54 buds / IPX2 case
Congratulations, Nothing, the Ear (a) are a stone-cold hit. The ANC is excellent for the level, the stamina is solid, the sound is superb and the classy build feels like it should require us to lay down a lot more money to buy them. OK, wireless charging is absent, as is Nothing’s top-tier sound profiles and the ceramic driver you get in the more expensive Ear proposition – oh, and they’ve been superseded by the new Ear (3) – but that’s where the criticism ends.
Pros
- Zealous, meaty, expansive sound
- Vastly improved active noise cancellation
- Smaller, more pocketable case
Cons
- No wireless charging support
- No flagship sound profile curation
Across the pond in the UK, the Nothing Ear (a) can now be yours for just £59 (was £89) and those lovely Sony see-throughs can be snapped up for only £74.99 (was £129.99) both at Amazon.
• Shop Amazon’s full Black Friday sale
So which should you buy? In the battle of the cheap buds, this decision isn’t easy, but that’s what I’m here to help you work out. You should know from the get-go it’s not a simple one, this. Why so? Because the best earbuds for one user aren’t always the best option overall. So, I’m going to put them head-to-head to help you pick. Fortunately, I reviewed both of these sets of earbuds following TechRadar’s strict review guidelines, so I’m thoroughly confident I can help.
It’s worth pausing a moment to say (because after all, it is Black Friday) if you spend a little more and head further up the food chain, you’ll get flagship perks. This really is budget territory and we shouldn’t forget that.
If you’re into it, I’ve also curated a list of the only headphones and earbuds deals you should consider this Black Friday, a Bose headphones Black Friday roundup and my pick of Sennheiser’s best Black Friday headphones deals – and we’ve even got Black Friday headphones live blog coverage, for the very newest deals as and when they drop.
Not looking for headphones or earbuds at all, and wondering how you got here? That’s OK. TechRadar’s more general Black Friday deals roundup will help – and it’s curated by actual people, and still only contains deals our experts love.
Back to these two sets of earbuds, though, and do you know what your top priorities are? It’s fine either way, we’ll get to all of that. But if you know you want something that has the marginally better ANC (for the money) and for the first time ever offers pinch-to-speak to ChatGPT directly from paired Nothing phones, I can tell you which is more deserving of your precious coin – you’ll likely have guessed it’s the Nothing option.
However, if you want access to Sony’s 360 Reality Audio and you’re not a fan of “toothbrush head” earbuds, I’d direct you to the Sony earbuds. All of this to come.
But first! The deals…
The best deals in the US
The best deals in the UK
Sony WF-C710N vs Nothing Ear (a): Price and release date
The Sony WF-C710N earbuds were released on March 25, 2025, priced $119 / £100 / AU$189. They’ve since dropped to the all-new lowest ever prices you’ll see above
The Nothing Ear (a) arrived just under one year earlier than the Sony earbuds, on April 18, 2024, priced $99 / £99 / AU$169.
Because of that earlier release date, I’ve seen a few more discounts on the Ear (a) during sales events and such, but again, they’ve never dipped as low as this. That may well be due to the release of the newer Ear (3), which I also reviewed and liked a lot – although honestly I’d still point you towards the Ear (a).
Sony WF-C710N vs Nothing Ear (a): Features
First off, both the Sony WF-C710N and the Nothing Ear (a) support issue-free multipoint connectivity for simple switching between a call on your phone to a Teams meeting on your laptop, say. If that sounds basic, do note that it’s a relatively new feature and one that quickly becomes essential once you’re using it – a proper “I’m never going back now” moment, if you will.
The Sony WF-C710N support Bluetooth 5.3 and arguably the biggest draw here is Sony 360 Reality Audio, which means that after taking a few shots of your ears while wearing them (all handled by the Sony Sound Connect companion app), you can listen to Sony’s excellent object-based surround presentation. The issue is that it’s becoming harder to find it – because Tidal’s dropped support for the format – but it is still available on Amazon Music and nugs.net.
Sony’s revered adaptive sound control is also here. For starters, you can select ‘Walking’, ‘Waiting’, ‘Traveling’ or ‘Registered places’ in the app, which is so good at this level it almost shouldn’t be allowed. Plus you also get Sony’s standard DSEE audio ‘upscaling’ engine, so even your compressed Spotify tracks are going to sound a lot better than they would otherwise. No LDAC still (Sony’s higher-resolution audio solution) but for the money it’s still a splendid feature set.
The Nothing Ear (a) don’t support 360 Reality Audio or any special onboard spatial audio wizardry, but you do get the LDAC codec support here, (the Sony-developed codec that lets you stream high-resolution audio up to 32-bit/96kHz over Bluetooth at up to 990kbps, if your device supports it and the file can deliver it) which is basically unheard of for this money. Got a Sony smartphone? Oh, you’re going to love it. Isn’t it odd that I’m suggesting you don’t buy Sony earbuds to go with a Sony device? That’s why you need to stick with me, folks…
And I’m not done! An alternative ace up the Nothing’s sleeve is that if you pinch the stems you can talk to ChatGPT, as long as you’ve got a Nothing phone to pair them to and you’re running the updated Nothing X app. A world-first for this money? I know…
While the ANC in the Sony earbuds is excellent for the asking fee, having personally reviewed both, I think the Nothing Ear (a)’s noise nixing is a tiny bit better for the money. It’s just a touch more robust – although there’s very little in it, I have to say.
The Nothing Ear (a) also bags you the same Bluetooth 5.3 chipset as the Sony buds, you don’t get LDAC with the Sony WF-C710N.
The Nothing Ear (a) won’t serve up the newer Ear (3)’s personalized hearing tests and sound profile curation (mind you, you won’t get that with the Sony WF-C710N either), but for the money, the feature set is as wholly enjoyable as I could ever expect.
Battery life? Yes, of course: the Sony WF-C710N gives you up to 8.5 hours from the earbuds, but that’s with with ANC on (I know!) and up to 30 hours with the case.
The Nothing Ear (a) Buds will only give you 5.5hrs with ANC on (or 9.5hrs without ANC) but the total stamina from the case is a little more impressive, at 24.5 hours (or 42.5 hours without ANC).
So, the Sony buds will go for longer on their own from a full charge, but the Nothing’s case can deliver more juice before you need to charge it via USB-C – and simply because I haven’t said it yet, neither of the cases here can support wireless charging.
Sony WF-C710N vs Nothing Ear (a): Audio performance
The fact that both of these options gained glowing reviews here under intense testing (4.5 for the Sony option; 5 for the Nothings) is proof that neither are any kind of slouch sonically speaking. So let’s unpick the why (as in, why they’re so good) and try to get to the which (as in, which you should opt for).
As I said in my Sony WF-C710N review: “There are incremental gains to be had here. The opening keys in Grian Chatten’s All of the People are textured and three-dimensional. There’s a human quality to the depressing of each key that most entry-level earbuds cannot convey through the upper midrange.”
My Nothing Ear (a) review states: “Those with a Sony smartphone (I used the Sony Xperia 1 IV) will find LDAC codec files delivered with expanse and pinpoint accuracy when it comes to the placement of each sonic article. In Aerosmith’s Going Down / Love In an Elevator, a shaker sits comfortably in the well of my right ear as backing vocals come in through the left. When the heavily processed ‘Going down’ vocal bridge sweeps across the soundstage like a freight train, it grazes the back of my brain en route.”
So, with so little to separate the audio quality in terms of talent, it’s probably best to consider how you listen – and to what. Own a Sony handset? Strangely, I’d point you to the Nothing buds, since these will give you that higher-resolution LDAC audio support. That said, if you like your audio immersive and you use Amazon Music Unlimited or a Fire Stick TV, you only get 360 Reality Audio from the Sony WF-C710N.
Oh all right then, if really pushed, I still believe there’s an extra iota of bite through the leading edges of notes to be gleaned from the Nothing Ear (a), but if you prefer a layered, detailed, integrated, neutral hi-fi listen (and I mean when not listening in 360 Reality Audio), you may prefer the Sony proposition. I genuinely cannot narrow it down any better than that.
Sony WF-C710N vs Nothing Ear (a): Design & fit
Far more to separate the two contenders here chaps! The Sony’s WF-C710N are slightly bigger than the C710N they replace, but at 5.2g per bud (the older set were just 4.6g per bud) they’re still relatively compact and will fit all but the very very smallest of adult ears (do see my best earbuds for small ears guide for more on all of that, friend). That said, the build of my transparent blue review sample did feel resoundingly plastic and, while perfectly functional and durable, I can’t help feeling that Nothing does the whole semi-transparent design thing with more flair.
The Nothing Ear (a) not only showcase Nothing’s much-vaunted half-transparent (Nothing-y, get it?) design language, but have also made it available in a bright, eye-catching yellow finish as well as the more traditional black and white. They’re also a little lighter, at 4.8g per bud and for me, their stems aid the security and comfort.
Honestly, the classy build and finish make them look far more expensive than they are, but if you’re someone who doesn’t get on with stemmed earbuds, you need to take note here – these are stems, and they’re impossible to ignore.
Said stems can be squeezed for on-ear volume tweaks or a hotline to ChatGPT, from your Nothing phone and I found them very comfortable indeed. The Nothing earbuds are also some of the easiest to retrieve on the go that I’ve ever tested. Aside from the see-through case (so you’ll always know if they’re loose on your coffee table or not) Nothing’s right-red, left-white dots also help you match the colors for popping back into the charger.
Sony earbuds are some of the most comfortable I’ve ever had the pleasure of wearing, something I shouldn’t have been surprised by since the Sony LinkBuds S are another firm favorite for my smaller ears. These are a little bigger but still I found them easy to wear over long periods.
That said, the security of the fit was affected by the shiny finish of the plastic. Simply put, they didn’t offer quite as much grip, which is something to consider if you regularly run for the bus or dance wearing your earbuds (I do both).
The Sony case does not feel high-end in direct comparison to the Nothing’s charging nest, but it’s still fairly pocketable, functional, and shuts with a reassuring snap.
Quick note on the drivers: 5mm in the Sony; 11mm in the Nothing. If that sounds significant, know that both sound excellent (see above) and that volume levels or bloating of the bass was never an issue in either set.
Sony WF-C710N vs Nothing Ear (a): Verdict
I’ll be honest: the Nothing Ear (a) have been my go-to budget buds for well over a year now. If you need to know you’re buying the newest of the new however, Sony’s WF-C710N have yet to be superseded while the Nothing Ear (3) exist, to effectively update Nothing’s earbuds lineup, although they’re a flagship proposition rather than the entry-level Ear (a).
At this time of year, it likely all comes down (as most things inevitably do) to the delicate topic of coin.
Keeping a tight hold on the wallet right now? I hear you. You won’t be disappointed in either the Sony WF-C710N or the Nothing Ear (a). However, the Nothing Ear (a) look a lot more expensive, and they’re far from it – they’re actually the cheaper of the two and you’re getting ChatGPT integration, great ANC for the money and LDAC support for better-quality audio (if you have a Sony phone, say) plus a truly classy finish.
Would you rather have LDAC audio over Sony’s 360 Reality Audio? Actually, it might be better to ask: do you currently have (or are you considering the purchase of) a Sony phone, or are you thinking of getting an Amazon Music account? If you own the former, go with the Nothings. If you want to get into 360 Reality Audio for not much money, you could get yourself an Amazon Music subscription and go for the Sonys.
Also, consider the benefits of AI, because Nothing’s ChatGPT integration is the ideal gateway to start speaking to the chatbot frontrunner – if you’re into kind of thing. Either way, my marginal favorite is still the Nothing Ear (a), even though I know they’ve recently been superseded by the Nothing Ear (3). That’s my winner, folks!
Now, over to you – let me know in the comments which you prefer and why!
