Nothing Phone (3) Review: Quirky Spin on High Tech Smartphone
The smartphone looks different from anything you’ll get from Apple and Samsung, thanks to its “see-through” rear design.
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From a design perspective, there is nothing like Nothing. The British technology company has created a brand that knows its own style, and that style is something that stands apart from the competition.
And its latest smartphone, the Nothing Phone (3), is a flagship device that looks different from anything you’ll get from the likes of Apple and Samsung.
Thanks to its striking “see-through” rear design, its erratic camera placement and the new unique Glyph screen on the back of the phone – as well as the way the device lets you play mini-games or get notifications and stats on things like battery life – you can’t mistake the Phone (3) for anything else.
Depending on your perspective, that commitment to its style creates a bit of a love/hate reaction when you see it in the flesh.
Regardless of whether you like the style, the Nothing Phone (3) offers some compelling reasons to consider it as your next smartphone.
NEED TO KNOW
- Nothing Phone (3) is a flagship Android device with a polarising transparent back design and new Glyph screen that creates notifications, mini-games, and practical tools like a torch.
- For the main part, the smartphone offers impressive battery life, quality cameras, excellent screen brightness and solid build quality – which is all backed by seven years of security updates.
- Unique features like the Glyph matrix and Essential AI button seem promising, but the controls aren’t intuitive and feel cumbersome so it will likely take some time to get used to it.
- Best suited for people wanting an alternative to mainstream brands such as Samsung and Apple, and who can embrace the quirky design.
1-MINUTE REVIEW: NOTHING PHONE (3)
IS THE NOTHING PHONE 3 WORTH IT?
For most people, the decision on whether to buy the Nothing Phone (3) will happen within seconds of looking at the phone. Its design is polarising – you either love it or you hate it.
And for those who want to embrace the bold look, there’s actually plenty to love about the new model. The device works really well, from the processor’s power to the cameras.
Some of the more unique ideas Nothing is offering – like the Glyph matrix and Essential button – are interesting additions, and have the potential to further differentiate the phone from the rest of the market.
But right now, those features feel a bit immature, and need some innovative applications to really make them major selling points.
ALL THE DETAILS ON THE NOTHING PHONE 3
WHAT IS THE NOTHING (3) PHONE?
It took two years for Nothing to develop the Nothing Phone (3), as it did its best to make a smartphone flagship that makes “tech feel personal again”. The most obvious gift over the Nothing Phone (2) is that the company has moved away from the Glyph lights, which flashed in different combinations on the back of the phone to indicate different alerts. Instead, there is now a Glyph Matrix, which shows a grid of 489 micro LEDs that can be used as everything from a torch to a notification bar.
HOW WE TESTED THE NOTHING PHONE (3)
For a week, I used the Nothing Phone (3) as my primary phone, taking photos and video, playing games, scrolling social media, as well as browsing the web and sending email.
WHAT IS THE DESIGN LIKE?
The front of the Phone (3) looks just like any other premium smartphone. It features a 6.67-inch AMOLED display with a 1260 × 2800 resolution, 10 bit colour reproduction and 4500 nits of peak brightness.
If you’re not interested in specs, what this essentially means is that the screen is as good as you’ll see on other Android phones, and better than a lot of them when you’re looking at it out in the sun.
If you flip the Phone (3) over, things get weird. The back of the phone looks to be transparent, with a wave block design that immediately stands apart from the stock colours on most phones.
The camera array looks more like a camera disarray. There are three 50MP lenses on the back of the phone – the regular wide-angle lens, an ultra-wide and a periscope camera for zoom. But the lenses are spread apart, with the periscope lens not in alignment with either of the other lenses.
For me, I found that lack of alignment off-putting. I’m sure I’m not the only one.
But the most interesting design feature on the Phone (3) is the Glyph matrix. In previous generations, Nothing put an array of LED light strips across the back of the device. This time, it’s a circular grid of micro LEDs in the top corner.
These LEDs can illuminate key information, like battery life or the time, but it can also be used for what Nothing calls “Toys”. You can play Rock, Paper, Scissors against your phone, or use it as a magic 8-ball. It can also work as a torch in the dark, or as a screen to help you take a selfie.
A touch-sensitive button on the back of the phone lets you cycle through the options, but it’s a bit awkward to use. It requires a short-ish press to cycle through options, and a long press to activate them. I found it took some time to get used to, and it was never really “quick” to get started as you really have to visually look where the controls are on the phone.
It’s early days for the Glyph Matrix, and a software kit means we should see new toys appear over time. Though right now, the options are quite limited.
WHAT FEATURES DOES THE NOTHING PHONE (3) HAVE?
Like Samsung and Apple, Nothing is leaning heavily on AI features in the Phone (3) to help you get more productivity from your smartphone.
There’s even a dedicated “Essential” button on the side of the phone to launch some of Nothing’s AI features.
A short press of the AI button takes a screenshot of your phone and lets you add a note to it. Press and hold, and it starts recording a voice not to accompany the screenshot. Your voice notes are automatically transcribed, which makes it a quick and easy way to jot down thoughts or To-Do items.
It’s a really nice system that encourages you to talk into your phone to be more productive. But the button’s placement next to the power button means you end up accidentally taking a whole heap of screenshots of your phone with no purpose.
Flip the phone facedown and long-press the button, and it launches into a voice recorder mode. The Glyph Matrix shows the waveform of audio being recorded, while a red LED flashes to emphasise that the phone is recording. Once done, you can send the recording for AI analysis (you get 300 minutes a month), which then gives you a summary of (but not a transcript) of the conversation.
There’s also an “Essential” search bar for navigating not just the web, but also your contacts, apps, and calendars when you swipe up from the bottom of the screen.
All of your recordings are stored in an “Essential Space”, which is automatically arranged by the phone’s AI – with a bit of AI feedback – so you can reflect and hold yourself accountable.
IS THE CAMERA GOOD?
The cameras on the back of the phone may look like they landed haphazardly during the design process, but the image quality is pretty solid.
You get plenty of detail, and pictures offer a lot of colour during the day. The inclusion of the periscope lens here gives the phone a lot of versatility. You can get up close with a range of subjects, and the macro mode takes nice shots as well.
The shutter isn’t always as quick as you would like with moving subjects, which means you won’t always capture the photo you want. But most of the time, the Nothing Phone (3) does an impressive job with its photography.
While the default camera sound is exceptionally annoying, it’s easy to switch off in the settings.
WHAT’S THE BATTERY LIFE LIKE?
The 5,150 mAh battery is good enough to get you through a full day most days, depending on how much you use your phone.
Even better than its capacity is the fact it supports 65W fast charging, along with 15W wireless charging. You don’t get a charger in the box, though, so if you want that faster charging speeds, you’re going to need to provide your own 65W charger.
HOW MUCH DOES THE NOTHING PHONE (3) COST?
Available in either black or white, the Nothing Phone (3) starts at $1509 for the 256GB version with 12GB RAM. The 512GB version with 16GB RAM ramps it up to $1689.
Nick Broughall
Nick has been reviewing the latest technology and gadgets for over two decades. He’s edited leading Australian technology publications like Gizmodo, TechRadar and Finder; was a co-founder of gadget site EFTM and currently runs BTTR.reviews. He is a regular finalist in the Australian IT Journalism awards, and won the Best Reviewer award in 2016. These days, he tries to balance his gadget addictions with board games and bushwalking.
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