Technologies

Nothing Ear 2 Buds Have Great Sound and Noise Canceling for $149

I had a chance to try Nothing’s new buds, which offer great rock and indie audio performance.

Nothing’s second-gen earbuds — the Ear 2 — have arrived. I’ve used them and found they offer good sound quality and solid active noise cancellation. They replace the first-gen Nothing Ear 1 buds, which were launched back in July 2021, and they’ll cost $149 (£129, which converts to roughly AU$275) when they go on sale on March 29.

Nothing is the fairly fresh tech firm founded by Carl Pei, who’s better known for having co-founded OnePlus. I’ve been impressed many of OnePlus’s products since day one, so I was excited to see what its former CEO might cook up next. Nothing’s first products including the Ear 1 buds and the Nothing Phone 1 echoed OnePlus’ philosophy of not having «to choose between performance, quality and price.»

nothing-ear-2-buds-cnet-review-7 — Andrew Lanxon/CNET

When they launched, I admired the Ear 1 buds’ stand-out design, decent sound quality and fair pricing. To be honest, not a lot has changed for the newer version. Physically there’s very little difference. The Ear 2 buds come with an almost identical (although slightly smaller) clear perspex charging case and the buds themselves are almost indistinguishable from the previous model.

Nothing Ear 2

$149 at Nothing

If you’re hoping for wild new looks from Carl Pei’s design team with every generation, you may be disappointed. But I like the look, even if it’s not a departure from the Ear 1. The buds are small and lightweight which makes them comfortable to wear for long periods. I even found them unobtrusive enough to sleep in.

nothing-ear-2-buds-cnet-review-6 — Andrew Lanxon/CNET

The touch controls have been adjusted, so you now need to squeeze the stems rather than tap them. This makes it less easy to accidentally change tracks — a small update but one I found to be helpful in everyday use. They’re also IP55 rated for water-resistance, so you don’t need to worry about wearing them in the rain or during a particularly sweaty workout.

The case charges the buds, providing a total of up to 36 hours of battery life (with noise cancelling turned off) which is a slight improvement over the 34 hours of the last model. It also has fast charging giving 8 hours of use from just 10 minutes of charging.

nothing-ear-2-buds-cnet-review-16 — The Ear 2 bud (left) and the Ear 1 bud (right). Spot the difference.

Andrew Lanxon/CNET

So what about that all-important sound quality? Nothing says its audio engineers worked hard to upgrade performance, and indeed I noticed an improvement over the last model. Don Broco’s track Pretty was handled well, for example. I could hear crystal clear cracks on the snare in the opening beats, and brightly ringing cymbals with a deep bass when it really kicked in.

The buds are a talented all-rounder, so if you tend to bounce between genres on your playlists then they’ll likely suit you well. I found the buds to perform optimally, though, with rock and indie genres, with songs like Atreyu’s Baptize sounding punchy and detailed, while Cage The Elephant’s In One Ear struck a satisfying balance between the warmth of the bass and the crunch of the guitars.

nothing-ear-2-buds-cnet-review-11 — Andrew Lanxon/CNET

There have been key updates on the software side, with the Nothing X app (available on both Android and iOS) offering sound tests to check you’re wearing the right sized ear tips and a sound profile mode that aims to automatically tune the audio to your personal needs. I tried it but for the most part found I’d rather just use the «Balanced» mode in the app’s equalizer.

Using the app to perform setup also allows you to tailor the active noise cancelling function to the frequencies you can — or can’t — hear. I found the resulting cancellation effect to be excellent. It easily removed the background hum of my computers and fans and the road noise outside my window.

nothing-ear-2-buds-cnet-review-12 — Andrew Lanxon/CNET

If you own the first-generation model already then there’s little need to upgrade to the the Ear 2 buds. They perform similarly and look identical. But if you’re in the market for a new pair of ANC earbuds, and you’ve been curious about the Nothing brand, then the Ear 2 buds are a solid option to consider.

Technologies

You’ll Soon Be Able to Buy Walmart Products Through ChatGPT

OpenAI’s chatbot already connects to Etsy and Shopify. Now you can buy bananas too.

OpenAI and Walmart will soon offer shopping via AI through ChatGPT, the retail giant said in a press release on Tuesday.

While using ChatGPT’s Instant Checkout feature, customers can buy groceries, electronics or other essentials within the chatbot interface.

Walmart has its own AI assistant in its app named Sparky. With Sparky, customers can ask questions about products and get summaries of reviews to find the best item.

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«For many years now, e-commerce shopping experiences have consisted of a search bar and a long list of item responses. That is about to change,» Walmart CEO Doug McMillon said in a statement. «There is a native AI experience coming that is multi-media, personalized and contextual. We are running towards that more enjoyable and convenient future with Sparky and through partnerships including this important step with OpenAI.»

When asked for comment, Walmart referred to its press release. Walmart also said it wouldn’t discuss the financial terms of the agreement at this time.

«We’re excited to partner with Walmart to make everyday purchases a little simpler. It’s just one way AI will help people every day under our work together,» OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said in a press release.

OpenAI referred to Walmart’s press release when asked for comment.

The latest deal with Walmart comes as OpenAI tries to make ChatGPT an all-in-one shopping experience. AI chatbots are increasingly being used as vehicles for online shopping. They can synthesize reviews from across the internet and give people direct answers to shopping questions. Already, ChatGPT connects with Etsy and Shopify with its Instant Checkout feature, allowing people to buy directly. OpenAI also added more shopping features in ChatGPT Search earlier this year.

(Disclosure: Ziff Davis, CNET’s parent company, in April filed a lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging it infringed Ziff Davis copyrights in training and operating its AI systems.)

Technologies

OpenAI Will Loosen ChatGPT’s Mental Health Guardrails and Allow Erotica for Adult Users

Sam Altman said the company will ease limits for adults after rolling out age verification.

ChatGPT is treading cautiously right now, but the chatbot may become more risqué by the end of the year.

In recent weeks, the generative AI chatbot has been operating under somewhat stringent limitations, as OpenAI tried to address concerns that it was not handling sensitive mental health issues well. But CEO Sam Altman said in a post on X Tuesday that the company would ease some of those restrictions because it’s «been able to mitigate the serious mental health issues.»

Though Altman didn’t elaborate on what tools are being used to address the problem, OpenAI recently announced new parental controls in ChatGPT.

CNET reached out to OpenAI for details, but the company did not immediately respond to a request for comment. (Disclosure: Ziff Davis, CNET’s parent company, in April filed a lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging it infringed Ziff Davis copyrights in training and operating its AI systems.)

Other changes are also expected. Altman said the company could allow «erotica» for verified adult users as it implements an «age-gating» system, or age-restricted content, in December. The mature content is part of the company’s «treat adult users like adults» principle, Altman said.

Altman’s post also announced a new version of ChatGPT in the next few weeks, with a personality that behaves more like the company’s GPT-4o model. Chatbot users had complained after the company replaced 4o with the impersonal GPT-5 earlier this year, saying the new version lacked the engaging and fun personality of previous chatbot models.

«If you want your ChatGPT to respond in a very human-like way, or use a ton of emoji, or act like a friend, ChatGPT should do it (but only if you want it, not because we are usage-maxxing),» Altman wrote.

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After OpenAI was sued by parents who alleged ChatGPT contributed to their teen son’s suicide, the company imposed an array of new restrictions and changes, including parental controls, alerts for risky behavior and a teen-friendly version of the chatbot. In the summer, OpenAI implemented break reminders that encourage people to occasionally stop chatting with the bot.

On Tuesday, the company also announced the creation of a council of experts on AI and well-being, including some with expertise in psychology and human behavior.

This comes as lawmakers and regulators are ringing the alarm on the risks AI tools pose to people, especially children. On Monday, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed new restrictions on AI companion chatbots into law. Last month, the Federal Trade Commission launched an investigation into several AI companies, including OpenAI.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Strands Hints, Answers and Help for Oct. 15 #591

Here are hints — and the answers — for the NYT Strands puzzle for Oct. 15, No. 591.

Looking for the most recent Strands answer? Click here for our daily Strands hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.

Today’s NYT Strands puzzle is a fun one, once you understand the theme. Some of the answers are a bit tough to unscramble, so if you need hints and answers, read on.

I go into depth about the rules for Strands in this story.

If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections and Mini Crossword answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

Read more: NYT Connections Turns 1: These Are the 5 Toughest Puzzles So Far

Hint for today’s Strands puzzle

Today’s Strands theme is: Going up?

If that doesn’t help you, here’s a clue: Not an escalator, but…

Clue words to unlock in-game hints

Your goal is to find hidden words that fit the puzzle’s theme. If you’re stuck, find any words you can. Every time you find three words of four letters or more, Strands will reveal one of the theme words. These are the words I used to get those hints but any words of four or more letters that you find will work:

ROTATE, LOBE, NOPE, RATS, STAR, SAME, LOSE, VOTE, BUTTE, SAMS, BAMS

Answers for today’s Strands puzzle

These are the answers that tie into the theme. The goal of the puzzle is to find them all, including the spangram, a theme word that reaches from one side of the puzzle to the other. When you have all of them (I originally thought there were always eight but learned that the number can vary), every letter on the board will be used. Here are the nonspangram answers:

ALARM, OPEN, CLOSE, LOBBY, GROUND, BASEMENT

Today’s Strands spangram

Today’s Strands spangram is ELEVATORBUTTONS. To find it, look for the E that’s three letters to the right on the bottom row, and wind straight up, and then straight down.