If you were dreaming of having a Nothing phone at a budget price your prayer was answered as the new Nothing (2a) packs all you may need.
Nothing phone (2a) was released earlier on March 5th, 2024, following the waves that were created by the Samsung S24 series and Xiaomi 14 flagship lineup.
I expected that the 2023 best-designed phone prospect [nothing phone (2)] would this time round get a power upgrade without compromising the ultra-unique design.
Well, the transparent design with a glyph interface was raised to a whole new level now with the NFC technology under the owl-eye-like camera bump.
Let’s not forget that the Nothing company cracked the ranks of a highly competitive smartphone industry to the extent of having praise mentions from popular tech experts like Marques Brownlee, PC Mag, and CNET. That is not easy, especially starting with a debut model.
The LED-themed light bars at the back of the phone that beep differently by user settings make these phones eye-catching.
But what happens next after having a nice-looking phone? Let’s say that we are convinced with the design the next step is to see how the phone performs
Let us compare all the 3 Nothing phones for you to understand their trend in depth.
Prices
Nothing Phone (1): From $345
Nothing Phone (2): From $599
Nothing Phone (2a): From $349
Buy from:
I will explain the features in detail to discover any improvements made.
Jump to;
★
Performance.
Processors
We shall compare the Processor | GPU | RAM | Battery
| Year | Model | Processor | RAM | Battery |
| 2022 | Nothing (1) | Snapdragon 778G+ | 8/12 GB | 4500mAh |
| 2023 | Nothing (2) | Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 | 8/12GB | 4700mAh |
| 2024 | Nothing (2a) | MediaTek Dimensity 7200 Pro | 8/12GB | 5000mAh |
Nothing (1): Starting with a Snapdragon 778G in the phone (1) was symbolic that nothing came to crush the mid-range category. This processor category had vibrant players such as the Xiaomi 11 lite and Samsung A73 5G.
How Nothing (1) compared to Smartphones of the same processor
| Model | RAM | Battery | Storage |
| Samsung A73 5G | 8/12 GB | 5000mAh | 128 GB |
| Nothing Phone (1) | 8 GB | 4500mAh | 128/256 GB |
| Xiaomi 11 lite | 6/8GB | 4250mAh | 64/128 GB |
Even though it was against tough competitors Nothing Phone (1) easily topped the competition due to its unique design details.
With the same processor, you can run a decent number of functions with an 8-core capacity running at a speed of up to 2.4 GHz. This implies that it is relatively easy to multitask on different apps and play low graphics games.
This processor can support more useful AI-powered features which are pivotal in photo editing and processing better natural tones and complex image recognition.
At this speed, it may start to slow down when you open a lot of Apps at the same time.
Ultimately it was not a bad start for Nothing to straight away create waves in the value category with just only one model phone.
The Battery size is enough to power this phone for a full day although some users complained about how quickly the battery drains.
This battery was suited for its design and for the competition where it just fell behind the Samsung A73 5G.
Scoring the overall performance, it is above the Xiaomi 11 lite and in the same spot with A73 5G.
Nothing (2):
Snapdragon 8 gen 1 is a flagship processor and its introduction stated that this phone is attacking the premium category.
How Nothing Phone (2) compares with premium phones of the same processor.
| Model | RAM | Battery | Storage |
| Asus ROG Phone 6 | 8 GB | 6000mAh | 256 GB |
| OnePlus 10 Ultra | 8/12 GB | 5000mAh | 128 GB/256GB |
| Xiaomi 12S Ultra | 8/12 GB | 4860mAh | 256 /512 GB |
| Nothing Phone (2) | 8/12 GB | 4700mAh | 128GB/256GB/512GB |
| Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 | 12 GB | 4400mAh | 256GB/512GB |
| Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4 | 8 GB | 3700mAh | 128GB/256GB/512GB |
| Samsung Galaxy S22 series | 8/12 GB | 3700mAh | 128GB/256GB/512GB |
The phone (2) has been the best Nothing phone in my opinion because it checks all the boxes with an impressive design and uncompromised performance.
The Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 processor runs a peak speed of 3 GHz and performs 4 times better than the Snapdragon 778G.
This processor supports cool features like
- Bluetooth 5.3 which transfers 50M/s of data with low latency
- Better camera image processing powered by AI
- Support of quick charge
- Gaming powered by Adreno GPU
Scoring the performance mark, Phone (2) stacks well with high-end premium smartphones. But the ROG 6 destroys every phone on this list in terms of performance since it is designed to handle complex gaming tasks.
Nothing (2a).
My expectation for 2024 was to see an upgrade of Nothing (2) but instead, the upgrade was directed to Phone (1). We can guess that this was a business move rather than a reputational one. From a premium prospect back to a perfect value king
How Nothing Phone (2a) compares with smartphones of the same processor.
| Model | RAM | Battery | Storage |
| Redmi Note 13 Pro Plus 5G | 8/12 GB | 5000mAh | 256 / 512 GB |
| Vivo iQOO Z7 Pro | 8/12 GB | 4600mAh | 128 /256 GB |
| Nothing Phone (2a) | 8/12 GB | 5000mAh | 128 /256 GB |
Not to drain the energy out of your anticipation but Nothing (2a) is a well-engineered value phone.
It is quite unfair to compare it with Galaxy S24 Ultra or Xiaomi 14 Ultra because of the super powerful snapdragon 8 Gen 3 processor in these phones.
Maybe we are just spoiled with the relentless upgrades every year to such an extent that a low upgrade is not even noticeable.
Scoring: Nothing (2a) is better than nothing (1) but below nothing (2).
In the value category, it could take the overall pick considering power and design.
No battery worries due to its 5000Amh battery that promises to keep up at least 12 hours an average day usage. The phone supports a 45W adapter that fully charges it in 1 hour.
★
Design .
We shall compare the screen| build materials |weight and finish
Compare all the 3 Nothing phones
| Model | Screen size | Peak Brightness | Refresh Rate | Weight |
| Nothing (1) | 6.55-inch AMOLED | 1300 nits | 120Hz | 193.5g |
| Nothing (2) | 6.7-inch AMOLED | 1600nits | 120Hz | 202.1g |
| Nothing(2a) | 6.7 inch Flexible AMOLED | 1300nits | 120Hz | 190g |
In design, this is where Nothing phones beat everyone hands down in the competition with a one-of-a-kind outlook.
From the strong hardcore corning gorilla glass to premium aluminum chassis or transparent back with a glyph interface. Whether it’s notifications or music, there you can set a desired light pattern at the back.
Still Phone (2) beats it fellow Nothing phones with a brighter screen and better performance.
If you could put any Nothing phone against competitors for the overall design award. I would choose Nothing Phones because they introduced an idea that no other smartphone company has ever thought of.
In the second spot, I would choose Xiaomi flagships due to their artificial leather finish at the back and then the Samsung S – ultras for their iconic matrix arrangement of rear camera lenses.
The Asus ROG 6 has the fastest refreshment rate of 165Hz, but I cannot choose it over the others due to its low water resistance IPX4.
Most of the other phones just look normal artistically.
How Nothing (2a) display compares in the value category
| Model | Screen size | Brightness | Storage |
| Redmi Note 13 Pro Plus 5G | 6.67-inch AMOLED | 1800nits | 256 / 512 GB |
| Vivo iQOO Z7 Pro | 6.78-inch AMOLED | 1300nits | 128 /256 GB |
| Nothing Phone (2a) | 6.7 inch Flexible AMOLED | 1300nits | 128 /256 GB |
The results show that the phone (2a) is not the brightest even in this category and the new POCO X6 has a brighter display at up to 1800 nits.
Was this move intended to save more battery? Or compensate for the battery consumed by the glyph interface at the back?
★
Camera.
From Nothing (1) to 2024’s Nothing (2a) there have not been any big changes in the camera settings.
- 50MP –main camera
- 50MP- ultra-wide
- 32MP –front camera [Nothing (2) &Nothing (2a)
- 16MP- front camera [Nothing (1)
Many smartphones try to present their cameras as their selling point somethings.
Nothing never fell for the camera hype after realizing it could be a tough battle to win, and they rather came with just a decent camera system. Nothing camera is not good enough to rival premium phones like Samsung flagships or Xiaomi’s premium lineup.
These nothing phone cameras do all the cool usual stuff that value phones do such us:
- Recording 4k videos at 30 frames per second(fps)
- Taking slow-motion video at 120 fps
- Action mode
- Night mode
- Nice portrait photos
Is the Nothing phone(2a) camera mind-blowing for 2024? The answer is no but that does not mean it is bad at all.
Connectivity
This area is underrated if it comes to comparing the power of smartphones and briefly, no significant settings were improved in the Nothing (2a)
Just like last year
Bluetooth 5.3 | Dual sim| Wi-Fi 6 | NFC| 5G
The NFC payment system was brought to the back position
Recommendations about Nothing Phone(2a):
Pros:
- Unique design: Transparent back with customizable LED light interface.
- Good value: Powerful processor (MediaTek Dimensity 7200 Pro) and large battery (5000mAh)competitively priced.
- Decent camera: Capable of capturing good photos and videos for everyday use.
Cons:
- Not the best camera: Compared to premium phones, the camera falls short.
- Lower display brightness: Not the brightest display in the market.
Overall:
The Nothing Phone (2a) is a solid mid-range option for users who prioritize design and everyday performance at a reasonable price.
Who should consider this phone:
- Users looking for a stylish phone with a unique design.
- Users who don’t require top-tier camera capabilities.
- Budget-conscious users seek a good balance between price and performance.
Join the conversation
Do you think Nothing did the right thing in settling for the value category?
Please share your thoughts with us in the comment section.
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