The Nothing Phone 1 is unlike any other smartphone on the market. It has a unique design and functionality that makes it well-rounded and capable. The cameras on the phone are not class-leading, but they are still capable of capturing decent photos and videos.
The battery life on the phone isn’t great, but it’s more than enough to serve as a everyday companion. Let us get into dissecting the phone in more details in this Nothing Phone 1 review!
Nothing Phone 1: A Detailed Review
Design
When it comes to the design of the Nothing Phone 1, there are a few key features that help make it stand out from the crowd. First and foremost is its transparent backside, which looks spectacular in my opinion. The shifting specular highlights that are visible on the back of the phone add an element of interest and excitement, making it a joy to look at.
Another noteworthy aspect of the Nothing Phone 1’s design is its available finishes. Although both black and white models are attractive, the black variant has a more understated look while the white model helps to accentuate that standout transparent back.
Regardless of which finish you choose, you’re sure to appreciate how light and comfortable the Phone 1 is to hold. Additionally, its power key and volume controls are large and easy to reach, further adding to its overall convenience factor.
Glyph
The Glyph Interface of the Nothing Phone 1 is a series of 900 white LEDs arranged across its transparent back. This design creates a distinctive look for the phone that can start conversations – and it’s not just eye-catching, either.
The diffused bars of light running around the edge of elements like the rear camera module and wireless charging coil are easily identifiable, and each segmented glyph can light up independently of the others. Additionally, by default, these glyphs are paired to one of Nothing’s 10 own-brand ringtones and notification tones. And since they’re integrated perfectly with audio cues – in terms of brightness and motion – they’re also perfect for conveying important information quickly and discreetly.
Beyond notifications and battery indicators, though, the glyphs’ usefulness goes even further: They can be used as an identifier for reverse wireless charging or wired charging sessions, making it easy to connect your phone to compatible devices no matter where you are in your home or office space.
Display
One of the most notable aspects of the Display of Nothing Phone 1 is its 6.55-inch Full HD+ OLED panel. This display is HDR10+ compatible, 10-bit color capable, and has a 120Hz high refresh rate – making it one of the fastest on the market. In addition, the screen is surrounded by a not inconsiderable bezel – meaning that while it might not quite have edge-to-edge viewing angles, it’s still much more compact than other displays on the market.
The punch hole front-facing camera sits in the top left corner of the display also – letting you snap official looking selfies with ease! The brightness out at 500nits according to NOTHING themselves is pretty impressive and should allow for good visibility even in bright sunlight conditions. However, they do promise that with extra fine grain control you can achieve a peak brightness up to 1200nits which should make sure maximum legibility likewise remains intact no matter how brightly lit your environment may become.
With regards to fingerprint sensor placement itself; NOTHING have opted for an optical in-display fingerprint scanner which sit low and close to the bottom edge of the panel itself. This makes access quick and easy, particularly when holding your hands slightly above or below shoulder height due to its low center of gravity design philosophy adopted by NOTHING with this phone specifically.
Additionally; there’s also an ambient light sensor located just above/below this reader which will automatically adjust its functionality depending on ambient lighting conditions so as not to disrupt your security process unnecessarily.
Audio
When it comes to audio quality, the Nothing Phone 1 delivers on its promise. The phone doesn’t feature a wired headphone jack, instead relying on Bluetooth 5.2 for wireless audio delivery. This offers clear sound with little distortion at high volumes and no lip-syncing or artificial delays; the Phone 1’s dual stereo speakers produce surprisingly balanced and coherent sound across their entire range despite not being split evenly.
Clarity is good across the board – even when listening to something with deeper bass frequencies like electronic music – and voices are easily discernible even in noisy environments. In terms of design, nothing really sets the Phone 1 apart from other devices on the market aside from its bold color choices and lack of a physical home button or fingerprint scanner.
But if you’re looking for an all-encompassing audio experience that won’t disappoint regardless of your music preferences, then take a look at the Nothing Phone 1!
Camera
Next up on the Nothing Phone 1 review is its camera! Looking at the camera specifications, it’s clear that the Sony IMX766 sensor is at the heart of things. Supported by OIS (Optical Image Stabilization), this allows for crisply captured images with good consistency in both daylight and artificial lighting – an area where many budget phones tend to struggle.
Shooting on-the-go is especially fun, with a shutter that is reasonably fast in either case. Detail and colors are pleasingly enhanced when snapping shots close to the main sensor; however, when shooting in low light conditions, there’s more of a disparity between the two sensors which can lead to graininess and reduced detail.
However, edge detection remains impressively accurate even when photo bombing friends or family members into picnicking pics! Portrait mode also proves popular; though depth-of-field may not be as wide as you’re used to from more expensive devices, results still look decent overall thanks to good facial recognition and natural skin tones.
4K video recording performance comes standard on the Phone 1 via its rear cameras with support for 30fps / 1080p resolution – this again leaves competitors trailing behind somewhat.
Performance
The Nothing Phone 1 is a low-cost, low-power Android phone that uses a Snapdragon 778G+ chipset. This chipset is a tuned version of an older Qualcomm SoC and it doesn’t have any flashy features or performance benchmarks to speak of, but it should be more than enough for most users.
On the technical front, the phone comes with 8GB of RAM and can be upgraded to 12GB if you want more space. The lack of a dual- camera setup may disappoint some people, but it’s not something that will impact day-to-day usage in a big way. The real challenge will be how capable the Phone 1 feels after long term usage – particularly considering its price point.
Battery
The Nothing Phone 1 definitely impressed us with its battery life. The 778G+ is paired with a 4,500mAh battery which is claimed to deliver up to 18 hours of use per charge. In practice, the phone consistently doled out around five hours of screen-on time before running out of juice.
A single charge handled emails synchronizing from a couple of addresses, about 45 minutes of video streaming, and plenty more casual tasks without any trouble at all. So if you’re looking for a phone that can handle moderate usage but still have some juice left when it needs it, the Nothing Phone 1 is definitely worth considering!
Nothing Phone 1 Review: Final Verdict
So, what is the final verdict of this Nothing Phone 1 review? Should you buy the Nothing Phone 1? The answer is yes if you are looking for a phone that has a lot of flashy features but may be more unstable.
However, there are other phones out there that are just as competent and offer more stability so it is ultimately up to the individual buyer to decide what they want in a phone. The Nothing Phone 1 also offers uniqueness compared to other phones on the market, but like all things unique there is competition from other brands!
