the nothing phone (2) was officially announced
time to get exciting about Nothing!
🍭 short and sweet
Nothing is releasing the Phone (2) with an updated design and redesigned OS
It’s coming in a new dark grey with a rounded back panel
The glyph interface has been updated with a new design and way more features
The chipset, display, and cameras have gotten significant upgrades
The software now looks cleaner and more consistent with the rest of the design
It will hit U.S. markets for $600
When the Nothing Phone (1) first came out, it was an interesting addition to the smartphone market that aimed to bring back the early days of smartphone releases, where each new model felt unique and exciting.
But a few days ago, Nothing announced the release of the Nothing Phone (2) as a follow-up to their previous generation.
And from what was announced, it appears we are in for a very solid upgrade over the original.
new design, new colors
The LED glyph system has been divided into segments, each with more lighting zones than before. Supposedly, this will allow for way more control over the individual parts compared to the last generation.
At first glance, the Phone (2) looks very similar to the first iteration, but it has some interesting changes.
First off, the black color has been replaced with a dark grey color, and there’s a new rounded glass panel on the back to make it feel more ergonomic.
Second, the LED glyph system has been divided into segments, each with more lighting zones than before.
Supposedly, this will allow for way more control over the individual parts compared to the last generation. The keynote showed off parts of the interface used to show timers, open apps, app-by-app notifications, and even a “glyph composer” that allows users to create their own series of light pulses and sound effects for things like notifications and ringtones.
It’s overall functionality appears similar to Apple’s Live Activities in iOS. For example, the keynote explained that if you call an Uber, the lighting system can indicate how close the driver is.
Apparently, Nothing is developing the glyph interface for “surface-level notifications” to show important information while removing distractions.
Finally, the front of the phone was updated with slightly thinner bezels and a centered hole-punch camera.
upgraded specs
Even though the design appears practically the same as before, the new performance upgrades look to be a major step up.
Not only that, but the internal components have also been upgraded.
The midrange Snapdragon chip from the first generation was upgraded to an 8+ Gen 1. Even though that chip was technically the flagship chip from late 2021, it should hopefully provide some performance upgrades over the Phone (1).
The display also got a major upgrade, with the size being increased from 6.55” to 6.7”, and it can change its refresh rate from 1-120 Hz depending on what you are currently doing (e.g. scrolling would up the refresh rate to 120 Hz, while using the AOD would reduce it to 1 Hz to conserve battery life). Not only that, but its brightness also increased from 700 nits peak brightness to 1600 nits. All of this is done while using 30% less power than before.
The battery was upgraded to 4700 mAh compared to 4500, and combined with new software optimizations and more efficient hardware, it’s claimed to result in a 40% increase in battery life over the last generation.
It still only has two camera sensors, but the front camera has a new 32 megapixel sensor that’s 30% bigger than last year, which should allow for more light to be captured. The main sensor was also upgraded to a new, faster sensor.
But Nothing is also focusing heavily on the software side of photography, with upgraded HDR for more natural pictures and updated motion detecting for less blurry images. These upgrades also apply to video as well as photos.
So even though the design appears practically the same as before, the new performance upgrades look to be a major step up.
updated software
While Nothing originally planned for their software to be a light reskin of Android, they are about to incorporate a significant design overhaul.
While we’re talking about software, Nothing is also announcing new features for NothingOS 2.0.
During the keynote, Nothing claimed that current mobile operating systems are getting generic and cluttered. While Nothing originally planned for their software to be a light reskin of Android, they are about to incorporate a significant design overhaul.
This redesign will center around new widgets and redesigned app icons, all incorporated to make the experience feel cleaner and more consistent.
Specifically, NothingOS 2.0 will introduce widgets that follow the design language and color scheme of Nothing. App icons will follow suit with white backgrounds and black graphics to tie everything together.
It seems similar to what Google did with Material You, except everything seems to be monochromatic instead of colorful like with Google’s interface.
US release
The Phone (1) was only available internationally, so it's great to see Nothing finally expanding into the U.S. market.
All that being said, the most exciting part of this is that we're finally getting a U.S. launch.
The Phone (1) was only available internationally, so it's great to see Nothing finally expanding into the U.S. market.
The Phone (2) is also available for pre-order, with the base model costing $600. Overall, it definitely looks to be a much more refined version of the first model, and I’m personally excited to see where it could end up going in the future.
This week’s question
Will you be pre-ordering the Nothing Phone (2)? What do you consider to be the most exciting upgrade?
Leave a comment and let me know your thoughts!
Anyway, just wanted to share that with you guys. Thanks for joining me, and I’ll see you all around! Adios! 👋
→ Austin from nexgen
