Open-ear earbuds are having a serious moment right now, and Nothing wants a piece of it. The company just launched the CMF Clip Pro under its budget-friendly CMF sub-brand, and at $99, these could be one of the more interesting options in a category that’s getting crowded fast.
The Clip Pro works exactly how the name suggests. Instead of a hook that wraps behind your ear like the Nothing Ear (open), this one clips directly onto the outside of your ear and positions the speaker right up against your ear canal. You still hear the world around you, which is the whole point of open-ear audio, but the driver sits close enough to actually deliver some real sound. It’s a design that brands like Shokz and Sony have been experimenting with, and consumers are clearly responding to it. People want music without the isolation, whether that’s for safety on a run or just staying aware during a workday.
On paper, the specs look genuinely solid for the price. Nothing packed 10.8mm drivers into each earbud, which weighs just 5.92 grams. That’s light. The brand is also pushing something called “Ultra Bass Technology,” which is meant to compensate for the low-end rolloff that almost every open-ear design suffers from. Nothing’s Ear (open) pulled this off reasonably well, so there’s reason to be cautiously optimistic here rather than eye-rolling at the marketing label.
Battery life comes in at 10 hours on the earbuds themselves, with the case bumping total listening time to 32.5 hours. That’s competitive. And the CMF Smart Dial is back, letting you physically twist a dial on the case to control volume, manage playback, and answer calls. It’s a small thing, but it’s the kind of tactile detail that makes CMF products feel a little more considered than your average budget audio gear.
- 10.8mm drivers in a 5.92g earbud
- Ultra Bass Technology for improved low-end
- 10 hours battery on earbuds, 32.5 hours total with case
- CMF Smart Dial for volume, playback, and call control
- Colors: Coral, Light Grey, Dark Grey
Pricing is where this gets interesting. Pre-orders are live right now at $79.99, which is a $20 discount off the standard $99.99 price that kicks in later this month. Amazon has them listed with an August 15 release date, so the window to grab that lower price is short.
The bigger picture here is worth paying attention to. Nothing has been building the CMF line as its entry point for consumers who want the brand’s aesthetic and thoughtfulness without paying flagship prices. And in the audio space specifically, the open-ear category is growing because people want alternatives to ANC buds that shut out the world completely. CMF Clip Pro slots right into that gap. Whether the bass tech actually delivers or turns out to be a spec sheet claim is the real question, and that answer comes when people actually start using them. But the specs, the price, and the design approach all suggest Nothing is taking this seriously.