In the world of smartphones, many companies have tried and failed to build a solid foundation and reputation for themselves, leaving a few tech giants like Samsung, Apple, Google, and Motorola. In such a cutthroat market, the hype created by Nothing Phone (1) was extraordinary. Thousands of people signed up for the waiting list to get their hands on the one-of-a-kind phone, which was made available in July 2022. Now in the initial stage, there were few glitches, and many believed that the price was relatively high. After more than five months, is it still worth buying? Check out the blog for its performance in each department, and you can surely decide for yourselves.
Build And Design
The semi-transparent design in the back is something really unique that has mesmerized consumers. The components visible underneath the transparent layer are not the circuitry or chipset, but rather the winding strip for the connector, screws, and the device’s wireless charging coil. Then comes the white LED strips, which are arranged in a unique pattern and are known as Glyph Interfaces. They are not only for show but also flicker with the arrival of notifications, ringtones, and while charging to show the progress. They can even be used as a flashlight while taking photographs. The device is built on an aluminum frame, and both sides have Gorilla Glass 5, making it weigh 193.5 g, which is not very chunky. The Nothing Phone (1) comes with IP53 protection and is also, to some extent, scratch resistant. The device has overall good stereo speakers that provide crisp, and clean sound but lack a 3.5 mm audio jack.
Display
The Nothing Phone (1) comes with a 6.55-inch OLED display similar to many of its rival models and provides bright and punchy visuals. The device supports 1 billion colors, HDR10+, and brightness up to 700 nits (peak), which could have been a bit more. With its 120 Hz refresh rate, the animations and gestures are fast enough. The bezels present on the device may seem thicker than many other smartphones available in the market right now, but they are of the same width on all sides, which provides a fine touch of perfection.
Technical
The device was released with Android 12 (Nothing OS 1.1.7) and three Android and four years of security updates were promised. The stock Android present in the device is crisp and clean of bloatware, but it has some bug issues that will hopefully get fixed with updates. Nothing Phone (1) has the Snapdragon 778G+ 5G chipset, which is already one year old and lies in the mid-range chipset segment. The Geekbench single-core score is 718, while the multi-core score is 2,956. Nothing Phone (1) comes with an Adreno 642L GPU, which has a GFX Manhattan score of 4,655 and a GFX Trex score of 6,287. Simply put, the device is quite responsive and fast in the real world, but not enough for competitive gaming. The RAM variants available for the Nothing Phone (1) are 8 GB and 12 GB, while storage comes in 128 GB and 256 GB.
Camera
Many other companies with a price tag similar to that of Nothing provide a triple or even a quadruple-camera setup. However, Nothing Phone (1) has two cameras, one main and one ultrawide, where the main camera, which is 50 MP, has the Sony IMX766 sensor that can also be found on mid-range and high-end phones like the OnePlus Nord 2T and Oppo Find X5 Pro. In almost all lighting conditions, the main camera is able to deliver decent snaps, and even with 2X zoom, the images do not blow out. The OIS is pretty decent, but the night photography is not up to the mark, though the camera algorithm and software help to pick out some details in the dark. The 50 MP ultrawide has the Samsung JN-1 sensor, and the image quality is reduced by a margin when compared with the main camera. The 16 MP selfie camera does well when it comes to subject detection and takes well-lit and exposed images. The video-taking ability of the device is pretty basic, with a maximum of 4K at 30 FPS through the rear and 1080p at 30 FPS through the selfie camera. While taking video through the rear, you are provided with the option to turn on a flashing red LED, which is quite interesting and unique.
Battery And Connectivity
The device comes with all required connectivity options like 5G, WiFi 6, NFC, and Bluetooth 5.2. The device has a 4500 mAh battery, and it is in this department that Nothing Phone (1) gets battered severely by its competitors. The unusual amount of battery drain could be caused by the Glyph Interface or any software issues present in the device, which the company can fix. The company will not provide you with the 33W charger required for the device in the package, which is a downside, but the device supports 15W wireless and 5W reverse wireless charging.
Final Verdict
When it comes to design, Nothing Phone (1) stands out without a doubt, but the device lacks quite a bit in the department of battery and also has software issues. The camera, build, and performance is pretty decent considering the ($479, ₹28,250, €469) price on Amazon. What makes things hopeful is that rather than releasing another Nothing Phone in a short interval, the company is working on fixing its weaknesses. On a final note, for a company at its nascent stage, this is quite a commendable effort.
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