Nothing Phone (3) review: A flagship that says nothing, very loudly

Nothing Phone (3) review: A flagship that says nothing, very loudly

When prices start at ₹79,999 for your first flagship Android phone, it is inevitable there will be comparisons drawn. In this case, with the likes of a OnePlus 13. There are two distinct parts that define Nothing’s most expensive phone ever, the Phone (3), which unlike its predecessors, which were ‘flagship-killers’, is aiming to be a thoroughbred flagship in itself. There’s the matter of specs, on which there are certain observations that may define your choice, as well as the small matter of whether you like this rather bold design. To be fair, this phone looks better in black, and that’s the colour you should be going for.

Nothing Phone (3) prices start at ₹79,999 and is the company’s first Android flagship. (Vishal Mathur / HT Photo)

Beyond the colour choice too, there’s a lot to like about the Nothing Phone (3). As you hold and use the phone, which is a collective of the material used, the overall design and dimension specifics, as well as the software in play, the Nothing Phone (3) feels remarkably Nothing-like. That may be good news, at least with regard to familiarity, for the ones upgrading and also is a good standpoint for the ones buying a Nothing phone for the first time.

There are two elephants in the room (usually, one is more than a handful in the world of tech, defining the success or not of new products), which must be addressed with the Nothing Phone (3). First, the choice of two sets of components — the chip that’s the beating heart and the choice of camera sensors. Secondly, the design itself, which may be bold, but as I discovered, it tends to grow on you after a point. For the latter in particular, credit to Nothing for making a phone that doesn’t soullessly submerge into a sea of sameness that smartphones generally have been for many years now.

The Qualcomm Snapdragon 8S Gen 4 chip, while theoretically a Snapdragon 8 series chip, is definitely not a flagship-grade silicon. That would be the Snapdragon 8 Elite, as the generation stands. While performance is absolutely not a problem with the chip that’s in use too (a positive spin, this phone runs a tad cooler than competing flagships), it is also about the credentials that accompany a choice that’s made, and how the discerning consumers perceive it. Flagship buyers would perhaps give this more weightage.

A genuinely positive spin for this is the battery, which at 5,500mAh capacity, can do well to last a day with ease, and a day and a half if you don’t mind seeing the battery level at 20% or thereabouts. This is a frugal phone most of the time, with Nothing OS optimising background app power consumption rather well — better than the OnePlus 13 does, with its current software.

Secondly, while the spec sheet will certainly claim a troika of 50-megapixel cameras, some context may be needed. The main (also wide) sensor is the Omnivision OV50H that was released in 2023, while the periscope and ultra wide are both Samsung sensors released last year. In the long term, the weak link could (and that’s genuinely meant to be a query) be the main sensor, because this is unlikely to have the same sense of optical prowess as a more widely used Sony LYT-808 (also released in the same year) that has shown really good results in time with the OnePlus 12 and then OnePlus 13, or a Sony LYT-818 that does duties in an impressive Vivo X200 Pro. Also, there is the context of Xiaomi, OnePlus and Vivo banking on photography expertise from camera makers, a trump card that Nothing doesn’t have.

As far as the photography performance is concerned at this point in time, the Nothing Phone (3) is doing most things rather well. Photos are vibrant with well distinguished colours coming through appreciably, but some of you may prefer these to be a tad richer still — a quick edit is a good option for now. Contrast is just about right, but there are times when the edges of a frame are surprisingly soft. Low light photos take a couple of seconds to process, and you must hang still for a tad longer to not ruin them with noise. I’d expect Nothing to still keep working on improving the photography performance of the Phone (3), but it will require something extraordinary for this to match the other flagships of this generation, specifically.

Nothing phones have been long known for the light stripe at the back, distinguishable from afar. The design evolutions have tweaked that too, into something that has the potential to have more utility. The round display with a bespoke disk of LEDs can be a mirror to frame selfies better, a quick glance at battery levels, a spin the bottle game or even a stopwatch. The question is, will third-party app developers get access to this at some stage? It is this Glyph Matrix which plays a big part in the Nothing Phone (3) bringing forward a bold design choice. It is one, as I’ve discovered, that grows on you — you’ll get used to the unaligned camera troika at the back (there are more problems in the world, for this to be one). Black looks better than the white photographed here, and that perhaps tells you which colour to add to the cart.

The Nothing Phone (3) is the company’s first flagship Android phone, and also its boldest. Most tech companies would have taken a safer route to push their flagship dreams gently towards success. It is creative, and gutsy of Nothing to have tried all they’ve tried with the Phone (3). All hardware choices may not be agreeable,and the design may take some getting used to (why gamble on the camera placement as it is; is it a conversation starter?) but the intent is very clear. One could have high hopes from the Nothing Phone (4), assuming there is to be one, if Nothing holds on to this trajectory of thought and boldness.