We compare products from their published specs and features; the verdicts below are our independent editorial opinions.
Updated: 2026-09-17 · 7 min read · Independent comparison
If you want one pair of wireless earbuds that does the heavy lifting for music, calls and noisy commutes, choose CMF BY NOTHING Buds 2a; if you need a bulk set of simple wired earbuds to hand out to a whole class or group, choose Kanayu 50.
• CMF BY NOTHING Buds 2a — biggest strength: a genuine feature set — 42dB hybrid ANC, a 12.4mm dynamic driver, Bluetooth 5.4, four mics and app-based customisation.
• CMF BY NOTHING Buds 2a — biggest trade-off: it's a single pair of rechargeable earbuds, so it's a poor fit if what you actually need is dozens of cheap units to distribute.
• Kanayu 50 — biggest strength: it's a 50-piece pack of wired, individually bagged earbuds — buy once, hand out fifty.
• Kanayu 50 — biggest trade-off: no microphone, no Bluetooth, no active noise cancelling — just a 3.5mm wired connection and passive sound isolation.
• Pick CMF BY NOTHING Buds 2a if you're buying for yourself and care about sound, calls and noise cancelling.
• Pick Kanayu 50 if you're buying for a classroom, library, event or group and need volume over features.
The Buds 2a is the "real earbuds" option here. Inside each bud sits a 12.4mm bio-fibre dynamic driver, and CMF co-tuned the sound with Dirac, an audio outfit perhaps better known for work in luxury vehicles. The result, per the spec sheet, is a warm soundstage with rich mids and bass that can be thundering or dialled back. If you like your music with weight behind it — hip-hop, electronic, pop — that driver size is the headline number, because bigger drivers generally move more air and give you more low-end presence than the tiny drivers in budget buds.
The feature list is where it pulls away. There's 42dB hybrid active noise cancelling, which is the kind of figure you want on a train, a plane or a busy open-plan office. There are four microphones with ENC, "Clear Voice Tech" and Wind Noise Reduction 2.0 for calls, plus Bluetooth 5.4 with Google Fast Pair and Microsoft Quick Switch. Battery life is rated at 8 hours per bud and 35.5 hours with the case, and a 5-minute quick charge gives up to 2 hours of playback. CMF frames the "up to 15 days" endurance figure around roughly 2 hours of daily use, which is a sensible way to think about it if you're a commuter rather than a marathon listener.
Who should buy it: anyone who wants one good pair of wireless earbuds for daily life — commuting, gym, calls, casual listening — and values noise cancelling and app control. Who should skip it: anyone who needs to equip a room full of people, or who specifically wants a wired connection with no charging to think about. Touch controls also aren't for everyone; some people simply prefer a physical button.
Kanayu 50: Who It's For
The Kanayu 50 is a different product category entirely, and it's worth being clear about that up front. This is a 50-pack of wired in-ear headphones with a 3.5mm jack, each one individually bagged, in dark blue. There is no microphone, no Bluetooth, no battery and no app. What you get is fifty identical pairs of basic earbuds you can distribute without worrying about pairing, charging or pairing again.
The build is deliberately simple: a soft silicone housing, a PVC cable measuring 35.43 inches (90 cm), and passive noise isolation — meaning the silicone tips block some outside sound by sealing your ear, rather than cancelling it electronically. The description notes the sound is clear without being jarring, which is exactly the right target for spoken word, videos and classroom content rather than critical music listening. The 90cm cable is a useful length for a laptop or a desk setup: long enough to reach, short enough not to tangle into a mess.
The intended uses are spelled out plainly — schools, libraries, hotels, museums, gyms, birthday parties, and as reward gifts or party favours. That's the giveaway. This is a consumables purchase: you buy fifty because you expect some to get lost, borrowed, chewed or broken, and you don't want to chase replacements one at a time. Individually bagging each pair matters more than it sounds, because it means you can hand them out hygienically and keep the rest clean in storage.
Who should buy it: teachers, librarians, event organisers, hotel or museum staff, parents planning party bags, or anyone who needs a bulk supply of working earbuds at low individual cost. Who should skip it: anyone shopping for themselves who wants wireless freedom, noise cancelling, a microphone for calls, or bass you can feel. The Kanayu 50 is not trying to be that product, and judging it as one would be unfair.
• Best for sound quality → CMF BY NOTHING Buds 2a. A 12.4mm dynamic driver with Dirac co-tuning versus a basic silicone earbud with passive isolation.
• Best for noise cancelling → CMF BY NOTHING Buds 2a. 42dB hybrid ANC is active cancellation; the Kanayu only blocks sound passively via its ear tip seal.
• Best for calls → CMF BY NOTHING Buds 2a. Four mics with ENC and wind noise reduction. The Kanayu 50 has no microphone at all.
• Best for battery life → CMF BY NOTHING Buds 2a. 8 hours per bud, 35.5 hours with the case, and a 5-minute charge for up to 2 hours of playback.
• Best for equipping a group → Kanayu 50. Fifty individually bagged pairs in one purchase beats buying fifty separate products.
• Best for zero-maintenance use → Kanayu 50. No charging, no pairing, no app — plug into any 3.5mm jack and it works.
• Best for durability in rough hands → Kanayu 50. A PVC cable and silicone housing built for long-term classroom use; the Buds 2a is IP54 but still a small electronic device with a battery.
• Best for customisation → CMF BY NOTHING Buds 2a. EQ profiles, adjustable ANC levels, dual-device connectivity and a low-lag gaming mode via the Nothing X app.
• Best for travel and commuting → CMF BY NOTHING Buds 2a. Wireless, pocketable case, ANC and quick charging.
• Best for kids and shared devices → Kanayu 50. Wired means no pairing headaches, no lost charging cases, and no Bluetooth setup.
One practical note on the Buds 2a: because it's a wireless product with a rechargeable case, it depends on a battery that will age over years of use. The Kanayu 50 has no battery to age, which is part of why it makes sense in a shared, high-turnover setting. Neither approach is "better" in the abstract — they're built for completely different jobs.
My Verdict
For personal listening, yes — in my opinion. It has active noise cancelling, a larger dynamic driver, a microphone array, Bluetooth 5.4 and app controls. The Kanayu 50 has none of those, but it's a 50-pack of wired earbuds, so it's built for a different purpose entirely.
No. The spec sheet states clearly that it has no built-in microphone, so it's for listening only. If you need to take calls, the CMF BY NOTHING Buds 2a with its four ENC mics is the one to choose.
Per the data sheet: 8 hours in the earbuds and 35.5 hours with the charging case. A 5-minute quick charge gives up to 2 hours of playback, and a full charge takes about 89 minutes.
Yes, as long as the device has a 3.5mm headphone jack. It's a wired connection with no Bluetooth and no pairing required — which is exactly why it suits classrooms, libraries and shared devices.
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