The Nothing Ear marked a change in Nothing's naming strategy for its true wireless audio range, with the company removing product numbers from its main Ear line. Nothing described the change as a “reset in naming” intended to simplify how customers identify its earbuds.^[1] Some users subsequently referred to this generation as Ear (2024) or Ear (3). The latter became ambiguous following the release of the Ear (3) in 2025.

Ear's model number is B171 and Pokémon codename is Entei.

Nothing launched Ear globally on 18 April 2024, with the product priced at £129 / $149 / €149. Pre-orders began on the same day, with online sales starting on 22 April. Ear was initially available in White and Black.^[2] A limited drop of both Ear and Ear (a) was also held at Nothing Store Soho on 20 April.^[3]

Regional availability followed shortly afterwards. In India, Ear was priced at ₹11,999, with pre-orders beginning on 18 April and sales beginning on 22 April through Flipkart.^[4] In Japan, Ear was priced at ¥22,800, with pre-orders beginning on 18 April and sales beginning on 22 April through nothing.tech.^[5] In Indonesia, Ear was priced at Rp2,299,000, with retail availability beginning on 22 May 2024 through the Erajaya Group.^[6]

Ear was succeeded by Ear (3).

Ear uses an 11 mm dynamic driver with a ceramic diaphragm, representing a change from the driver materials used by Ear (2). The earbuds measure 29.4 mm × 21.7 mm × 24.1 mm and weigh 4.62 g each, while the charging case measures 55.5 mm × 55.5 mm × 22 mm and weighs 51.9 g. Each earbud contains a 46 mAh battery, while the charging case contains a 500 mAh battery. The earbuds are rated IP54 for resistance to dust and water splashes, while the charging case has an IP55 rating. Ear provides up to 8.5 hours of playback on a single charge with ANC disabled, or up to 40.5 hours with the charging case. With ANC enabled, playback is rated at up to 5.2 hours on a single charge or 24 hours with the charging case. A 10-minute charge provides up to 10 hours of playback with ANC disabled. Ear supports USB-C charging and up to 2.5 W wireless charging. Ear features active noise cancellation (ANC) of up to 45 dB, along with Adaptive ANC and Transparency Mode.^[7]

Ear uses pressure-based pinch controls on the stems of the earbuds. Users can press the stems to perform functions such as play or pause playback, skip or return to previous tracks, adjust volume and activate other functions. The available gestures can be customised through the Nothing X. Ear also introduced a pitch gesture for triggering the AI News function through firmware version 1.0.1.54.^[8]

Ear can be connected to and customised through the Nothing X. The earbuds support Bluetooth 5.3 with SBC, AAC, LDAC and LHDC 5.0 codecs. Ear is Hi-Res Audio certified and supports high-resolution audio transmission of up to 24-bit/192 kHz over LHDC 5.0 and up to 24-bit/96 kHz over LDAC under supported configurations.^[7] Ear also supports Dual Connection, allowing the earbuds to maintain connections with two compatible devices simultaneously. Other connectivity and audio features include Low Lag Mode, Google Fast Pair and Microsoft Swift Pair support.

The Nothing X app provides an Advanced Equaliser with eight-band frequency control and profile sharing, as well as a Personal Sound Profile that adjusts the equaliser based on the user's hearing profile. The app also provides firmware updates, customisable controls, Find My Earbuds, Ear Tip Fit Test and other device settings.^[7]

Following the release of firmware version 1.0.1.54, some users reported issues including uneven battery drain, earbuds failing to charge fully, connection drops, ANC and Transparency Mode behaviour, and delayed or unreliable pinch controls. The reports varied between users and were documented in discussions on the Nothing Community.^[8] In 2026, Nothing released firmware version 1.0.1.56 with general bug fixes.^[12]