Nothing Phone 1 hands-on impressions: The gift of Glyph?

Top possibilities in the world of Android smartphones since Essential PH-1 is finally here. This is Nothing Phone 1.

The hype train that heralds the second product from the London-based startup. Ear 1 were high-quality earphones that were launched at an affordable price and the company won quite a few fans. However, expectations for the Phone 1 are much higher as the brand – led by OnePlus co-founder and CEO Carl Bay – increases the bet on its first smartphone.

However, rather than betting heavily on a premium flagship out of the gates, Phone 1 arrives as a much more conservative than many might expect; One looks to build on the Ear 1 style – eye-catching, easy-to-use technology at a modest price. Is this approach paying off in the highly competitive smartphone field?

We’ll answer this question in detail in our full review, very soon, where we’ll also look at camera quality, charging speeds, and daily performance. Ahead, here are our initial working impressions of Nothing Phone 1 a few days after it.

Speak in Glyph

First impressions matter, and Nothing Phone 1 makes an amazing first impression. There are a lot of things that we can’t talk about yet, things that may make or break the attractiveness of the phone for many. And while buying a Phone 1 hasn’t been this easy until now (we’ll get to that), we always recommend waiting for the full picture before spending your hard-earned money.

With that said, after dealing with the device for the weekend, I can tell you without any concern that Nothing Phone 1 looks, and most importantly, Feel Like a phone worth twice its asking price. It’s a pleasant weight, the buttons have a satisfying click, the Full HD+ AMOLED display is bright and vibrant, and the touches are exceptional. Aside from its mediocre IP rating (liquid splash-proof only), there is very little that would limit Phone 1’s credentials as a “flagship killer” if you judge it only from a design perspective.

paying off: Best budget phones

This isn’t the first transparent-backed phone we’ve seen, but it’s certainly the smartest that eschews flashy branding and fake components (hello, Xiaomi) in favor of hints on the phone’s internals, carried through a modern and retro aesthetic. , and divided by the largest maneuver in the phone 1 – glyph.

The Glyph is basically an awesome notification array divided into four shapes that flash in different patterns whenever you receive a text message, call, or a custom app notification. It can also show charging progress and interact with Google Assistant feedback. Will a Quad array of LEDs revolutionize the smartphone game? I doubt it, but they are undoubtedly an important part of Phone 1’s identity, and they help raise the appeal of what might be called iPhone clones. The square metal bars, stud placement, and symmetrical tires owe more than a little to the Cupertino giant (without a slit, thankfully).

something OS?

If the new old design is half Nothing’s game for convenience, the other half comes through its software. Simply put, if you want Google’s mobile operating system (Android 12 out of the box) in its simplest form, Phone 1 might be for you.

This is not a big surprise. The Nothing Launcher gave us an early taste of seeing nothing “for his skin” and that was the vision Beautiful anemia. It turns out that this is probably by choice. There are no special touches to it; The bitmap interpolated in menu headers and UI elements, some unusually large circles in the notification tray, Glyph controls, and other minor tweaks here and there. However, the rest is close to stock Android as it is.

All but two of the preloaded apps (recorder and camera) are Google apps. There are only four dedicated widgets at launch – three of which are clocks, and the other is an easy-to-ignore NFT gallery app, although its mere presence might not calm anyone already set against the idea.

We’ll look more into the software’s fluidity and stability in our review, but for now, there’s no operating system that looks like a sign of things to come, but it does point to the brand model of an open ecosystem. Case in point: There are no exclusive features for Ear 1 and Phone 1 owners.

No filler, but not all killer

We’ve talked about what Nothing Phone 1 is on the outside, but the inside is arguably more cool.

At the heart of it all is the more controversial specs option. The Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G Plus powering the entire display is an upgraded version of a mid-range chip launched in early 2021. Standards will come later, but on paper, it’s a perfectly capable chip for a £400 phone, although you should know that Phone 1 Not at all designed to be a budget powerhouse.

Qualcomm customized the chip specifically for Nothing, adding support for 15W Qi wireless charging. Elsewhere, the Phone 1 comes with a respectable if not huge 4,500mAh battery, 33W wired charging (no charger in the box), and 5W reverse wireless charging. There’s also 8GB of RAM and 128GB of non-expandable storage on the bottom line, going up to 12GB RAM/256GB of storage for the top model, although this won’t be released until later. in summer.

The in-screen fingerprint reader and stereo speakers help round out the fair spec sheet, and nothing beats the simplicity again of the phone’s imaging suite. The main camera is a 50MP Sony IMX766 sensor with optical stabilization, while the ultrawide camera is the same Samsung JN1 sensor found in the OnePlus 10 Pro. Exactly how the pair performs against the best budget camera phones is yet to be determined, but the dual-camera setup leaves little room for tricks.

You can see the full list of Nothing Phone 1 specifications below.

None Phone Specifications 1

For initial run, Phone 1 was only available through an invite system for members of the None community (the big old OnePlus power). Only the rest of us humans can enjoy the fun from July 21, 2022 at 7am GMT (2am ET), when it will go on public sale in the UK and across Europe and other select regions. Te Phone 1 will be sold via Amazon and Smartech in Selfridges London. Additionally, there will be a pop-up booth from July 16-20 at Seven Dials, Covent Garden, London where limited quantities of the device will be available for purchase (between 10am and 7pm GMT).

Nothing further confirmed that it has partnered with O2 as the exclusive carrier (in-store and online sales), while it has also struck similar deals with Telekom Deutschland in Germany, and Flipkart in India. If you are in North America, you cannot buy it at all.

Without further testing, it’s hard to tell how well the Phone 1 compares to such a stiff competition. Looks the part, but looks aren’t everything, you have to have heart too. The Nothing Phone 1 is at least a competitor – a fair achievement for a debut smartphone from a company founded less than two years ago.

What do you think of Nothing Phone 1? Vote in the poll above and hit the comments if you have any burning questions you’d like to see answered in our review.