CMF, the budget brand owned by Nothing, has just unveiled the Clip Pro, its first-ever pair of open-back earbuds. Unlike the best gaming earbuds I've tested over the years, the Clip Pro isn't designed specifically for gaming in mind, but its ear-clip design looks so comfortable that I'm eager to test it alongside my Nintendo Switch 2 anyway.
Available for £79 / $99 (CMF) from the CMF online store starting August 15, these earbuds don't fit snugly above your ear canal, but instead are designed to hook onto the side of your ear like a pretty helix ear piercing. While millimetres away from your eardrum, the open-back form factor still allows the sound from its 10.8mm dual-magnet audio drivers to travel where it needs to.
If you can't wait a few days to pick up the new CMF Clip Pro open-back earbuds, I recommend checking out SteelSeries Arctis Game Buds, which are available for $199.99 at Amazon and are compatible with everything from the Switch 2, PS5, and PC. Check out the Asus ROG Cetra Open Wireless buds for $229.99 at Amazon if your heart is set on an open-back pair instead.
The buds are equipped with a 20 Hz - 40,000 Hz frequency range, static Spatial audio tech, and are Hi-Res audio certified. CMF also states that their LDAC (an audio codec developed by Sony that allows you to stream high-quality audio) inclusion " transmits up to three times more audio data than standard Bluetooth" which has me more intrigued than ever to see what they'd do for my recent Switch 2 game obsessions. I take Pokemon Pokopia with me wherever I go, and having the best audio in my corner would definitely be a positive as I'm about to get more heavily invested now that its first batch of DLC has arrived.
The Clip Pros are equipped with Bluetooth 5.4 support so hooking up to the Switch 2 should be a breeze. More excitingly, they also have a low-latency gaming audio mode in tow, which I didn't expect for buds aimed primarily towards music listeners, including ones that are expected to retail for just $99. That should theoretically mean connecting to the PS5 should also be on the table.
Besides its funky clip-on form factor and connectivity options, I'm most intrigued by its sound quality. I recently tested the Asus ROG Cetra Open wireless gaming earbuds but was a bit disappointed by their middling bass quality. I described the gaming earphones as having a "permanent airy underlining," but the CMF Clip Pro boasts a stronger sound and deeper bass thanks to its Ultra Bass Technology. This gives me high hopes that they should be able to bring the power that felt missing from Asus's buds, but only time (and plenty of testing) will tell.
The CMF Clip Pro earbuds are expected to launch on August 15 in a variety of colorways, including Dark Grey, Light Grey, and Coral. Each pair comes with a matching charging case that can provide an extra 22.5 hours of battery life on top of the pair's 10 hours' worth of playback. All in all, there's plenty packed within these less than $100 buds, which I'm happy to see when alternatives like Asus's open-back equivalent are more than double the price.
I'm hoping I can take them for a test drive so I can see how they sound and stack up to the Cetra open-back alternatives, and whether they become my new favorite Switch 2 accessory for gaming on the go.
- View all open-back earbuds at Amazon
I've also rounded up the best gaming headsets, which include the best PS5 headsets and the best PC headsets for gaming if you aren't much of an earbuds fan.
