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CNET
a day ago
- CNET
I Tried the Nothing Phone 3 and It Definitely Didn't Live Up to the Hype
Nothing made things difficult for itself by calling its latest phone its first "true flagship." It suggests that it is a contender to premium phones such as the iPhone 16 Pro or the Galaxy S25 Ultra, but it simply isn't. Instead it's a solid midranger, offering decent performance and a host of quirky features for a relatively affordable price. At $799 (£799), the Nothing Phone 3 is the most expensive phone the company has made, and it backs this up with a more potent processor, better cameras and an additional year of software support compared to its previous models. But it's also a real mixed bag of things I like and things I really don't. 7.3 Nothing Phone 3 Like Awesome macro photography mode Awesome macro photography mode Good software support period Good software support period Quirky design stands out from the crowd Don't like Camera performance overall disappoints Camera performance overall disappoints Processor lags behind flagship rivals Processor lags behind flagship rivals Rear Glyph Matrix is arguably a gimmick Rear Glyph Matrix is arguably a gimmick Battery life is underwhelming The square-blocks-under-transparent-glass design is arguably fun, but it's not without its problems. The cameras are mostly underwhelming except for its surprisingly good macro mode, and the software features are basically the same as you'll find on the company's much cheaper 3A Pro. At a price that matches both the Pixel 9 and iPhone 16, the Nothing Phone 3 is best seen as a midtier phone at a flagship price. Nothing needed to push for better performance -- especially from the cameras -- or drop the price by at least 100 bucks. As it stands, this phone is difficult to recommend over the Pixel 9. A "flagship" it isn't, and my advice to Nothing would be to stick to what they do best: quirky phones with affordable price tags. Nothing Phone 3: Quirky design and Glyph Matrix The Glyph Matrix, as Nothing calls it, is the standout new feature for this phone. It's basically a small, round, dot-matrix display in the top right of the phone's back that shows things like incoming notifications, the time, and even little mini games. It's a cute idea, and while I do like being able to see who's calling me when my phone is face down on my desk, I think its use is limited overall. You can play games like spin the bottle on it, but as a married 37-year-old, my desire for a morally ambiguous chance kiss with a drunk friend at a house party has thankfully been left behind in my teenage years. Even then, spin the bottle is arguably the highlight of the Glyph Matrix right now, and while Nothing says the SDK is open for third party developers to use, I'm not convinced it's a feature that has longevity. Spin the bottle on the Glyph Matrix display. Gimmick or useful party feature? I'll leave it up to you to decide. Andrew Lanxon/CNET But I'm particularly peeved that it's come at the cost of the Glyph lights that were the hallmark of Nothing's earlier phones. The Nothing Phone 1 and 2 were littered with large LEDs that flashed to let you know about notifications, and while their existence was arguably more for aesthetics, it was fun to see something a bit different in phone design. Those lights are gone, combined and shrunk into the Glyph Matrix. Sure, that's still quirky, but I wish Nothing had kept the bigger glyph lights too -- I don't see any reason why both versions of Glyph can't co-exist here. The broader design is still definitely Nothing, with a transparent outer shell that gives the impression you're looking into the physical heart of the phone. The white model shows this off much better than the black option, if you're not sure which color you prefer. I quite like the blocky design, but a couple of things irritate me. First, the telephoto camera unit is weirdly off center, sitting much closer to the phone's edge than the unit below it. It looks like a mistake and I find it off-putting. Then there's the semi-circle strip under the flash -- it absolutely looks like it's supposed to light up like the "glyphs" of older Nothing phones, but it doesn't. It's just… there. I'd put money on there originally being a plan for this to light up but it got axed as a cost-cutting measure along the way. The off-center left camera and the sort of semi-circle bit under the flash -- two design choices I don't understand, but I am annoyed by. Andrew Lanxon/CNET Fine, I might be nit-picking here. For transparency, I'm someone who gets annoyed when I see slightly off kerning in posters and adverts. I cringe when I walk around town and see the rampant misuse of apostrophes and I feel physically compelled to say "fewer" when someone incorrectly uses "less" in a sentence. I'm a pedant, sure, but when it comes to expensive tech, pedantry is important. If there'd been more pedantry at Nothing then we wouldn't have off-centre cameras and I'd probably give it another star in this review. Maybe. Nothing Phone 3: Mediocre cameras, rad macro mode The phone packs three rear cameras: a standard wide angle, an ultrawide and a telephoto zoom offering 3x optical zoom and 6x combined optical and digital zoom. All three cameras offer 50 megapixels of resolution and all of them are best described as simply "fine." Taken with the standard lens, this image has decent colors and a solid overall exposure. Andrew Lanxon/CNET This image from the main camera is fine, though if I'm nitpicking I don't like how much it's lifted the shadows on the buildings. It gives it quite an unnatural look. Andrew Lanxon/CNET The shadows have been brightened a lot in this evening image, too, though I don't hate the result. The sky's color balance leans into teal tones quite strongly which isn't especially accurate but it's a fine snap overall. Andrew Lanxon/CNET In good outdoor conditions the exposure from the main camera is decent, with fairly accurate colors and plenty of detail. Some HDR scenes can look a bit unnatural with weirdly-lightened shadows and toned down highlights. Still, I've seen worse. The main camera has leaned hard into the teal tones in this evening scene. Andrew Lanxon/CNET It's especially obvious when compared to the iPhone 16 Pro which has captured the scene much more accurately. Andrew Lanxon/CNET It's the same situation here, with the Nothing Phone 3's main camera producing a very teal sky, which was not how this scene looked. Andrew Lanxon/CNET The iPhone 16 Pro has retained a much more authentic-looking magenta tone. Andrew Lanxon/CNET As the light starts to fall it seems to struggle more with white balance, often leaning into cyan tones which give low-light images an unnatural appearance. The color shift between the Nothing Phone 3's standard zoom (left) and the ultrawide (right) is noticeable. Andrew Lanxon/CNET The ultrawide lens captures even exposures, but there's often a noticeable color shift between the standard and wide views. There's also a lot of chromatic aberration visible on areas of contrast, especially towards the edge of the frame which suggests low quality optics. I've also seen odd image processing issues, including weird detail smoothing and in one instance, a person's hair tinged bright green. While this ultrawide view of people watching a street performer has a fair exposure overall, it's not without its problems. Andrew Lanxon/CNET This biggest problem being that the phone's image processing has turned this person's hair a deep shade of green for some reason. It's not good. Andrew Lanxon/CNET This night-time ultrawide shot agains leans unnaturally hard into the cyan tones when compared to the iPhone 16 Pro. But it's a little brighter overall which is a good thing I guess. Andrew Lanxon/CNET The iPhone 16 Pro's shot is definitely darker, but it's colors are more realistic. Andrew Lanxon/CNET The zoom lens is hit or miss. At 6x zoom on an overcast day, it does a decent job of capturing an even exposure with crisp details. Other times it struggles, often creating a weird soft glow around subjects, especially in areas of high contrast. At 6x zoom, the details on this street performer look good. Andrew Lanxon/CNET It's also done a solid job of capturing this 6x zoom scene. Andrew Lanxon/CNET But here's where things go weird with the zoom lens. Andrew Lanxon/CNET When cropped in close it's clear to see that the Nothing Phone 3's zoom (left) suffers from a weird halation around the swan that isn't present on the iPhone 16 Pro's shot (right). Andrew Lanxon/CNET Taken at 6x zoom, this shot of swans and signets has blown-out highlights and a bizarre haze around the swans that makes it look like those naff shots from the '80s with Vaseline on the lens. I've seen this on multiple test photos and I'm disappointed to see such significant image quality issues. What's causing it? Difficult to say definitively, but like the wide-angle lens I'd guess at low-quality plastic optics on the zoom lens. Viewed at full screen this 6x zoom shot is basically fine. Andrew Lanxon/CNET But looking closer up at the details reveals that there's again a softness to the Nothing Phone 3's image (left) that lets it down against the iPhone 16 Pro's shot (right). Andrew Lanxon/CNET While I'm disappointed overall with the Nothing Phone 3's camera, it does have one saving grace: its macro mode. Most phones offer some kind of close up shooting for macro scenes, but nothing like this one. The Nothing Phone 3's macro mode is superb. The details on this bee look amazing and the overall colors and exposure look great too. Andrew Lanxon/CNET You can see all the tiny bits of pollen stuck this bee. It's a lovely macro shot. Andrew Lanxon/CNET I've been able to get some really great close up shots of bees on flowers that are not just well-exposed, but also pin-sharp and with great-looking colors. Like most macro modes it can be highly susceptible to movement, so I hammered the shutter button taking numerous images of each scene and then simply selecting the best-looking one later, but that's the same way I work when I take macro photos professionally -- it's never a case of taking one image and it being perfect straight away. The iPhone 16 Pro's macro attempt far less impressive, with much more muted tones and a weird "crunchiness" to the image that I don't like anything like as much. Andrew Lanxon/CNET It's the one way that the Nothing Phone 3's camera outperforms its rivals. I tried taking similar macro photos with the iPhone 16 Pro and it couldn't even come close to what I could achieve with the Nothing phone. But in most other respects the Nothing's cameras aren't great and if photography is important to you then I'd suggest looking elsewhere. Nothing Phone 3: Processor and battery performance The phone runs on a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8S Gen 4 processor which put in reasonable scores on our suite of benchmark tests. Its scores put it much more in line with last year's flagships like the Galaxy S24 and Xiaomi 14, but a fair step behind current-gen models such as the Galaxy S25, iPhone 16 or OnePlus 13. In everyday use, the phone feels nippy, with smooth navigation around the interface, apps that load quickly and demanding gaming in Genshin Impact and PUBG being handled easily, even at max graphics settings. The phone might not be up there with today's flagships on paper, but it's got more than enough grunt to handle almost anything you'd want to throw at it. The phone runs Android 15 at its heart. Nothing promises six years of total software support. Andrew Lanxon/CNET The phone's 5,150-mAh battery uses silicon carbon technology that Nothing says results in better longevity. On our rundown tests, battery life is distinctly average, with results from both our video streaming drain test and 45-minute endurance test putting it below both the Galaxy S25 and OnePlus 13, but more in line with the much cheaper Nothing Phone 3A. Like all phones, you should expect to give it a full recharge every night. Nothing Phone 3: Software and updates The phone runs Android 15 at its core but Nothing has slapped its own interface over the top, which gives it a strong look. It leans on monochrome aesthetics, with most app icons being turned black and white and text being removed from many areas of the homescreen in a bid for a more minimalist look. I quite like it, even though sometimes it's difficult to work out exactly which app is which. You can turn it off if it's not to your taste though. The phone has various AI tools scattered around -- including Google's Gemini, accessible by a long press of the power button -- but it's the Essential Space that stands out. Essential Space is best thought of as a repository for your stream of consciousness throughout the day. There's a dedicated hardware button on the side of the phone; press it once and it'll take a screenshot to store in Essential Space. Long press it and you can record a voice note that will then be transcribed with AI with key points being pulled out to remind you later. The Essential Space has a dedicated hardware button on the side to make it easy to log your thoughts and screenshots. Andrew Lanxon/CNET Nothing is slowly building the tool out to add deeper functionality -- the new version has a longer voice record function that will transcribe meetings for you -- and while I don't think it's a reason to choose a Nothing phone over any other, it's an interesting tool that you may find useful. The problem is that both the iconic monochrome interface and Essential Space tool are also found on Nothing's much cheaper Phone 3A, so there's nothing unique here that would justify you spending twice the price to buy the top model. Nothing has said that the Phone 3 will receive four years of software updates and a total of seven years of security support meaning this phone should still be safe to use in 2032. Nothing Phone 3: Should you buy it? Nothing has tried hard to differentiate itself from the market over the years by offering quirky phones at prices that significantly undercut its rivals. Calling the Phone 3 its first "true flagship" is a risky strategy and one that I don't feel has paid off here. This phone might have higher-end components than some of its cheaper siblings, but it's not a "true flagship", especially not when measured against rivals like the iPhone 16, Pixel 9 or Galaxy S25. The Phone 3 lacks the processor and camera performance I'd expect to see at this level. The stark monochrome aesthetic of the Nothing interface looks kinda cool, as long as you can remember which app icon is which. Andrew Lanxon/CNET Its battery life, too, is disappointing, and while the Glyph Matrix is certainly a unique addition, it's arguably a gimmick that likely won't add much value to your long-term experience with the phone. At its full $799 retail price, this phone is at least $100 too expensive. If you can pick it up with a decent discount then it's worth considering. If you simply like the aesthetics of the phone and its monochrome interface but don't care about camera performance, look toward the Nothing Phone 3A -- it's half the price but just as fun.
Android Authority
a day ago
- Android Authority
Phones with both a cooling fan and water resistance don't exist, until now
OPPO TL;DR OPPO has announced the K13 Turbo and K13 Turbo Pro in China. These new phones have cooling fans and are water-resistant. The OPPO K13 Turbo series starts at ~$251 in China. We've seen a few gaming phones over the years with built-in cooling fans. Unfortunately, the need for a cooling fan vent means these phones aren't water-resistant. Thankfully, OPPO's latest phones buck this trend. OPPO announced the K13 Turbo and K13 Turbo Pro in China today, and both of these budget gaming phones have cooling fans. OPPO says this 18,000RPM fan increases heat dissipation by up to 20%. The phones are also equipped with cooling vents and a 7,000mm² vapor chamber system. Despite the cooling fan and vents, OPPO says the K13 Turbo phones have IPX6, IPX8, and IPX9 ratings for water resistance. That means it should withstand immersion in fresh water as well as high-pressure jets of hot water. Disappointingly, the phones don't have a dust resistance rating. Nevertheless, this might be the first time we see a water-resistant phone with a cooling fan. OPPO The two phones share several features. These include a 6.8-inch FHD+ 120Hz OLED screen, a 7,000mAh battery with 80W wired charging, an under-display fingerprint sensor, a 50MP+2MP rear camera pairing, and a 16MP selfie camera. Otherwise, the OPPO K13 Turbo Pro earns its Pro moniker thanks to the Snapdragon 8s Gen 4 chipset (as seen in the Nothing Phone 3), optical image stabilization on the main camera, UFS 4.0 storage, and Wi-Fi 7. The standard OPPO K13 Turbo has a MediaTek Dimensity 8450 processor, no OIS on the main camera, UFS 3.1 storage, and Wi-Fi 6. The K13 Turbo starts at 1,799 yuan (~$251) for the 12GB/256GB model, while the K13 Turbo Pro starts at 1,999 yuan (~$278) for the 12GB/256GB model. This seems to be a China-only launch for now. Nevertheless, I hope to see more phones with improved cooling, as heating has been an issue with some recent flagship devices. Got a tip? Talk to us! Email our staff at Email our staff at news@ . You can stay anonymous or get credit for the info, it's your choice.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Forget Apple Intelligence — Nothing Phone's killer AI feature just got better
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. London-based phone maker Nothing has taken a gamble with its latest device, the Nothing Phone 3. By pricing it at $799 and proclaiming it a true flagship, it's going toe-to-toe with established players like the Google Pixel 9 and Samsung Galaxy S25 — also both $799. Aside from the divisively eye-catching design (I like it, but others may disagree) the standout feature of Nothing's handset is the "Essential Space". You can tell the company thinks the feature is important, because it gets its own hardware button. In theory, Essential Space is a centralized repository of information that can then be indexed and analyzed by AI. What's the Essential Space? Well, it's yet another implementation of AI. Before you groan and stop reading; hear me out. In theory, Essential Space is a centralized repository of information that can then be indexed and analyzed by AI. At the moment, it's bare-bones — screenshots and recordings — but there's a lot of potential there to make it a killer feature. As long as Nothing doesn't start charging for it. For instance, with the Nothing Phone 3, Nothing added a new Flip to Record feature which lets you start a voice note from anywhere (using that hardware button called the "Essential Key") and store it in the Essential Space, where it's transcribed and summarized. Now, Nothing has just announced a major upgrade that includes three new functionalities: Google Calendar integration, Editable Memory, and Essential Recorder. Let's pick through them one at a time. Google Calendar integration is pretty self-explanatory; any task or event created in the Essential space can be automatically synced over to your Google Calendar without you needing to manually do anything. If the AI gets it wrong (if it mis-hears for example) you can still go in and edit the event yourself. That's the "Editable Memory" part — and while I've not seen these features in action myself, I'd hope the AI learns from your edits to make less mistakes in future. Finally, the "Essential Recorder" option takes that Flip to Record feature and takes it to the next level. The AI will turn any recording into an image, PDF or Markdown, that can then be shared anywhere, like a group message or email chain. If you're one of the people that uses a Nothing phone — like my colleague Anthony Spadafora — and you've got auto-update enabled, you won't need to do anything. The Essential Space will update automatically via the Google Play Store. According to Nothing, these updates are live now on Nothing Phone (3), and will come to Phone (3a) and Phone (3a) Pro "soon". AI used the right way AI on phones is something of a tricky sell right now. How much value consumers are actually getting for it isn't fully realised yet. But for my money, Nothing is taking a different approach than just shoe-horning in a bunch of AI overviews around the OS. It's giving users a centralised point of focus for their AI experience with hardware to back it up. It's far from fully realised yet and might not be enough of a reason to tempt people away from a Pixel 9 or Galaxy S25, but I still value the concept. Speaking of the S25, Samsung recently confirmed it would be making its "default" Galaxy AI features free to all users indefinitely while Google's Gemini just got a feature even ChatGPT can't match. The AI arms race on phone features is certainly getting interesting right now. Follow Tom's Guide on Google News to get our up-to-date news, how-tos, and reviews in your feeds. Make sure to click the Follow button. More from Tom's Guide Nothing Phone 3 Review: A first flagship that mostly sticks the landing Google Gemini just got an AI video feature that beats ChatGPT — here's how to use it Samsung's 'default' Galaxy AI features will remain free indefinitely — here's what you need to know
Phone Arena
4 days ago
- Phone Arena
Nothing downgraded the Phone (3) display to make it look better at low brightness
Nothing has downgraded the PWM rate of the Phone (3), which the company says should benefit the display's performance. Initially, the Nothing Phone (3) had a 2,160Hz PWM rate, but a software update changed it to 960Hz. In a statement sent to Android Central, Nothing says the change is in effect only when the display operates at lower brightness. The Phone (3) display is still technically capable of supporting a 2,160Hz PWM rate, though the company hasn't confirmed at what brightness level the change kicks in. — Nothing spokesperson, 18 July, 2025 Nothing hasn't explained in detail why the change was necessary, but apparently it'll be part of the final retail is one of those things that, if you know about it, there's a good reason, but if you've never heard of it, you're not alone. The abbreviation stands for pulse-width modulation, which plays a key role in how OLED displays control brightness. What PWM does is to rapidly turn pixels on and off, tricking your eyes into thinking the display is dimmer. For the vast majority of people, PWM is an innocuous technology, but others aren't as lucky. Most often, the negative effects of the lower flicker rates are limited to eye strain. However, more PWM-sensitive people can experience more severe symptoms, like headaches, nausea, and to those negative effects, a high PWM rate is considered not only something special by some users, but also necessary. The issue can be so severe that there's a whole subreddit dedicated to PWM sensitivity. Nothing isn't the only smartphone brand that's paying attention to the PWM rate, though. Rumor has it that the Pixel 10 series might have a higher PWM rate. Other brands, like Honor, are stepping up in that regard with phones like the Magic 6 Pro, which supports a 4,320Hz PWM dimming rate when brightness drops below 30%. I think Nothing should be more transparent about the change, and maybe even give the option to prioritize the PWM rate instead of the image quality. Accessibility is very important, especially when we're talking about devices as essential as smartphones. For many people, a little worse image quality is a good trade-off for being able to use a smartphone without negative effects.
Phone Arena
4 days ago
- Phone Arena
This phone could've been the bold new flagship we needed
Nothing's third-generation phone doubles down on its visual identity with even more customizable LEDs, a distinct UI design, and a refined aesthetic that's unlike anything else in the Android space. It's easy to admire the ambition, and as someone who's craving something different, a break from the mold, I respect it. The Nothing Phone (3) wants to feel special, expressive, and fun in a sea of polished rectangles. But once you get past the unique presentation, it becomes clear that being different doesn't always mean being better, even more so when you're charging $800. We've tested the Phone (3) in-depth, comparing it to the best alternatives at its price, and the results aren't flattering. Whether it's the performance, camera quality, video capabilities, or even display brightness, Nothing's latest effort consistently lands behind the competition, sometimes by a significant margin. That makes it hard to recommend, no matter how much I'd like to root for the underdog. The two color options of the Phone (3). | Image credit — Nothing Let's start with the good. The design of the Nothing Phone (3) is undeniably striking, particularly for tech enthusiasts like us. The transparent back, enhanced Glyph lighting, and symmetrical borders still turn heads, and build quality remains top-notch. I dig it, as it reminds me of something from Star Wars. This phone was made to be seen and felt, not just also commendable that Nothing doesn't overload the phone with bloatware or visual clutter — the clean software skin and thoughtful haptics help it feel more premium than most mid-rangers. However, this attention to design doesn't change the fact that it's entering a segment ($800 and above) full of excellent phones that don't compromise on essentials, such as the Pixel 9, Galaxy S25, OnePlus 13, and the iPhone 16. And that's where the Nothing Phone (3) stumbles, hard. The Phone (3)'s screen looks good indoors, but outdoor brightness is well behind the competition. | Image credit — PhoneArena Despite its sleek look, the Phone (3)'s display doesn't impress when it comes to real-world performance. It's a 6.7-inch OLED panel with good resolution and a 120Hz refresh rate — all specs that sound great on paper. But in our lab tests, it had the lowest brightness levels at 20% APL (just 1501 nits) among its peers, meaning visibility outdoors suffers compared to rivals like the Pixel 9 or Galaxy S25 , both of which push brightness well over 2000 nits. At the other end of the scale, its minimum brightness was the highest (2 nits), making it less comfortable to use in bed or dim lighting. A surprising saving grace was the color accuracy, which turned out to be the best compared to the competition. That said, this is something that can vary drastically between units, so it is definitely not a guarantee that all other Nothing Phone (3) devices will show such results. The chip performance presents a similar mixed-bag type of situation. With a Snapdragon 8s Gen 4 chip inside, the Phone (3) is finally using a flagship silicon — the first phone to use this chip. It easily beats the Pixel 9 's Tensor G4 and even Apple's A18 in some cases, but it is still nowhere close to the Snapdragon 8 Elite powering phones like the Galaxy S25 and OnePlus 13 . Our performance score confirmed the gap. The Phone (3) scored 7.6 in light tasks and 7.2 in heavy tasks. For comparison, the OnePlus 13 hits 9.0 in heavy workloads — a massive difference in responsiveness when gaming, multitasking, or using demanding apps. Despite stacked specs, the Phone (3) struggles with oversharpening, noise, and uneven image quality. | Image credit — PhoneArena On paper, the Nothing Phone (3) is stacked: it boasts a 50 MP main camera with a large 1/1.3" sensor and OIS, a 50 MP periscope telephoto lens with 3X optical zoom, and a 50 MP ultrawide shooter with a 114˚ field of view. Even the selfie camera is a high-res 50 MP sensor. It's one of the most spec-heavy camera arrays you'll find at this price — but unfortunately, the real-world results don't match the all cameras, we noticed aggressive oversharpening that made images look unnaturally crisp, especially in skin tones and textures. While the main camera is capable of sharp images thanks to its large sensor, the processing often strips them of depth and realism. The ultrawide shots showed decent consistency in color but lacked fine detail. The periscope zoom lens is a nice surprise in this segment, but results were hit-or-miss — with good sharpness at 3X, but poor dynamic range and visible noise in lower clear the hardware is there, but Nothing's tuning holds it back. In a side-by-side comparison, the Pixel 9a consistently produced more balanced, natural-looking photos with better dynamic range and color handling. The OnePlus 13R, despite fewer lenses, delivered more reliable results in both photo and video. And let's not even start comparing it to the Galaxy S25 or iPhone 16 . Big battery, underwhelming results. | Image credit — PhoneArena Battery life should have been one of the few areas where the Nothing Phone (3) holds its own, given it's massive 5150 mAh battery and tuned software. But in our Nothing Phone (3) review, it scored only 6.7. Our tests showed an estimated battery life of just 6h 45 min. That's only a tad better than the iPhone 16 's 6h 21 min and close to the Pixel 9 's 6h 48 min. This doesn't sound bad until you remember that the iPhone and the Pixel have much smaller batteries. Charging, on the other hand, is actually one of the Phone (3)'s bright spots. It supports 65W wired charging and 15W wireless, and in our test it delivered one of the fastest top-ups in its class (around 1 hour), beating out the Pixel 9 and iPhone 16 , and even outpacing the Galaxy S25 . That said, the OnePlus 13 still reigns supreme here with even faster speeds and better thermal control. It's clear that Nothing has a strong identity and a vision for what phones should be — playful, expressive, and thoughtful in their design. The Nothing phone (3) is the closest Nothing has ever come to a true flagship phone. But for most users, especially those spending $800 and more, the core experience is what truly matters, and it is not quite polished at the 'flagship level' in this case. The Nothing Phone (3) is — as I've put it several times now — a mixed bag. If you go and purchase it, there will undoubtedly be some things you love about it, but also an equal amount that you get annoyed by. I would have a much easier time recommending it if it cost $700, as that price difference would have made sense considering the lack of polish. As it stands right now, though, I feel this is a product that is not well-rounded enough to be in this category. One last thing worth noting — while I personally enjoy gadgets with a bold, industrial aesthetic, the Nothing Phone (3) 's design definitely won't appeal to everyone. This kind of look is a double-edged sword: distinctive and refreshing to some, off-putting to others. And as the price climbs, that edge only gets sharper — just like the pool of potential buyers, which inevitably gets smaller.
