Over the past several months, the Nothing Ear (Open) have quickly become my favorite pair of earbuds thanks to their comfortable fit and ability to deliver excellent audio quality without blocking out the world around me. But the problem with open-ear headphones is that they’re only ever a secondary option, so price matters. That’s why this $80 alternative – which has been on sale for far less at times – to the Nothing Ear (Open) has been so compelling.
Update 11/6: This post has been updated and republished as Acefast Air is now on sale for Black Friday for just over $30, over half off its usual $80 cost.
The total cost comes out to $31.99 when redeeming an on-page coupon.
The post also now includes brief impressions of the upgraded Acefast Pro.
Nothing Ear (Open) really surprised me last year. The excellent fit and shockingly great sound quality were things I just didn’t expect from a pair of open-ear headphones. I’ve been using them with every chance I’ve gotten, between my quiet home airport, cleaning around the house, and playing disc golf, they’ve really been my go-to in a ton of situations. But when I’m on a plane, walking through a bustling city, or anywhere else where there’s ambient noise, I end up having to grab something else – usually the regular Nothing Ear with their ANC support.
That shortcoming is exactly why it’s usually pretty hard to recommend a product like Nothing Ear (Open). They can only ever be “secondary” headphones because there are many situations where they quite literally just can’t work. At their usual $149 price – or even the $129 they’ve been discounted to lately – that’s a big downside.
The problem, though, is that many cheaper open-ear headphones fall flat where the Ear (Open) shines. They don’t fit as well or, more frequently, they just don’t sound as good. Some open-ear options I’ve tried sound fine, but hurt in my ears after a short time. Others just sound awful, with horrible tinny sounds, not enough volume, or at bare minimum a complete lack of depth to whatever you’re listening to.
I have been pleasantly surprised, though, by the Acefast AceFit Air.
These open-ear headphones are usually sold for around $80 – though they’re currently discounted to well under $70 – and they deliver on most of my favorite things about the Ear (Open). The biggest area these deliver on is the sound quality. It’s right up there with Nothing’s, though with a bit less depth to the audio at times. The placement of the speaker also sometimes means that the music ends up drowning out a bit more of the outside world than I’d prefer. But they sound really good and, like Nothing, actually have some good bass and kick. Occasionally I’ll hear a small whine from the speakers when music is low or paused, but it’s not been a huge issue.
The fit on Acefast AceFit Air is also quite good. They’re a bit more finicky to put on compared to Ear (Open) as they wrap around the front half of your ear instead of the full length, but they sit nicely, are comfortable, and don’t fall off easily. I was also pleasently surprised with the case. It’s quite thin and has strong magnets both to keep the lid closed and the earbuds in place. I don’t like how much bigger the footprint is compared to Nothing’s case (not to mention the awkward USB-C port placement), but it’s not bad at all.
You’ll also lose out on Google’s Fast Pair here, and pairing as a whole suffers the same problem as a lot of “cheap” earbuds. There’s no button on the case for pairing. Instead, they launch into pairing when you first open the case and then stay paired to your device until you unpair and, at that point, you can go and connect to something else. The idea of this “just works,” but the execution is always super mixed. These have worked well for me so far, but I’d really just prefer a button for pairing.
But, it’s hard to complain for the cost.
Acefast AceFit Air still isn’t “cheap” at around $80, but it’s considerably more affordable compared to the Nothing Ear (Open) while delivering on the most important aspect of the experience, and it’s also easy to find at a huge discount.
In my book, it’s a perfect alternative.
Meanwhile, the Acefast AceFit Pro offers the same form factor and sound quality as the Air, but with a couple of upgrades. This includes a transparent case that has the same vibes as Nothing’s, but with an LED battery meter that reads out the percentage.
The earbuds themselves also have an LED and a semi-transparent design. Acefast touts this as a safety feature of sorts, as the lights show while you’re wearing the earbuds, making them assist with nighttime visibility. It’s a good idea, but it’s also a double-edged sword as it means that both the earbuds and the case are a bit overly bright in a dark room. You can customize the color of the LED through Acefast’s app.
I struggle to find a reason to pay twice as much for these, but they’re certainly a solid pair of open-ear headphones if you’re in the market and happen to catch them on a good sale.
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Originally published February 2025, updated November 6, 2025
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