Editor’s note: A version of this article by KingTsui (TDS Studio) appears on October 3, 2026 on SSPAI with the title “TDS REVIEW | CMF Clip Pro 耳夹式无线耳机体验”. Translated and published by agreement.
The first OWS (Open Wearable Stereo) product under the broader Nothing umbrella was the Nothing Ear (Open). We tested it during its launch window: evaluated on build refinement and tuning balance, it was a respectable effort, even if raw acoustic performance fell slightly behind the class leaders in its price tier.
The Clip Pro represents their first entry into the clip-on open-ear form factor. Handled by the CMF sub-brand, its design language and market positioning naturally diverge from the flagship line. Given its accessible pricing, we evaluated the Clip Pro through the lens of a competitive mid-range clip-on earphone.
Packaging and Accessories
The packaging of the CMF Clip Pro is compact and minimalist, containing only the essentials. An adhesive pull-tab seal secures the box, making it easy to verify factory-fresh condition.
Design, Fit, and Acoustic Structure
The Clip Pro is offered in three colorways. Dropping the light mint green seen on some earlier CMF models, the lineup retains the brand’s signature Coral Orange alongside two shades of grey.
We opted for the flagship Orange edition, which combines two distinct saturation levels: glossy surfaces—such as the inner charging cradle and the front and rear modules of each earbud—feature higher saturation, while the matte outer case and the skin-friendly silicone coating over the flexible C-bridge sport a softer tone. Under most ambient lighting, this coral orange leans pleasantly toward salmon: vibrant without being overbearing.
The charging case is exceptionally pocketable—no larger than standard in-ear TWS cases. The lid retains CMF’s prominent rotary dial, which stands as the only non-orange element on the exterior.
This dial serves as the Bluetooth pairing button. While rotary inputs on certain earlier CMF products supported custom secondary functions, rotation is disabled by default on the Clip Pro until configured in the companion app. Out of the box, it behaves purely as a tactile, stepped fidget dial. Because this dial sits higher and more exposed than on prior models, spinning it with one hand can cause slight axial tilting, occasionally catching mid-rotation.
A USB-C charging port is positioned at the rear. One-handed lid opening is effortless; while the hinge is not all-metal, its detent action is positive.
Inside, the earbuds rest in an interlocking layout with the rear battery barrels facing downward—reminiscent of the arrangement on Huawei’s FreeClip 2. The earbuds are dedicated left and right units; magnetic polarity prevents inserting them into opposing slots, and magnetic retention is robust.
The earbud geometry adopts an angled, contoured clip architecture. While built around the standard front-module + C-bridge + rear-barrel configuration, the junction between the C-bridge and the front acoustic chamber incorporates a distinct inward cant. This tilts the front nozzle directly toward the concha and ear canal entrance. The rear barrel is cleanly cylindrical—bearing a passing resemblance to the classic cylindrical Mac Pro—with subtle concavity on the contact face to match the retroauricular crease.
This structural approach yields excellent ergonomic comfort. You avoid the excessive clamping force common on entry-level clip-ons: lateral pressure is light, and the generous bridge length accommodates thicker earlobes without pinching. The angled nozzle also allows the earbud to seat correctly on the first attempt without repeated micro-adjustments.
The earbuds carry an IP54 dust and splash resistance rating for light rain, while the case is rated IPX2.
Controls, Companion App, and Call
Controls are executed via physical pushbuttons situated atop the rear cylindrical barrels, providing reliable tactile blind operation. The button recognizes single presses, double presses, triple presses, long presses, and press-and-hold combinations.
By default, single click handles play/pause, double and triple clicks control track skipping, and long presses adjust volume. All actions except single click are remappable in software. Tactile responsiveness is crisp, though multi-click confirmation chimes exhibit a roughly one-second delay. Wear detection (auto-pause) is omitted.
The Nothing X companion app maintains a clean, intuitive layout, offering earbud locator chimes, firmware updates, equalizer presets, and control customization. The “Find My Earbuds” function emits a high-pitched repeating tone from the transducers; loudness is adequate for quiet rooms, though insufficient for loud public spaces.
Call audio relies on dual microphones per side (four microphones total) coupled with environmental noise reduction algorithms. In cellular voice testing, connection stability was solid and volume was well balanced, though vocal clarity was average with audible DSP compression artifacts. Under heavy ambient noise or crosswinds, algorithmic filtering is noticeable. Rearward wind gusts trigger stronger intervention, but overall wind resistance during calls remains effective.
Connectivity and Battery
As one of the few open-ear clip earbuds to support LDAC codec, we subjected the Clip Pro to structured transmission testing across varied conditions.
Paired with a Sony Xperia 1 V under LDAC “Connection Priority / Best Effort” mode, stream stability was dependable regardless of whether local Wi-Fi was active. Transmission held steady through reinforced load-bearing walls at distances up to 7.5 meters, with packet loss emerging only beyond 8 meters through obstacles.
Switching to LDAC “Sound Quality Priority” (990 kbps transfer rate), the stable range contracted to within 2 meters through walls and roughly 3 meters in line-of-sight conditions. In RF-dense environments, occasional packet dropouts occurred while walking with the phone in hand. For everyday commuting, keeping the connection set to Connection Priority is strongly advised over Quality Priority.
Under standard AAC encoding, stability on both the Xperia 1 V and an iPhone 17 was rock-solid, maintaining seamless audio up to 10 meters in open spaces.
The Clip Pro supports Google Fast Pair and Windows Swift Pair; multipoint dual-device connectivity operates concurrently with LDAC without conflict.
A dedicated low-latency mode is available and functions simultaneously alongside LDAC. In real-world video playback (both local files and streaming media), latency remained imperceptible—under half a syllable behind lip movement.
Official battery estimates claim up to 10 hours of standalone playback and 32.5 hours combined with the case (extending to 36 hours in extended-battery mode). In our standardized benchmark—connected via LDAC to the Xperia 1 V at 50% volume playing a continuous loop of Apple Music Lossless tracks and podcast streams—the earbuds delivered an average standalone endurance of 6 hours and 46 minutes across three full-cycle runs.
Under AAC at the same 50% volume, standalone endurance exceeded 10 hours and 37 minutes, matching and slightly outperforming official claims.
Charging power peaks near 2W early in the cycle before tapering to 0.4–0.5W, with standard USB Power Delivery compatibility.
Driver, Sound Modes, Leak Control and Codec
The Clip Pro is equipped with a 10.8 mm composite dynamic driver combining TPU (thermoplastic polyurethane) and LCP (liquid crystal polymer) diaphragm materials, backed by SBC, AAC, and LDAC decoding. Real-time dynamic compensation is managed by what CMF brands as the “Malleus Algorithm.”
The Nothing X app provides an extensive suite of DSP features:
- Spatial Audio: Rather than a true Dolby Atmos renderer, this operates as a virtual spatializer that softens central vocal imaging and adds ambient reverberation to reduce in-head localization. It is best left off for critical music listening.
- Bass Boost: Offers two intensity steps. Even at maximum, low-end energy does not become boomy or overbearing; it functions more as low-volume loudness compensation than a heavy bass shelf.
- Equalizer: Features a 3-band custom EQ (±6 steps) alongside five curated presets. Among presets, “Voice Enhance” proves beneficial for spoken podcasts and short video dialogue outdoors.
- Leakage Reduction Mode: Similar in implementation to Sony’s LinkBuds Clip, this mode aggressively rolls off upper frequencies. While detrimental to full-range music fidelity, it effectively attenuates mid-to-high frequencies—the primary band audible to bystanders. The app allows enabling this mode exclusively for phone calls, which is a thoughtful design touch.
To assess baseline acoustic output, we evaluated sound pressure level (SPL) and leakage with DSP modes disabled, using AAC on an iPhone 17 at 50% volume to match our recent comparative test suite (including Simgot Yuanqi and DUNU LUNA).
In a quiet indoor room at 50% system volume, modern mastered tracks remain audible with intact details, but the absolute acoustic loudness is noticeably lower than on the Simgot and DUNU units at identical scale steps. Paired with the Xperia 1 V (which applies higher Bluetooth output gain), 50% volume provided comfortable listening, whereas the iPhone required roughly 70% to match equivalent perceived output.
In terms of sound leakage, at 50% volume on an iPhone, leakage is faint at 10 cm and virtually imperceptible beyond 15 cm. The passive anti-leakage isolation competes favorably even against flagship clip-on models—though this is partially aided by the conservative maximum output SPL.
Sound Description
Evaluation conducted over LDAC connected to a Sony Xperia 1 V with Bass Boost, Spatial Audio, and Leakage Reduction turned off, and the custom EQ set flat.
Low Frequencies
Bass quantity and thickness are moderate, prioritizing agility over heavy slam. Sub-bass extension is respectable for a mid-tier open-ear design, with moderate speed and minimal residual resonance. The presentation remains lean and clean: compared to mainstream consumer clip-ons from phone brands, the Clip Pro avoids artificial bass bloom and keeps low-frequency fundamentals well anchored without bleed.
Midrange
Vocals sit slightly forward without crowding the listener. The tuning favors organic texture over razor-sharp outlining, maintaining natural vocal weight. Tonal balance between male and female vocals is neutral, making it versatile across mainstream genres. Grain is smoothed out, imparting a subtle hint of warmth without coloring vocal timbre. Sibilance and plosives are cleanly damped, ensuring non-fatiguing long listening sessions. Midrange clarity and openness remain solid.
Instruments and Treble
Acoustic instruments follow the same texture-first tuning. String instruments (violins, acoustic guitars, violas) display clean pluck definition without harsh edge. Cello resonance is slightly slender within the mix. Brass instruments possess adequate bite, with trumpets exhibiting modest sparkle. Woodwinds sound airy and natural. Instrumental decay is tidy and polite. In the rhythm section, kick drums are restrained and snare hits decay swiftly, while cymbals maintain adequate brightness under controlled metallic shimmer.
Treble is smooth and free of harsh peaks. Upper-midrange to lower-treble transition maintains good body. Ultra-high frequency extension is average: compared to top-tier flagship clip-ons, top-end air rolls off somewhat earlier.
Soundstage and Dynamics
Soundstage geometry forms a moderately sized, flattened oblate spheroid. Horizontal and vertical boundaries are well defined without exaggerated diffusion. Vocal-to-instrument separation is commendable for the price class. Micro-detail resolution is respectable with slight edge-sharpening. Macro-dynamics are modest, while transient speed is nimble.
Overall Impression
The CMF Clip Pro stands as a well-rounded open-ear product that carries forward CMF’s distinctive design sensibilities. Battery endurance and ergonomic comfort have no glaring weaknesses, and acoustic tuning stays within a balanced, mature corridor without eccentric colorations.
However, in this category, higher maximum output SPL remains desirable—especially when 50% system volume on standard mobile devices struggles to deliver robust loudness in moderate ambient noise. This prevents us from awarding a Level V rating, particularly with acoustically accomplished rivals like the Simgot Yuanqi and DUNU LUNA present in the market. Furthermore, connection stability in LDAC Quality Priority mode still has room for optimization.
Nonetheless, against mainstream fashion clip-ons with steep brand premiums, CMF’s pricing remains refreshingly restrained, making it a compelling, design-forward contender in the mid-range open-ear segment.
Market Evaluation Rating (KT MARK):
CMF Clip Pro: Level IV (Recommend)
For detailed documentation regarding the KT MARK evaluation criteria and our strict editorial non-interference policy, please refer to the TDS Studio Rating Standard & Methodology (V202502).
KingTsui, TDS Studio
September 2026
A TDS Production.
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