Nothing
CMF Buds 2a First Impressions: Stylish Design, Good Sound, and Strong Battery Life Under ₹2,200
CMF by Nothing has launched its new budget-friendly CMF Buds 2a in India, and we got our hands on them for an early impression. These are not full reviews, but here’s what we experienced after using them for a few days.
Clean Design with a Unique Touch
The CMF Buds 2a comes in a square case with rounded edges. It has a matte white finish, which feels premium and smooth to hold. The case is pocket-friendly, although some people may find it slightly large.
One interesting part of the design is a rotating circular dial on the case. It doesn’t serve any function but can be used to attach a lanyard.
Opening and closing the case is smooth and clicky, and the earbuds are easy to take out and place back inside. The stem-style buds are compact and offer a comfortable fit. The magnets are strong, and the buds won’t fall out even if the case is open.
Easy Connectivity and Dual Pairing
Connecting the CMF Buds 2a is very simple. It supports Google Fast Pair for quick connection. Just open the case and press the button outside, and it appears on your phone screen instantly.
For the best experience, it’s recommended to use the Nothing X app, where you can customize controls and settings. These buds also support dual device connection, allowing you to switch between two devices easily.
Sound Quality and Bass Performance
The buds come with a 12.4mm driver and are tuned by Dirac for a balanced audio experience. The sound quality is good for the price, with clear lows, mids, and highs.
The Ultra Bass Technology works well. Bass at level 2 or level 3 is punchy and enjoyable, especially if you love listening to music.
Calling and Mic Quality
Mic quality is decent during normal use. Your voice will sound clear on calls. However, in noisy environments like while riding a bike, the mic struggles — which is common in most TWS earbuds in this range.
Active Noise Cancellation and Transparency
The CMF Buds 2a support up to 42dB Active Noise Cancellation (ANC). It reduces background noise effectively, though not as powerful as more expensive earbuds like Nothing Ear (a). There’s also a Transparency Mode, which works nicely by boosting surrounding sounds when needed.
One thing to note: there’s no support for LHDC or LDAC codecs, so you won’t get high-res audio playback.
Battery Life That Impresses
The case packs a 460mAh battery, and each bud has 43mAh. With ANC and Transparency enabled, the buds last around 4–5 hours on a single use. The case can recharge them multiple times, offering great battery backup overall.
Even after several sessions of music, watching series, and playing BGMI with low-lag mode, the user only had to charge them once after unboxing.
Charging & Indicators
There’s a USB Type-C port on the right side of the case for charging. A red LED on the case indicates low battery, and once fully charged, it turns white.
Pricing and Availability
The CMF Buds 2a is available on Flipkart for Rs. 2,199. If available for under Rs. 2,000 during offers or sales, these earbuds could be one of the best budget options for everyday use.
Final Words
The CMF Buds 2a offer a premium design, good audio quality, decent ANC, and strong battery life — all under Rs. 2,200. If you’re looking for budget TWS earbuds with modern features, these are worth checking out.
A full review will follow soon with detailed testing!
I tested Nothing’s Essential Space on the Nothing Phone (3) and OnePlus Mind Space on the OnePlus 11. Both look similar on the surface, but the way they work feels very different. Let’s break it down.
Nothing Essential Space has a dedicated Essential Key button. Just double press, and the app opens instantly. From there, you can create summaries, reminders, or even voice notes. Everything is simple and fast.
OnePlus Mind Space works with a three-finger swipe gesture. It opens smoothly and also creates summaries and reminders, but you need to do more manual steps compared to Nothing.
The big win for Essential Space is that it syncs directly with Google Calendar. Add a reminder once, and it’s already there. You can even record voice notes or use the camera app to analyze photos and auto-generate descriptions.
Mind Space, on the other hand, shines with app-wise sorting. For example, it can organize summaries by WhatsApp, Chrome, or Twitter, which is quite useful. But adding reminders is manual, and sharing options are limited.
Nothing also adds cool exclusive features like Flip-to-Record, where you just flip the phone, hold the key, and it records with Glyph animations. Later, the AI auto-summarizes your entire meeting or talk into English text. Super handy!
Sharing is also easier on Nothing. You can export your notes as an image, PDF, or Markdown and send them anywhere. On OnePlus, you only get the delete option, which feels basic.
Overall, Nothing Essential Space feels more polished and feature-rich, while OnePlus Mind Space is still catching up. The app-wise sorting on OnePlus is neat, but Nothing’s extra features make it the better option for now.
Also did a video for this. You can give it a watch on YouTube:
The CMF Phone 1 has started receiving the August Nothing OS 3.2 update. This update comes with version V3.2-250723-1800 and is sized at 252 MB. It brings new widget features, bug fixes, and several performance improvements.
One of the main highlights is the improvement to widgets. Shared widgets now support more sticker types, making them more fun and customisable. The Countdown widget has received a new Recurring option along with additional shape choices. This means you can set countdowns to repeat automatically. The Pedometer and Screentime widgets can now also be shared, adding more ways to interact and share information.
In the general improvements section, Nothing has added the option to set the Nothing Gallery as the default for previewing photos in Camera settings. The camera itself has also received stability enhancements for a smoother experience. Bluetooth call issues in Telegram, which affected some watches and earbuds, have been fixed.
The update also resolves font display issues in apps like Instagram, Subito, and a few others. On the security side, the August 2025 security patch has been included, ensuring better device protection. Finally, overall system stability has been improved, and performance has been optimised for a smoother user experience.
The August Nothing OS 3.2 update is rolling out gradually, so CMF Phone 1 users may receive it at different times depending on their region.
Nothing has released the August update for the Nothing Phone (2a) Plus, bringing Nothing OS 3.2 with several new improvements and fixes. The update is 259 MB in size and comes with the build number V3.2-250731-1640. It focuses on enhancing the camera experience, fixing bugs, and improving system stability, along with the latest Android security patch.
One of the major changes in this update is in the Camera app. Users can now choose a default album for preview images in the settings, making photo organization more convenient. The update also improves overall camera stability, ensuring smoother performance when taking pictures and recording videos.
Apart from camera enhancements, the update also addresses some important issues. It fixes a problem that caused rapid battery drain when certain smartwatches were connected to the phone. Additionally, it resolves Bluetooth call issues in Telegram when paired with some watches and earbuds.
There are also fixes for text display problems in apps like Instagram, Subito, and others when using the Inter font. Lastly, the update includes the August 2025 Android security patch, which improves the phone’s security and protects it against the latest threats.
With these improvements, the Nothing OS 3.2 August update aims to deliver a smoother and more reliable experience for Nothing Phone (2a) Plus users.