Nothing, the new smartphone brand from OnePlus co-founder Carl Pei has shared the first look of its first smartphone, the Nothing Phone (1).
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Semi-transparent design
The phone gets a flat-edged semi-transparent design that shows the internal components.
There are metal plates covering the exposed components, giving the back a cleaner look-and-feel despite offering a sneak into the device.
iPhone similarity
The design appears unconventional but it does share similarities with the iPhone 12, largely due to the flat-edged design, placement of the cameras, and the wireless charging coil.
Because of this it has received criticism with some calling the design one which merely removes the iPhone 12’s back panel.
However one must remember that this is simply the first look and that other elements of the smartphone are yet to be revealed by the company.
Illuminating back panel
Further, there are new videos on the internet that show illuminating parts of the Nothing Phone (1), something that we have not seen on any smartphone yet.
Carl Pei revealed a few strange symbols back in March 2022, a set of lines and curves that we now know form a set of illuminating elements on the back.
They could be used to alert users of notifications.
The phone features sleek metallic sides which are flat around the edges, similar to the new iPhone 13 series.
As a result it has garnered mixed reactions where some like the flat sides and others dislike the iPhone similarity.
No 3.5mm jack
In favor of offering a better ecosystem for wireless audio products from other brands, the device will lack native support for wired earphones and headphones.
This makes sense since the company’s first own product was a pair of TWS earbuds.
No Alert Slider
Users expected the device to feature the OnePlus Alert Slider which allowed users to quickly switch between silent and DND modes.
However it now appears that the phone will not be featuring an alert slider or any similar implementation.
iIstead it will have just the software-side switch to toggle between ringing and silent profiles.
Dual camera setup on the back
There’s a dual rear camera setup with the cameras placed vertically on the top-left corner of the back panel.
However, since the device is a mid-range phone and not a flagship, it is unlikely to feature over two powerful camera sensors on the back.
What fans can expect is a main sensor and an ultrawide sensor alone, instead of cramming in something like a 2MP macro sensor to call the entire setup a “triple-camera-setup.”
It is a ploy often deployed by pretty much all the big smartphone brands lately.
Wireless charging
A prominent area on the back panel is the central circular area towards the bottom half of the device.
This is the wireless charging coil which confirms that the device will support wireless charging.
This is a benefit since wireless charging is usually seen only on expensive flagship devices.
NothingOS powered by Android 12
The phone will launch with Android 12-based NothingOS out of the box.
A glimpse of the NothingOS skin was offered to all Android users with the Nothing launcher which is currently available on the Play Store.
Qualcomm Snapdragon 700-series chip
Rumors say that it will run on a Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G chipset paired with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of internal storage.
More details will be revealed when it is launched on July 12 at a virtual event that will be livestreamed on the company’s YouTube channel.