Not anything Telephone 1 Evaluation: Inexpensive Telephone With Flashy Extras

The Not anything Telephone 1 — the corporate’s first telephone — is one who I have been prepared to get my fingers on for some time. Now that I have spent a while with it, that pleasure hasn’t light. It is a 5G telephone that will get numerous issues proper, from its stripped-back interface to its normally cast efficiency and, maximum of all, its quirky clear design with distinctive flashing LEDs at the again. 

However it is the worth that makes this telephone so interesting. Beginning at handiest £399 in the United Kingdom (which converts to kind of $480 or AU$700), the Not anything Telephone 1 is no less than £100 lower than I anticipated it to be. It is a low worth, however what you get is a telephone that seems like a top class product.

This is, if you’ll purchase one. Whilst the telephone is on sale now in the United Kingdom and Europe, there are recently no plans for a complete release in america. Not anything mentioned that it is “surely aiming to release a US-supported cellular one day,” however it kind of feels not likely to occur any time quickly. It can be that folks in america fail to spot this first-gen style altogether. 

Will have to you purchase the Not anything Telephone 1?

The Not anything Telephone 1 without a doubt is not an iPhone 13 Professional or Galaxy S22 Extremely rival. However it isn’t seeking to be. It is a excellent telephone, now not as it tries to cram in each function you may be able to believe, however as it leaves them out. Each its {hardware} and tool are stripped again, leaving you with a telephone that is nicely suited to on a regular basis wishes at a value that’ll nonetheless go away some money to your financial institution. 

It is uncommon {that a} new corporate arrives at the scene with a primary product that feels this polished, however the Not anything Telephone 1 manages to get the entire necessities proper, whilst including within the additional pizzazz of that flashy design. If you are after a well-performing telephone for a excellent worth, it is surely value taking into consideration.

A flashy design, a big display

The Phone 1’s design is certainly the thing that sets it apart from the competition. The back panel is entirely transparent, letting you see the interconnected components beneath including the wireless charging coil and multiple exposed screwheads. The only Nothing branding is a small logo in the bottom corner. 

That transparency also allows for the lightshow; a set of LED strips, which Nothing calls the “glyph,” light up across the back panel to alert you to incoming calls or notifications or even to use as a fill light when recording video. It’s certainly unique and it’s nice to see some different ideas on phones, especially in the budget sector, which is often awash with forgettable gray or black slabs. 

But it’s also arguably something of a gimmick. Time will tell how useful it really is. You might just not like the design, which is fair enough, but at this price it’s fair to say you’re not just paying for its looks. 

Around the edge is a recycled aluminum frame that gives the phone a satisfyingly sturdy feel, while its IP53 water-resistance rating will help keep it safe from spilled drinks. 

The 6.55-inch display is big enough to do justice to Netflix shows on the move, as does its 2,400×1,080-pixel resolution and vibrant colors. Its 120Hz refresh rate means that swiping around the home screens or scrolling through webpages looks buttery smooth. 

Good enough performance for the price

Powering the phone is a Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G Plus processor, backed up by 8GB of RAM. Results on benchmark tests for both processing power and graphics performance put it far away behind top models like the iPhone 13 Pro or S22 Ultra and slightly less behind more affordable handsets like the Pixel 6 or 6 Pro. 

That should be expected for a more affordable device, and the reality is that it’s still got plenty of power for the majority of tasks you’d likely need it to do. Gaming in Asphalt 9: Legends and PUBG were handled perfectly, as was video streaming and image editing in Snapseed. Even just navigating around the interface was swift and nippy. 

That’s likely helped by a stripped-back approach to the software. The phone runs Android 12, over which Nothing has slapped a minimal cosmetic skin. Overall, it’s a light touch and doesn’t include bloatware, preinstalled apps or services. Nothing hasn’t tried to pointlessly develop its own email client (it knows you’d rather use Gmail) or create its own web browser (because you’ll use Chrome, of course). In fact, all of the system apps are just the default Google ones. 

This minimalist approach works well, making the phone feel clutter-free and usable. It’s an approach I like. For comparison, Samsung notoriously preloaded its phones for years with its own software and services, making its phones feel bogged down. 

Solid dual cameras

Nothing kept the camera setup stripped back too, equipping the phone with just two rear 50-megapixel cameras including a standard wide-angle lens and an ultrawide lens. Nothing has kept the cost down by omitting dedicated telephoto and macro cameras, which is a good decision. 

The cameras take great photos. The main camera captures vibrant colors, with even exposure and plenty of detail. Side-by-side, shots from my iPhone 13 Pro are arguably better, but they’re certainly not twice as good. It’s worth remembering that the iPhone costs twice as much as the Nothing Phone 1. 

The ultrawide camera does a solid job for snaps in good light, but there’s a noticeable shift in the color balance.

Nothing’s cameras are by no means the best ones around, but if that’s what you’re looking for you’ll need to spend more than twice the cash on the Galaxy S22 Ultra. For the money, the Phone 1’s cameras do a superb job and will suit you well if you want vibrant shots of your next family vacation. 

OK battery life with fast charging

Providing the juice is a 4,500-mAh battery, which is capacious enough to keep you going for a full day as long as you’re fairly careful with what you do. In my tests, after an hour of streaming a YouTube video on Wi-Fi with the screen at maximum brightness, it had dropped from full to 93%, and further to 83% after a second hour. 

That’s not a great performance — the OnePlus 10 Pro, Pixel 6 Pro, iPhone 13 Pro and Honor Magic 4 Pro all put in better efforts here. But it’s a demanding test, and with more cautious use you shouldn’t struggle to get a day out of it. If you’re not playing graphically intense games or streaming lots of videos, you should make it through a day. Though you’ll definitely need to charge it every night. 

Getting it charged when you’re in a hurry shouldn’t be an issue. The Phone 1 supports 33-watt fast charging, which Nothing claims takes it from empty to 50% full in under 30 minutes. Unfortunately, a compatible fast charger doesn’t come in the box and is only available as an add-on accessory.

Nothing Phone 1 specs vs. Samsung Galaxy A53 5G, Google Pixel 6A, Apple iPhone SE (2022)

	Nothing Phone 1	Samsung Galaxy A53 5G	Google Pixel 6A	Apple iPhone SE (2022)
Display size, resolution, refresh rate	6.55-inch OLED display, 2,400×1,080 pixels; 120Hz	6.5-inch AMOLED, 2,400×1,080 pixels; 120Hz	6.1-inch OLED; 2,400×1,080 pixels; 60Hz	4.7-inch LCD; 1,334×750 pixels; 60Hz
Pixel density	402ppi	405ppi	429 ppi	326ppi
Dimensions (Inches)	6.27 x 2.98 x 0.33 in	6.28 x 2.94 x 0.32 in	6.0 x 2.8 x 0.35 in	5.45 x 2.65 x 0.29 in
Dimensions (Millimeters)	159.2 x 75.8 x 8.3 mm	159.6 x 74.8 x 8.1 mm	152.2 x 7.18 x 8.9 mm	138.4 x 67.3 x 7.3 mm
Weight (Ounces, Grams)	193.5g	6.67 oz; 189g	6.3 oz; 178g	5.09 oz; 144g
Mobile software	Android 12	Android 12	Android 12	iOS 15
Camera	50-megapixel (main), 50-megapixel (ultrawide)	64-megapixel (wide), 12-megapixel (ultrawide), 5-megapixel (macro), 5-megapixel (depth)	12.2-megapixel (wide), 12-megapixel ultrawide)	12-megapixel (wide)
Front-facing camera	16-megapixel	32-megapixel	8-megapixel	7-megapixel
Video capture	4K	4K	4K	4K
Processor	Snapdragon 778G Plus	Exynos 1280	Google Tensor	Apple A15 Bionic
Storage	128GB, 256 GB	128GB	128GB	64GB, 128GB, 256GB
RAM	8GB, 12GB	6GB	6GB	NA
Expandable storage	None	Up to 1TB	None	None
Battery	4,500 mAh; 33W wired charging — fast charger not included, 15-watt wireless charging, 5-watt reverse charging	5,000 mAh; 25W wired charging — charger not included, does not support wireless charging	4,410 mAh; 18W fast charging — adapter sold separately, does not support wireless charging	Batttery size not disclosed; 20-watt wired charging — charger not included, 7.5W wireless charging
Fingerprint sensor	In-display	In-display	In-display	Home button
Connector	USB-C	USB-C	USB C	Lightning
Headphone jack	None	None	None	None
Special features	5G, IP53, 3 years of Android updates, dual SIM	5G; IP67 rating; Samsung Pay	5G, security updates for 5 years, Android OS updates for 3 years, dual SIM, IP67 water resistance	5G, water resistant (IP67), dual SIM
Price off-contract (USD)	UK price converts to $480 (128GB + 8GB RAM); $530 (256GB + 8GB RAM); $590 (256GB + 12GB RAM)	$450	$449	$399 (64GB), $449 (128GB), $549 (256GB)
Price (GBP)	£399 (128GB + 8GB RAM); £449 (256GB + 8GB RAM); £499 (256GB + 12GB RAM)	£399	£399	£419 (64GB), £469 (128GB), £569 (256GB)
Price (AUD)	UK price converts to AU$700 (128GB + 8GB RAM); AU$785 (256GB + 8GB RAM); AU$875 (256GB + 12GB RAM)	AU$699	A$749	AU$749 (64GB), AU$829 (128GB), AU$999 (256GB)