CMF, the budget-focused sub-brand from Nothing, has brought two new pairs of earbuds to Malaysia, and they sit at opposite ends of how you might want to listen. The open-ear CMF Clip Pro is built to keep you aware of your surroundings, while the CMF Buds Neo goes the other way with active noise cancellation. Both are on sale now, and both undercut most of what they line up against.
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CMF Clip Pro: open-ear audio with a Smart Dial
The Clip Pro uses an open-ear design, so it rests on the ear rather than sealing the canal. CMF pairs a 10.8mm dual-magnet dynamic driver with what it calls Ultra Bass Technology, aimed at the weak low end that open designs usually struggle with. It runs Bluetooth 5.4 with dual-device connection, and carries LDAC alongside AAC and SBC, with Hi-Res Audio certification. Each bud weighs 5.9 grams.
Battery is rated at 10 hours per charge and 32.5 hours with the case, and a 10-minute top-up gives about four hours of playback. The buds are IP54 rated against dust and water, though the case is only IPX2. Calls lean on a four-microphone setup with Clear Voice Technology, and the charging case has a dial that doubles as a call and playback control.
CMF Buds Neo: ANC on a RM129 budget
The Buds Neo is the more conventional pair, a sealed in-ear design with up to 35dB of active noise cancellation. It runs a 12.4mm dynamic driver and connects over Bluetooth 6.0 with AAC and SBC. CMF quotes 11 hours of listening with ANC off, eight with it on, and up to 52 hours in total with the case. Like the Clip Pro, the buds are IP54 rated and the case is IPX2.
Where they fit in Malaysia
Open-ear earbuds have grown into a real category here rather than a novelty. The Clip Pro lands in the same space as the soundcore AeroClip 2, which reached Malaysia in late September, and it is one of the cheaper ways to get LDAC in an open design. For how Nothing's own open style holds up day to day, our review of the Nothing Ear (open) is a useful reference point.
The Buds Neo, at RM129, is aimed squarely at first-time ANC buyers who do not want to spend much. It sits far below the brand's step-up models, including the recently launched Nothing Headphone (1) Pro, and leans on battery life and noise cancellation rather than codec bragging rights.
Price and availability
Both are available in Malaysia now. The CMF Clip Pro is RM359 and the CMF Buds Neo is RM129, sold through CMF and Nothing's official Malaysian channels.
The split is clear: pick the Clip Pro if you want to stay aware of the room with better bass than open designs usually manage, or the Buds Neo if you want noise cancellation and long battery life for the price of a night out. Either way, CMF is still making the cheap end of audio more interesting than it tends to be.
