One of the most interesting devices of 2022 was the Nothing Phone (1). It wasn’t just the cool rear lighting that made it stand out (although that helped), but rather the emergence of a new brand that managed to beat the big boys without being wiped out.
The next generation of the device is on the way and will launch in the coming months, so how will Carl Pei and his team handle the traditionally difficult second album?
Here’s everything we know about the Nothing Phone (2) so far.
When will the Nothing Phone (2) be released?
The only official release window for the Nothing Phone (2) is vague: ‘summer 2023’.
That comes from an official event page for the phone’s launch where you can sign up to receive updates on the phone.
The phone (1) made its debut in July 2022, so since we’ve been promised a summer launch, it seems likely we’ll get the new phone around July this year as well.
A big change this time around is that the Phone (2) will be officially launched in the US, as confirmed by Carl Pei, the company’s CEO, in an interview with Inverse.
One final detail is that the phone was spotted by 91mobiles on its BIS (Bureau of Indian Standards) certification site in late March. The listing itself reveals nothing about the phone (2) apart from a model number (AIN065), but certification suggests the phone is finished and almost ready to launch. Could we even see it coming before July?
How much does the Nothing Phone (2) cost?
Again, it’s too early to know for sure. The Nothing Phone (1) surprised many people (including us) when its hugely competitive price was announced. Here’s how the different configurations line up:
- 8GB + 128GB: £399 / €469 / ₹33,999 / $299 (US beta only)
- 8GB + 256GB: £449 / €499 / ₹36,999 (approximately $540)
- 12GB + 256GB: £499 / €549 / ₹39,999 (approximately $600)
Dominic Preston / Foundry
In the interview with Inverse, Carl Pei did say that the new device would be “more premium than the Nothing Phone (1)”, which could indicate a shift from mid-range to high-end. This would obviously entail a price increase, although how much is uncertain.
What functions do we see in the Nothing Phone (2)?
We’re only just beginning to find out what comes in the Nothing Phone (2). We know it will be a ‘more premium’ device, so we expect some major upgrades across the board.
Design
The phone’s semi-transparent, glowing back (1) was understandably one of its standout features, so all eyes are on what Nothing has in store for its second phone.
We’ve already got a glimpse of the new look in the phone’s launch teaser, which shows off a small portion of the design. It’s hard to say which one bit of the phone we’re looking at here, but it clearly reflects the aesthetic of the phone (1) while also finding room to be a little different.
There are two important details to note here. The first is the red piece on the right: in the Twitter teaser this is shown flashing so it’s definitely a light, most likely a return from the video recording indicator on the first phone, although designed a little differently.
The second is the circle along the bottom edge, almost in the middle: is that a latch? It seems unlikely, but it certainly looks a bit like a latch to open a compartment – maybe for a replaceable battery?
chipset
We know more about what will power the phone. At Mobile World Congress in February 2023, Pei announced that the Nothing Phone (2) will run a Snapdragon 8-series chipset, and has since confirmed that the phone will use the 8+ Gen 1.
That’s a 2022 flagship chip, but still impressive. It’s not as fast as the more recent 8 Gen 2, but offers similar performance at a much lower price point, which should help. Nothing delivers a powerful phone that still won’t break.
The Nothing Phone (1) was equipped with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G+ chip, a solid mid-range processor, but much less powerful than the 8+ Gen 1.
Cameras
The dual 50Mp main and ultra-wide cameras in the Nothing Phone (1) were actually decent, and perhaps the main issue we found in our review was that the computer software wasn’t powerful enough to get the most out of the optics.
![Nothing Phone (1) with back reflection](https://b2c-contenthub.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/Nothing-Phone-1-20.jpg?quality=50&strip=all&w=1200)
Dominic Preston / Foundry
Carl Pei has said the company is focusing on improving the software for the new model, so we may see a similar approach to Google, which has often kept the same sensors in its Pixel cameras over several generations, but has tightened up the software to maximize their performance.
Battery life
One area that really let the Nothing Phone (1) down was battery life. The 4500 mAh battery itself is pretty standard (although 5000 mAh would be better), but it drained quickly when the screen was on. Added to that was the limit of a maximum charging speed of 33W, which is lower than many relatively priced Android phones.
We did see software updates having a positive effect on battery life, so more refinements could do the trick, but a battery upgrade would also be a positive for the Nothing Phone (2).
We’ve seen a report from MySmartPrice detailing some of the other specs that could appear in the new device. It stated that nothing would use a Snapdragon 8-series processor, 12 GB of RAM (plus virtual RAM), 256 GB of storage, an AMOLED screen with a 120 Hz refresh rate and a 5000 mAh battery. This is in line with many of our suspicions, although it may be some time before we know for sure if this actually happens.
That’s all we have so far, but rest assured we’ll continue to update this article as more details emerge. Until then, check out our picks of the best Android phones and best mid-range phones to see what the Nothing Phone (2) will be up against.