CMF by Nothing Buds Pro Your Audio Companion:
CMF by Nothing Buds Pro with 45 dB ANC, Ultra Bass Technology & Upto 39 Hours of Battery Life Bluetooth Headset
| Brand | CMF BY NOTHING |
| Model Name | CMF by Nothing Buds Pro with 45 dB ANC, Ultra Bass Technology & upto 39 hours of battery life Bluetooth Headset (Orange, True Wireless) |
| Colour | Orange |
| Form Factor | In Ear |
| Connectivity Technology | Bluetooth version: 5.3 |
The London-based consumer tech startup unveiled the CMF by Nothing sub-brand, following its Year of the Year series. The line offers more affordable accessories like the CMF by Nothing Buds Pro Your Audio Companion, the CMF Watch Pro smartwatch, and a charger. Today, we’ll be taking a look at the CMF Buds Pro, the company’s inaugural ANC earbuds under this sub-brand. Are they worth the investment? Dive into our review to uncover the truth.
Design and Build Quality:
Unlike the transparent design of the Ear series, CMF by Nothing Buds Pro Your Audio Companion have a circular casing with the logo on top. Crafted with PC + ABS body and matte finish, it removes fingerprints effectively. However, note that the white color option is prone to scratches.
When you open the case CMF by Nothing Buds Pro Your Audio Companion, you’ll find the earbuds and a function key below them. Thanks to magnets, the case locks securely. Additionally, there is a magnet that connects the two halves of the case, while the earbuds themselves are held firmly in place by a strong magnet.
The charging case for CMF by Nothing Buds Pro Your Audio Companion measures 58 x 58 x 24 mm and weighs 44.5 grams, making it slightly more compact and lighter than the Ear (1) and Ear (2) cases. Unlike the Ear (2), this case lacks any IP rating for water or dust resistance.
CMF by Nothing Buds Pro Your Audio Companion flaunt a matte finish on the stem, while the rest of the body boasts of a glossy finish. Weighing in at around 4.8 grams, they are slightly heavier than the Ear (2) by 0.3 grams, yet feel lightweight due to their taller design measuring 31.6 x 21.6 x 22.5 mm. Each earbud is equipped with three microphones, ensuring superior wind noise cancellation.
Additionally, an optical sensor detects when the earbuds are worn out, automatically pausing playback when removed from the ear and resuming playback when reinserted.
On the exterior, you’ll see the CMF branding along with a touch-sensitive area, allowing easy controls over play/pause, ANC, and volume. These earphones boast of an IP54 rating, offering dust and water resistance and capable of handling splashes or light rain. However, they are not suitable for swimming.
CMF by Nothing Buds Pro Your Audio Companion offer a comfortable fit that stays snug even during intense activities like running or working out. Their lightweight design ensures that you hardly feel them in your ears. However, unlike the Nothing Ear series, they lack a earbuds fit testing option.
Connectivity, pairing, and controls:
CMF by Nothing Buds Pro Your Audio Companion Ears support Bluetooth 5.3 with AAC and SBC codecs. Although LDAC is not included at this price point, adding APTX can enhance the basic low latency gaming experience.
It is easy to pair with the Nothing device. Simply activate Bluetooth on your phone, open the buds’ charging case near the phone and follow the prompts. For other devices, place the buds in the case with the cover open, press and hold the setup button for 2 seconds to access Bluetooth settings, then select CMF by Nothing Buds Pro Your Audio Companion.
Fast Pair is available on the latest Android phones like HONOR 90 5G and Pixel 7, ensuring seamless pairing without any issues. Microsoft Swift Pair allows connection to Windows devices. Remember, the phone connects to the case, not the headset, requiring the case to reconnect or turn on the headset if disconnected from the phone.
Unlike the Ear 2, dual connection is not supported, limiting connectivity to one device at a time.
CMF by Nothing Buds Pro Your Audio Companion continue to use the touch controls initially introduced in the Ear 1. These controls allow you to skip tracks, toggle between noise cancellation modes, and adjust the volume – all with a simple press. For personalized controls, you can customize these functions using the NothingX app.
| Function | Left earphone (L) | Right earphone (R) |
| Play / Pause or Answer call / Hang calls | Double tap | |
| Next track | Triple tap | |
| Switch between ANC and Transparency Mode | Tap and hold | |
| Volume control | Double tap and hold | |
By default, the volume control is disabled, but you can customize it to your liking using the Nothing Customize the actions for double tap, triple tap and double tap and hold as per your liking. Tap and hold function is specified for noise control.
Additionally, you have the option to disable in-ear detection from the Settings menu. The ‘Find My Earbud’ feature emits a high-pitched sound to help locate a misplaced earbud.
Audio quality:
According to the company, CMF by Nothing Buds Pro Your Audio Companion feature a 10mm liquid crystal polymer (LCP) and polyurethane (PU) bass driver as well as a premium diaphragm for superior elasticity and accuracy. The soft PU material plays a vital role in delivering purer and more accurate bass sound.
Reportedly, the bass leans towards the high end, while the high and mid-range frequencies are described as decent but not excellent. The company also claims that the earbuds feature an intelligent bass enhancement algorithm, which appears to be true.
Additionally, the company highlights the exhaust vent of the rear chamber, which aims to enrich mid-low frequencies, clarify high frequencies and enhance low frequencies for an extra powerful sound experience.
CMF by Nothing Buds Pro Your Audio Companion offer four equalizer presets: balanced (default), more bass, more treble and vocal, ensuring that every song sounds just right. Additionally, you can create your own custom EQ using the Custom option. However, unlike the Ear series, it lacks the Personal Sound Profile feature.
Noise Cancellation and Call Performance:
Regarding noise cancellation, the Active Noise Cancellation (ANC) of the CMF by Nothing Buds Pro Your Audio Companion effectively blocks up to 45dB of ambient sounds, which beats the Ear 1 and Ear 2 models that offer 40dB. However, users have noted that the quality of noise cancellation feels better with the Ear Series, especially in outdoor environments.
Similar to the company’s premium earbuds, CMF by Nothing Buds Pro Your Audio Companion boast an exceptionally wide frequency range of up to 5000Hz, which aims to detect and eliminate a variety of noises. However, its performance may vary in different sound conditions, such as transitions from traffic to crowded areas.
CMF by Nothing Buds Pro Your Audio Companion offer three modes: Low, Mid, and High, but lack the Adaptive mode found in the Ear series. As a result, users have to manually adjust the quality to their liking. Additionally, there is no personalized ANC option, although that makes sense given the price range.
Tap and hold gestures make it easy to switch between noise cancellation, transparency, and no noise cancellation.
The CMF by Nothing Buds Pro Your Audio Companion include a Transparency Mode, which allows you to hear ambient sounds and remain aware of your surroundings and potential risks. The low-latency gaming mode, called Low Lag Mode, is automatically enabled on Nothing phones but requires manual activation in Settings for other devices. While latency is quite high without this mode, it becomes more manageable when enabled, although the exact value has not been officially disclosed.
For call noise cancellation, the CMF by Nothing Buds Pro Your Audio Companion uses Clear Voice technology, placing three high-definition microphones on each earbud to reduce external noise. The company claims to employ advanced algorithms that analyze over 20 million (20 lakh) sound samples, similar to the Ear 2.
Additionally, it features a wind-through structure with two holes at the top of the stem and advanced wind noise reduction algorithms. In my experience, call quality is good for the price, although wind noise is audible to the receiver, and traffic noise is a little noticeable. The ear 2 performs better in both wind and traffic noise cancellation.
Battery life:
The earphones are equipped with a 55mAh battery, which offers 11 hours of standalone battery life without ANC and 6.5 hours of battery life with ANC. In my experience, using AAC and noise cancellation at about 60% volume yielded a little over 5 hours, which is satisfactory.
With noise cancellation completely off, it lasted about 9 hours, also a good performance. However, for calls, battery life is limited to 4.5 hours with ANC enabled due to the use of call noise cancellation technology. However, it is better than Ear 2 due to larger battery capacity.
The 460mAh charging case extends the total battery life to 39 hours without ANC and up to 22 hours with noise cancellation enabled. Unfortunately, wireless charging is not supported. It takes about 1.5 hours to fully charge the case along with the earbuds. Additionally, fast charging is available, providing 5 hours of playback without ANC with just 10 minutes of charging.
Conclusion:
Finally, the CMF by Nothing Buds Pro Your Audio Companion offer decent active noise cancellation (ANC) TWS earbuds at their price point. Although the design of the earbuds may look familiar, the matte finish of the case adds a touch of sophistication. Battery life is commendable, although the bass leans toward the stronger side and call quality is average.
Price Rs. 3,499, it will initially be available at a special launch price of Rs. Rs 2,999 during a limited drop sale on Flipkart and Myntra on September 30 at 12 PM IST. After this, it will be widely available on Flipkart’s Big Billion Days Sale and Myntra. As confirmed by the company, the product will also be stocked in offline stores including Vijay Sales and other major retail partners.