Design is the first standout in the Nothing Headphone (1) Pro. On the outside, it follows the same formula as the Nothing Headphone (1) and Headphone (a), with a distinct square shape and two-tone, transparent outer shell.

The Headphone (1) Pro pushes this design to 11, largely by using premium materials instead of plastic. The square cans are made from a solid aluminum block. The arms are made of titanium. The transparent outer window is made of glass. There’s very little (if any) plastic to be found, yet they actually weigh 2 grams less than the Nothing Headphone (1).

The case is … interesting. It’s basically a hard-shell version of the purse-like case for the Apple AirPods Max 2—a near universally loathed case, I might add. The Headphone (1) Pro case offers better ear cup protection, but the headband remains exposed. It’s something you use once, then promptly forget.

All that being said, these are Nothing’s most comfortable headphones yet. The softer, thicker padding, wider headband, and reduced clamping force make these noticeably more comfortable than the Headphone (1).

Noise canceling and transparency are also great, thanks to extra microphones and impressive sound isolation. It’s not quite as bulletproof as Sony and Bose, but it was more than enough for any New York City situation I threw at it.

Inside, things get even more interesting. The headphone uses a triple-driver design—a bass dynamic driver, a precision dynamic driver, and a treble xMEMS driver. The idea is that each driver handles a different frequency range, delivering clearer, fuller, less distorted sound. When every other major ANC headphone brand uses a single dynamic driver for the full frequency range, this triple-driver design is a big risk. Fortunately, sound quality is outstanding.

I’m not going to pretend I’m an audio engineer (I’m not). But songs I’ve listened to for years came back to life with the Headphone (1) Pro, with added emphasis, clarity, and energy in the midrange and treble I didn't expect.