Nothing has recognised a flaw in its in-store demonstration units of the next Phone (3). A certain model displays featured camera samples that were not actually captured with the device. Rather, they were stock photos that were meant to be placeholders.
The controversy was uncovered when a user noticed one of the “sample” photos had a rounded headlight, on Instagram, where the original photographer had posted it way back in 2023. The photograph was captured with a Fujifilm X-H2S, not a Nothing phone. This casts doubt on whether the firm was deceiving potential customers.
Nothing responds to criticism
Nothing co-founder, Akis Evangelidis, acknowledged the mistake in a X-post. He clarified that placeholder images were added four months before launching, and they would be changed nearer to launch with actual images of the Phone (3).
Re the Phone (3) live demo units (LDU) in some stores using stock imagery – let me explain. An initial version of the LDU needs to be submitted with placeholders around 4 months before launch, to be implemented and tested as we ramp up towards mass production. Once we enter mass…
— Akis Evangelidis 🦞 (@AkisEvangelidis) August 27, 2025
“Once we enter mass production, those placeholder images are replaced with actual photo samples in a new version of the Live Demo Units,” Evangelidis clarified. “In this case, not all of the units were updated. We are actively fixing this”, he added.
The company claims that it is collaborating with promoters to make sure that all demo units have real Phone (3) shots in the future. There is also an internal investigation in place to stop such mix-ups in the future.
Why it happened
Evangelidis states that earlier launches used photos of previous models of Nothing as placeholders.
In such a manner, even without being substituted, the pictures were still indicative of the quality of the camera used by Nothing. This time, though, a new team chose to use stock photos, which proved to be a bad move.
Although Nothing claims that there was no plan to deceive, the lapse has already resulted in reputational harm. The company now faces the challenge of rebuilding trust just weeks ahead of the Phone (3) reaching customers.
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