We knew Nothing was launching headphones this year, most of us imagined glyphs on them, but Nothing pulled a fast one by choosing a different design direction to stand out amongst a sea of headphones. Instead of the conventional circular or capsule-shaped cups, they unveiled rectangular headphones that took the world by surprise. A lot of us (me included) had reservations on the design, but if anything, the rectangular format was unique enough to really make an impact. The problem? I didn\u2019t associate that design language with Nothing as a brand.<\/p>\n
Now, if we\u2019re designing headphones that are just meant to be different, these keycap-inspired headphones really take the cake. Designer Tougou Daciqeng calls it \u201cCross-border integration of tactile design and auditory technology\u201d, which is just fancy designspeak for \u2018we drew a parallel between two senses \u2013 touch, and sound\u2019. The result is a pair of headphones that welcome your ears, but also your eyes and hands. That keycap-inspired can on the outside just begs your fingers to touch touch it, sometimes even attempt pressing it.<\/p>\n
Designer: Tougou Daciqeng<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
The result is a fun design language that I don\u2019t attribute to Nothing, but I definitely do to a brand like Teenage Engineering. Fun, funky designs, vibrant and subdued color options, and a silhouette that feels unmistakable. Teenage Engineering doesn\u2019t lean into hyper-ergonomics, everything they make has this industrial, engineering-driven touch, resulting in very soft curves that often punctuate otherwise straight lines and geometric forms.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
The beauty of such a pair of headphones lies in not its sound, but its appearance. Sure, sound is arguably the most important feature of a headphone, but what we\u2019re looking at here is purely conceptual, so we\u2019ve only got visuals to go by. To that end, the Keycap Headphones are a visual masterclass. They come with rectangular earcups, but the cutout is still elliptical, allowing them to fit around your ear snugly.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Everything else revolves around that key-shaped surface on the sides. Styled like a Cherry key (although a little different and a lot larger), this surface lets you control the playback through taps, swipes, etc. I\u2019d have preferred a nice clicky key, but we work with what we\u2019ve got. There\u2019s one button on the top of the right earcup for powering on and off the earphones. Everything else can be done through the faux keys on the sides.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
The designer definitely gets that a clicky key would be better than a touch surface, which is why they\u2019ve built haptics into the earphones. Press the surface and a click plays through your ear, giving you a satisfactory sensory experience that affirms a key press. The rest of the headphones are fairly uncomplicated. A telescopic headband, a fairly repairable design thanks to exposed countersunk screws on the cans (for that industrial aesthetic), and USB-C charging on the bottom. The headphones come in 5 color variants too, including two metallic finishes, a retro off-white and a classic grey, and finally a fairly CMF-ish orange that\u2019s definitely going to grab a few eyeballs.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
The post These Keycap-Inspired Rectangular Headphones Make Nothing\u2019s Design Look Boring<\/a> first appeared on Yanko Design<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" We knew Nothing was launching headphones this year, most of us imagined glyphs on them, but Nothing pulled a fast one by choosing a different design direction to stand out amongst a sea of headphones. … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[16],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n