It wasn’t long ago when Nothing emerged from, well, nothing with a radical goal of making affordable technology design-centric and exciting. While the initial batch of its wireless earbuds generated a lot of buzz, we always knew that ex-OnePlus co-founder Carl Pei had plans to get into the smartphone business with exciting new concepts. Sure enough, Nothing’s smartphone followed and over the years, the brand has built up a reputation for giving us the most unconventional-looking phones money can buy.
But why are we interested in Nothing’s phones, especially in a saturated market where every brand is trying all the possible tricks in the book to grab our attention (and eventually our money)? It mostly boils down to their standout philosophy of transparent designs and exciting colours.
Consider the latest Nothing Phone (2a) Special Edition as the latest example. Despite being a budget phone, the Phone (2a) doesn’t let go of the brand’s reputation for embracing a bold look with special colours thrown in in just the right measures.
Besides the design, the phone also packs quite an adequate punch under the hood to take care of your daily smartphone needs, be it frequent selfie sessions or browsing endlessly through your Instagram feed.
The same can be said for all of the previous iterations of Nothing’s smartphones.
As such, if you have always appreciated Nothing’s efforts in the smartphone market, wouldn’t it be great to gloss through the history of the Nothing Phone in chronological order of release?
Even though the list is pretty short at the time of writing, we offer an in-depth understanding of what these phones have managed to achieve. Scroll away!
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History of the Nothing Phone in chronological order of release
Nothing Phone (1)
Released in: 2022
Category: Mid-range
Colours: Black and White
It was quite surprising to see a highly-anticipated smartphone brand like Nothing begin its journey in the smartphone business with a mid-range Android smartphone. However, Carl Pei and his team wanted to get more people aboard the Nothing hype train (and keep the cash registers flowing) while simultaneously wowing the community at large.
Upon its launch, the Phone (1) was hit with a couple of reliability issues, jarring software bugs and generic performance inconsistencies. Once Nothing ironed out these issues, everybody saw the Phone (1) for the exciting product it was, thus marking a great starting point in the Nothing Phone’s history. While the transparent rear glass on the black/white fake illustrations grabbed our attention, it was the Glyph interface that sparked heated debates. Meant to provide notifications with various lighting patterns and odd chimes, the Glyph interface was a unique selling point for many.
Beyond the headline features, the Phone (1) stood out from the crowd with its great build quality that rivalled even the iPhone 13 in many ways. A 6.5-inch 120Hz OLED display with an under-display fingerprint scanner took care of viewing needs whereas the Snapdragon 778G chipset handled your performance requirements. The dual 50-megapixel rear cameras set a benchmark in the midrange segment for photography. The battery life was decent but the Phone (1) impressed its clientele with the presence of wireless charging – a rare feature in this segment.
The Phone (1) continued to sell as a more cost-effective alternative to the Phone (2) until the Phone (2a) replaced it.
Nothing Phone (2)
Released in: 2023
Category: Premium mid-range
Colours: Black and White
The Phone (2) was more than just a successor to the Phone (1) in the history of the Nothing Phone, it is a crucial milestone. With an older flagship-tier chipset at its heart, the Phone (2) matched expectations from fans and critics expecting a swift smartphone from Nothing.
For the Phone (2), Nothing kept the core recipe unchanged while bringing enough tweaks to make it seem fresh. The display grew in size to 6.7 inches while upgrading to a brighter 120Hz OLED panel. The Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 offered tremendous growth in raw performance, especially for the Nothing OS 2.5 interface based on Android 14. The dual 50-megapixel camera sensors utilised better algorithms and a superior ISP chip for improved photography and videography. The 4,700mAh battery still managed a whole day’s stamina on a full charge and supported wireless charging. The Glyph interface was revised with smaller light segments that could show the real-time progression of an activity.
The Phone (2) continues to sell as Nothing’s flagship phone and is likely to be phased out as soon as the Phone (3) drops later in 2024.
Nothing Phone (2a)
Released in: 2024
Category: Budget
Colours: Black, White, Blue (only for India)
With the Phone (2a), Nothing adopted a dual product strategy for its lineup that allows it to onboard more people easily while simultaneously scaling up to the premium segment with the Phone (2) and its successor. The Phone (2a) is strictly a budget Android phone that sticks to the core ethos of Nothing’s design philosophy. Although it stuck to a familiar transparent design on the back, the use of plastic for the frame and the back made it lightweight.
Nothing, however, managed to retain the qualitative aspects usually associated with its products. It even managed to embed a miniaturised version of the Glyph interface lights!
Since the Phone (2a) is a budget phone, it loses out on wireless charging and a superior water resistance rating. However, you still get a 6.7-inch 120Hz OLED display for your viewing needs. The Dimensity 7200 Pro chipset offers ample performance for basic smartphone requirements but struggles with gaming. You also have a decently tuned dual 50-megapixel rear camera system and a massive 5,000mAh battery.
Nothing Phone (2a) Special Edition
Released in: 2024
Category: Budget
Colours: Special edition
The Nothing Phone (2a) Special Edition is based on the top-tier variant of the Phone (2a) which features 12GB RAM and 256GB storage. While the core specifications are identical to the standard model, the Phone (2a) Special Edition gets a unique colour combination that celebrates the primary colours of nature. The grey accent for the fake wiring and camera circle provide a nostalgic reference to the 90s whereas the blue, red and yellow accents impart Nintendo Gameboy vibes.
CMF Phone (1)
Releasing: July 2024
Category: Budget
Colours: Black, Orange
A standout model in the Nothing phone history, the CMF Phone (1) is Nothing’s attempt at diversifying its smartphone lineup for the lower end of the market. While the brand is yet to reveal the specifications, early teasers hint at a unique rotating wheel element located at the back. Although it’s anyone’s guess as to what the dial could do, we assume that the Phone (1)’s dial could be used to adjust volume, navigate through the UI and possibly control certain camera functions. The CMF Phone (1) is also likely to feature a screw-based port for several accessories.
Industry insiders suggest that the CMF Phone (1) will essentially be a reskinned variant of the Nothing Phone (2a). Since Nothing wants to achieve a lower cost, the handset will feature a simple opaque plastic rear panel. The gimmick department is taken care of by the rotating dial instead of the Glyph LED lights.
Nothing Phone (3)
Releasing in: 2024
Category: Premium mid-range
Colours: NA
We now come to the Nothing Phone (3), the much-awaited sequel to the Phone (2).
Although the flagship Nothing phone usually releases in July, the rumour mill has been silent for this one. Whether it is the design or the internal specifications, we have no idea about what the Phone (3) could be bringing to the table. However, based on Nothing’s recent announcements, there’s no harm in speculating.
One of the prominent rumours doing the rounds hints at the use of the Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 chipset in the Phone (3), offering top-tier performance while avoiding exorbitant prices. A new back panel pattern along with a revised Glyph interface could drive up the demand. Since Nothing has already partnered with OpenAI for embedding ChatGPT in the Ear (3), we also expect the Phone (3) to have the latest GPT-4o at its core driving advanced Gen-AI experiences.
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(Hero and Featured Image Credits: Courtesy Eduardo Mares via Unsplash)
