Nothing made its debut last year with the ear (1), the company’s transparent wireless earphones. The brand, led by OnePlus founder Carl Pei, will eventually introduce its second product, a smartphone, this July.
Keeping true to its moniker, Nothing retained Nothing Phone 1, or ‘Nothing phone (1)’ as Nothing has termed it, under wraps. Even at the company’s unveiling event, not much was revealed about the impending smartphone. However, the doors have now been unlocked.
We now know when Nothing will formally unveil Phone 1, where you can buy it, and what OS it will be running. Its design has been revealed. We’ve also gotten some early looks at the underlying hardware, as well as the inevitable leak or two.
We’ve been researching, so here’s what we know so far about Phone 1.
Nothing Phone (1) Design: the front is on display for the first time.
Until recently, we didn’t know much about it, save for a cheeky staged photo of a black smartphone device that looked like any other handset. We felt it was an early version at the time since Pei intimated that the final design would be different.
Nothing’s teaser campaign is now in full swing, with the company first showing off the rear of the device on its official Twitter account, then putting the handset (or at least the rear of it) on display at an event in Switzerland. The front of the phone was then shown for the first time in public in a video by YouTuber Marques Brownlee.
The Nothing phone sports a flat screen with equal-sized bezels on all four sides and a hole punch selfie camera on the left. There’s no information on what display panel technology is being utilized or the actual size of the display – we’ve gone over the rumored specs in the area below.
The rear reveals indicated that the Phone 1 would have two rear cameras as well as a transparent, industrial-looking design that will complement the ear (1) headphones. Pei earlier promised a “beautiful” handset and acknowledged it was time to embrace transparent design again, hinting the forthcoming smartphone will have a similar see-through appearance.
The phone has flat sides and is made of recyclable aluminum, as evidenced by a previous tweet showing two birds sitting on top of a device and a follow-up tweet from the company’s creator. It also features various light-up components, which Nobody refers to as the ‘glyph interface.’ Incoming alerts, battery charging status, and whether the phone is wireless charging or reverse wireless charging can all be shown by the collection of 900 unique LEDs. They can be used as a fill light when photographing in low light. When the phone starts shooting video, a single red LED illuminates.
It’s unusual for a manufacturer to launch a new phone without showing off its design, but Nothing has ever done anything by the book. And if there’s one thing the company is known for, it’s striking design. This appears to be the case with Phone 1.
Nothing Phone (1) Software: Nothing Operating System (OS)
Nothing’s new products are on a quest to build a connected ecology. Pei told us in an interview that there is presently no suitable alternative environment to Apple with the same connection. And he’s correct. With Nothing’s releases, the business intends to create a similarly linked environment that can compete with the fruity tech behemoth. We’ll have to wait and see how that goes.
Nothing is releasing Nothing OS on Phone 1, the company’s own environment, to power this ecosystem. It’s based on Android, just like Samsung and Xiaomi’s OS, but it’ll include custom parts, typefaces (with Nothing’s dots), and so on. Pei claims that it will also learn and optimize based on your behavior, optimizing RAM usage. Nothing OS will receive three years of software updates for Phone 1.
If you want to have a peek at Nothing’s software, the company has released a preview of its launcher, which is currently available for download for Android 11 or later phones (it was originally restricted to Google Pixel 5 or Pixel 6, or Samsung Galaxy S21 or S22 but this restriction has now been lifted). The launcher is quite simple, with only a few widgets, wallpapers, and icons, as well as that recognizable typeface.
Nothing Phone (1) Hardware
Nothing Phone 1 will run on Qualcomm’s Snapdragon mobile platform, which both companies are quite proud of. We don’t know which chip will be used in the forthcoming smartphone, although the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 was previously regarded to be a possible possibility.
However, MySmartPrice just discovered a claimed benchmark of the Nothing Phone 1, revealing that it is really powered by the mid-range Snapdragon 778G+ CPU. If accurate, that might be excellent news for both battery life and affordability, though diehard mobile gamers may be disappointed if they’re hoping for a device that can get the absolute most out of the most demanding titles.
91Mobiles discovered a recent TUV certification indicating the phone will enable 45W fast charging, with the adaptor confirming to the new PPS standard – meaning it will also fast-charge other devices. MKBHD’s YouTube video also showed the device reverse wireless charging Nothing’s own headphones.
According to a report from the Twitter account TechDroider, the Phone 1 would include a 6.55″ OLED display with flat borders, even bezels on all four sides, and a top-center hole punch camera. It will reportedly feature a resolution of 1080×2400, making it more of a consumer flagship than a really premium device. The preceding image is a concept graphic rather than an actual image of the device, and we now know that the power and volume buttons are in different positions, so it’s uncertain whether the rounded display corners will exist on the final product.
Furthermore, Nothing shared some images of the device’s interior. While these photographs are mostly for Nothing to discuss its design work, we do get a fascinating glimpse at one phone feature. We can see what seems to be a wireless charging coil, implying that the future device will support wireless charging.
Nothing Phone (1) Anticipated Price
The major question: pricing. Coming from OnePlus, we anticipate Pei to provide premier features in a mid-range priced smartphone. However, if Nothing is emphasizing strong designs, this might add a slight price. Initial estimates put the price between mid-range and flagship at roughly £700. However, recent rumors of a mid-range Snapdragon 778G+ CPU might point to a much more affordable price tag of roughly £399-£499 in our opinion. The ear (1) buds cost £99, which is less than other wireless earbuds, and they, too, might be an indication of a more affordable price tag on the forthcoming smartphone.
What we do know is where you will be able to purchase Phone 1. Nothing has chosen O2 as its sole UK network partner, with in-store and online sales expected to commence early next month. There will be a SIM-free alternative as well as a variety of contract choices. In Germany, the phone will only be available via Telekom Deutschland, and the Flipkart e-commerce marketplace will offer it in India.
If you do want one, be aware that, like the original OnePlus handset, the Nothing Phone 1 will initially be sold only via an invite system. This means that only die-hard Nothing fans will be invited to purchase the handset, which is an ingenious hype-building marketing strategy in and of itself.
Release Date for Nothing Phone (1)
It’s official: the Nothing Phone 1 will be unveiled on July 12th. The manufacturer revealed that the smartphone would be unveiled during an event in London, with a live broadcast for enthusiasts who want to know everything as soon as it is disclosed. The event begins at 4PM BST and will provide us with our first glimpse at the phone, confirm its specifications, and (hopefully) reveal how much we’ll have to spend to get our hands on one.
The official Nothing Twitter account teased the news ahead of time, leading some to speculate that the device would make its debut – but that has already been refuted.
Nothing has collaborated with StockX to auction off the first 100 units made. The 1-100 build slot will be carved into the metal sides of each phone, near to the Nothing logo. The auction begins at 2 p.m. on June 21st and will last two days. With no indication of how much the phone would cost, bidders must determine how much they are ready to spend to be a part of the elite 1-100 club.
It’s unclear how much longer we’ll have to wait between the phone’s unveiling and its release. If Nothing follows OnePlus’ lead, we could be in for a month-long wait following the announcement – but Carl Pei has always stated that Nothing wants to do things differently.
That’s a lot to go on, but what about the rest? Nothing says anything for the time being. You’ll have to wait until July 12th for the official word.
