a smartphone that stands out

Only at the beginning of the year, we wrote about an interesting smartphone Nothing Phone 2a Plus, and its successors, the Nothing Phone 3a and 3a Pro, have already appeared on the market. In this review, we’ll take a look at the younger device, learn about its new features, and see the unchanged elements that already so clearly distinguish smartphones from other competitors. We have to say that the new product made a pleasant impression, but there were some unexpected negative aspects as well.

Technical specifications of Nothing Phone 3a

Screen	6.77″, AMOLED, 1080×2392 (387 ppi), 120 Hz, 3000 nits, Panda Glass
Processor	8-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 (4 cores of 1.8 GHz: Kryo Silver (Cortex-A520), 3 cores of 2.4 GHz: Kryo Gold (Cortex-A720), 1 core of 2.5 GHz: Kryo Prime (Cortex-A720)
Graphics chip	Adreno 810
Cameras	50 megapixels, ƒ/1.88, OIS + 50 megapixels, ƒ/2.0, 2x optical zoom (telephoto) + 8 megapixels, ƒ/2.2, 120° FOV (wide); 32 megapixels, ƒ/2.2, 84° FOV (front)
Memory	8/12 GB RAM LPDDR4X, 128/256 GB UFS 2.2 ROM
Battery	5000 mAh, reversible fast charging 50W + 7.5W
OS	Android 15, Nothing OS 3.1
Colors	Black, White, Blue
Protection	YES, IP64
Body	Glass, aluminum
Dimensions	163.52×77.5×8.35 mm
Weight	201 grams

Packaging and equipment

Nothing Phone 3a comes in a white box with a picture of a smartphone and other branded patterns. The updated device has a new box — now the box is gently opened with a special tape on the back and top, so it can be closed and opened like most regular packaging. Previously, the tape was in a different place and tore the box so that it could not be closed, and a piece of cardboard was constantly sticking out of it.

Inside we see the phone itself with a film stuck to the screen, documentation, a paper clip to open the SIM card slot, and a USB-C cable. As is the brand’s tradition, there’s no power supply or case included.

Design and ergonomics

The Nothing Phone 3a definitely stands out from the competition — the device has flat edges and rounded corners, and it has not only an updated camera design but also a new body material.

Its predecessors used plastic, but now we have glass panels and a frame made of recycled aluminum. It’s matte, and the back surface is glossy, so it will potentially show traces of use very well. But this probably applies to the other colors of the smartphone (black and blue) because in the white one that was reviewed, you can’t see anything at all.

The cameras are placed horizontally in a protruding module, and there are three glyphs around it. Below is the inscription Nothing, and the entire back cover is stylized as various mechanisms, showing internal parts, cogs, etc.

The bezels on the front panel are relatively thin and uniform on all sides. The front camera also has a bezel and is huge.

On the right side of the Nothing Phone 3a there is a screen lock button and a convex button that turns on the Essential Space mode. We’ll talk about it below. On the top edge we see a microphone, and on the bottom there is a SIM card slot (2 nano-SIMs), another microphone, a speaker, and a USB-C port.

The model’s dimensions are 163.52×77.5×8.35 mm, and it weighs 210 grams. The smartphone has an adequate size for modern devices and fits comfortably in the palm of your hand. Still, I note that its 6.77-inch diagonal may be too big for some people, even by the standards of modern «spades». But for me, with my rather large hands and long fingers, it was comfortable.

Despite the glossy back panel, the new product also doesn’t fall out of your hands when you hold it without a case. On the contrary, the flat edges and aluminum frame hold the smartphone securely in the palm of your hand.

The only thing that will be unusual at first, at least it was for me, is the location of the volume buttons on the left side and an additional button on the right. At first, I pressed it instead of the lock button, and I confused the lock button with the bottom volume button. Anyway, it takes a few days to get used to it, so be prepared.

We did not forget about the Always On-Display function. Also, in the settings, in the color temperature sub-item, I advise you to set the mode to «Live», not «Standard». This will make the colors a little more saturated and vivid. But this is a matter of taste, so see for yourself. I liked it.

Just like its predecessor, the screen of Nothing Phone 3a makes a pleasant impression. It is of high quality, bright, produces rich colors and works without any problems in the bright spring sun.

Glyph Interface and Essential Space

Like the previous models of the manufacturer, the brand new Nothing Phone 3a is equipped with Glyph Interface — three LED dashes located around the main camera module. Glyphs are not only a feature of the entire series, but also a real functional advantage. At least if you get used to them and understand them.

Glyph Interface is primarily designed to notify the user of calls, messages, and various other interactions with the smartphone. Glyphs have different blinking and flashing options, which means they can be used to notify the user of literally anything: a call from a specific contact in the phone book, volume changes, timer, charging, etc.

The Glyph Interface is a handy thing, but I’ve said more than once that you need to get used to it, and learn the blinking and different flash options to make it really useful. And here everyone decides for themselves whether glyphs will be just a stylish design solution or an additional useful tool in the phone.

I, for one, tested several Nothing smartphones and over the weeks of use, I only remembered the difference between notifications, messages, and calls from several contacts. Perhaps this will be enough for you.

Let’s talk separately about Essential Space and the corresponding new Essential Key button, which is located below the lock button.

The manufacturer has added a conditional hub called Essential Space using artificial intelligence to its new smartphones. This is a variation on the Camera Control in the new iPhones, but with the strangest and most stripped-down features. In fact, it’s a loud name for a simple app for audio recordings and text notes.

The general impression of Essential Space at the moment is that it’s a raw thing with a lot of potential, a new advertising gimmick that doesn’t have any important features yet, and most importantly, no desire to use it all the time. But if the developer takes it on and finishes it (as if they have already promised to significantly refine and improve it), then we will have to look at it in more detail. In the meantime, it’s not even a plus, but a minus of the phone because it actually interferes with normal use.

The thing is that you can’t disable the Essential Key button or reassign something else to it (an application, action, etc.). And it’s also located in the usual place for the lock button, so at first I pressed it very often, and it constantly took screenshots I didn’t need.

If you press and hold it, you can add an audio note to the screenshot. And so it turns out that you constantly press the wrong thing, the screen doesn’t unlock, you take screenshots, and often with them audio, where you mumble or swear at all this wildlife.

Sound and vibration response

Nothing Phone 3a has full stereo sound, which is realized by a speaker on the bottom and an earpiece on top. The sound is loud and rich, but there’s no bass or volume to speak of. This is a good sound quality for this segment, no more and no less.

The situation with the vibration response is approximately the same. It is mighty, even sometimes it seems stronger than it was in Xiaomi 15 Ultra but the vibration itself is not so detailed and there are no settings.

Nothing Phone 3a cameras

Unlike its predecessors, Nothing Phone 3a has not two but three main modules. The main one is a 50-megapixel Samsung ISOCELL GN9 (f/1.88 aperture, 24 mm focal length), just like in the previous version. It has two-time optical stabilization, which is nice, but there are no improvements.

However, the previous generation smartphones took good photos for this price category, so the new model can boast the same: detail, realistic colors and adequate dynamic range. The second module is ultra-wide-angle, and it’s Sony IMX355 at 8 megapixels with f/2.2 aperture and 15 mm focal length. Logically, it has a fairly wide viewing angle of 120 degrees and good detail, but I like the colors and dynamic range less.

What a novelty — a 50 megapixel telephoto lens from Samsung. The aperture here is f/2.0 and the focal length is 50 mm. There is clarity, colors are quite realistic, and the detail is there, so I liked it, but I would still like stabilization.

Now you can really take a variety of high-quality photos on mid-budget Nothing smartphones, and it’s great to see. True, night photography is not so good, but it’s the right segment for it, and it’s strange to expect more from it.

The smartphone is able to record videos in 4K at 30 frames per second and does it very adequately. True, only the main module can do this, and the rest give only 1080p@30fps.

Nothing Phone 3a is also equipped with a 32-megapixel front-facing camera (f/2.2), which can shoot videos in 1080p at 30fps. The quality of the photos is good, with good detail and adequate colors/skin tones. There’s also a good portrait mode, which even almost copes with many objects in the background.

Productivity, software, and games

The brand new Nothing Phone 3a is powered by Snapdragon 7s Gen 3. This 8-core chip (4 Kryo Silver (Cortex-A520) 1.8 GHz, 3 Kryo Gold (Cortex-A720) 2.4 GHz, 1 Kryo Prime (Cortex-A720) 2.5 GHz) with Adreno 810 graphics can be safely called a classic for the mid-range category. Although there are also often slightly colder solutions from MediaTek in the form of Dimensity series processors.

The memory here is 8 or 12 GB of LPDDR4X RAM and 128 or 256 GB of built-in UFS 2.2 storage. There is no space for a microSD card. Other modules and interfaces include Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax), Bluetooth 5.4, NFC chip, aGPS, GPS module, GLONASS, Galileo, and digital compass.

In various tests and benchmarks, this processor shows normal results for its category, and most importantly, it is cold. It also proved itself in games, delivering graphics up to 50 fps in Genshin Impact and Call of Duty Warzone at high settings. Other simpler games such as Call of Duty Mobile or Wild Rift run smoothly at high-maximum settings with excellent frame rates.

The Nothing Phone 3a runs on Android 15 with the proprietary Nothing OS 3.1 add-on. The latter, in my opinion, looks very cool, but that’s always a matter of taste. True, the manufacturer promises only three years of system updates, which is even a year less than many Chinese manufacturers now give.

The add-on has a high level of customization, its own widgets, icons, etc., but if anything, you can set the normal mode, which is very similar in design to «clean» Android.

In general, the system works quickly and smoothly, and the experience is no worse than using many flagships. Just don’t forget to turn on the high refresh rate.

Autonomy of Nothing Phone 3a

Nothing Phone (3a) has a 5000 mAh battery. Wired charging of 50 W and 7.5 W for wired reverse charging are declared. There is no wireless charging in this segment and it is unlikely to appear soon.

It takes 20 minutes to charge from 0 to 50%, and 56 minutes to reach 100%.

The smartphone works easily for a day and a half. This was the norm in the previous model and remains the case here. Yes, the battery is already standard for modern phones, but the hardware is not greedy, so the device will work for a long time. Especially without AOD. But even with it, a full day of use is guaranteed.

This is also confirmed by PC Mark tests, where the smartphone showed an excellent result of 18 hours and 49 minutes.

User experience

I really liked the new Nothing Phone 3a, as I did with previous models of the brand. In my opinion, these are some of the most stylish and beautiful smartphones of our time, which you don’t want to cover with cases at all, except for transparent ones.

I like this branded design with ostentatious internal parts and screws, glyphs, case materials, and the feeling of holding the phone. Because of all this, Nothing Phone smartphones always seem pricier than they really are, so when you first hold it in your hand, use it, and then look at the price, it pleasantly surprises you. But this works only in my case with reviews, and buyers can only be impressed by the design because they always see the price.

I wrote about the glyphs and the Essential Key above, so here I’ll just say that the latter needs to be fixed rapidly because now it’s definitely a disadvantage. An additional button that cannot be turned off, which is constantly pressed and interferes with the use of the device, has a very negative impact on the overall pleasant experience.

Otherwise, the manufacturer has managed to update its previous series gently, add a good telephoto module, improve the chip, but keep the device cool, and it will definitely surprise mobile gamers. And photo enthusiasts will not be disappointed, of course, given the price segment of the device.

Price and competitors

Nothing Phone 3a is sold at a price starting at UAH 13,959. In my opinion, this is a very adequate price tag for the available functionality and a similar segment. However, there are plenty of competitors in this extremely popular category.

For example, there is a previous generation from the same manufacturer that has hardly become outdated at all. Pay attention toNothing Phone 2a Plus with prices starting at UAH 14,500. There are alsoSamsung Galaxy A55 (price from UAH 12,999) and a budget flagship that is still very relevant — Samsung Galaxy S23 FE (price from UAH 15,999).

From the Chinese, take a closer look at the new Realme GT 6T with a price tag of UAH 18,899 andRealme 13 Pro Plus (price from UAH 14,490), Poco X7 Pro (price from UAH 12,859), Redmi Note 14 Pro 5G (price from UAH 10,899) andRedmi Note 14 Pro Plus with a price tag of UAH 13,400.