All of the options I need to see

Carl Pei wasn’t glad with making historical past simply as soon as with OnePlus. In early 2021, he introduced the formation of a brand new firm referred to as Nothing. Whereas the very first Nothing Cellphone confirmed promise, the Nothing Cellphone 2 demonstrated a considerably extra refined effort, leaving me optimistic in regards to the firm’s future.

Nonetheless, there are specific features I hope to see addressed with the Nothing Cellphone 3. Right here’s my wishlist, together with the restricted info out there in regards to the gadget to date.

The Nothing Cellphone stays considerably of an enigma. Is it designed for energy customers, players, worth customers, or spec lovers? It kind of appeals to all of those teams, however solely partially. Whereas it undoubtedly delivers a robust efficiency, it additionally makes compromises in numerous areas, together with construct supplies and the digital camera bundle. Judging by our readers’ pursuits and my very own, it appears that evidently the Nothing model at the moment appeals to people in search of uncooked energy and a particular look that stands out in a crowd. Usually, this sort of person is prepared to pay a premium for such an expertise, making an improve to a extra true flagship expertise a doubtlessly well-received transfer. This improve begins with enhancements in safety and sturdiness.

The Nothing Cellphone 2 is rated at simply IP54; it is a rarity within the smartphone world and is notably much less spectacular than the extra widespread IP68 ranking. For the Nothing Cellphone 3, I want to see the model tackle this limitation whereas additionally upgrading to newer glass expertise. The Gorilla Glass 5 on Nothing’s present flagship is beginning to present its age, particularly contemplating that Gorilla Glass Victus has develop into the brand new gold commonplace for top-tier telephones, with the unique Victus typically featured on entry-level flagships.

The most important grievance in regards to the unique Nothing Cellphone was that it was underpowered, a priority that was partially addressed with the Nothing Cellphone 2. Nonetheless, there may be nonetheless room for enchancment. Regardless of that includes a potent Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 SoC, the Nothing Cellphone 3 seems to throttle its GPU extra aggressively than telephones with comparable specs. Whereas the very best Qualcomm chip may not be vital, refining the person expertise to make sure efficiency matches that of telephones in the identical worth vary is essential. On the very least, together with a Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 within the Nothing Cellphone 3 needs to be a precedence, particularly contemplating that the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 is anticipated to set a brand new commonplace by then.

Nothing may additionally profit from adopting a technique just like the Galaxy S23 and even the Pixel 8, introducing a couple of mannequin to the Nothing Cellphone 3 sequence. Maybe providing a extra premium mannequin that competes instantly with the greatest Android telephones, whatever the worth. In the meantime, it may additionally supply a cheaper telephone mannequin that falls between the Nothing Cellphone 1 and a couple of when it comes to specs and pricing. Whereas this method might contain a bigger funding and better threat for Nothing, it might broaden the gadget’s enchantment to a wider vary of customers.

Not all energy customers prioritize having the greatest digital camera; some are extra into cellular gaming, emulators, and different geekier pursuits. Regardless, whereas the digital camera may not be the deciding issue for energy customers, it stays an vital consideration. Regrettably, Nothing has been comparatively conservative with its digital camera setups. The Nothing Cellphone 2 featured a virtually equivalent mediocre digital camera suite to its predecessor, although it did improve its essential sensor to the IMX890. Whereas an improve, it wasn’t as substantial as one may hope.

At present, the Nothing Cellphone 2 performs adequately in good lighting situations, and even its low-light photographs are acceptable. Nonetheless, its colours are typically overly contrast-heavy, often bleeding into different objects and surfaces. Moreover, it reveals a noticeable shutter lag in comparison with different telephones just like the Pixel 7 Professional. Whereas the principle shooter usually does a passable job, the first subject lies with the Samsung JN1 used for its ultrawide digital camera. This sensor produces muddy textures and halo results, regardless of the corporate’s efforts to boost the expertise with software program updates. Even when Nothing decides to retain the IMX890, it ought to think about changing the JN1 with a extra fashionable sensor.

One other vital concern is the selfie shooter. Whereas it performs adequately, its limitation to 1080p looks like a significant oversight in immediately’s world of bloggers and TikTok customers. It’s hoped that the Nothing Cellphone 3 will supply true 4K efficiency for video recording, addressing this obvious limitation.

Okay, it is a comparatively minor level in comparison with all of the others, however I’d wish to see an improved sound expertise with the Nothing Cellphone 3. The Nothing Cellphone 2 has a considerably tinny sound high quality to it. Whereas many people use Bluetooth earbuds for cellular audio, having a set of excellent inside audio system remains to be appreciated while you need to rapidly present somebody one thing in your telephone.

One other small level for these in the US is the dearth of Verizon help. This possible comes all the way down to Verizon’s strict certification processes reasonably than a real lack of functionality. The truth is Verizon is not a CDMA provider, which was once the principle subject. Now it’s typically potential to get unsupported telephones to work with Verizon, although their precise efficiency might range. If Nothing needs to hunt wider enchantment within the US market, including official Verizon help could be a simple solution to do it. Verizon can also be no stranger to partnering with carriers for unique additions that play nicer with their community.

The Nothing Cellphone 2 made vital strides on the software program entrance, reworking the person expertise into one thing extra polished and refined. Nonetheless, there may be nonetheless room for enchancment, significantly in terms of the Glyph, which, in my opinion, stays extra of a gimmick than a real game-changer.

With the addition of extra LED strips and revolutionary Glyph options resembling Glyph Composer for personalised sounds and Important Glyph for prioritizing sure apps, the Nothing Cellphone 2 showcased loads of developments. Nonetheless, many of those options felt like good extras with restricted sensible help. For example, the function permitting the Glyph to mild up when your Uber experience is nearing completion is cool, however the lack of help for different providers like Lyft or supply apps diminishes its total utility.

To really elevate the Glyph’s standing, Nothing should entice third-party help. Sadly, Nothing hasn’t had excellent luck right here. Its third-party dealings have both been very restricted, like within the case of Uber, or a bit ill-advised, like its collaboration with Sunbird for Nothing Chats. What holds Nothing again is that builders are sometimes leary to work on such units as they’ll solely help the very small area of interest market of Nothing Cellphone house owners. That’s not a simple drawback to beat with out throwing round cash. That’s one thing a more moderen firm actually can’t afford to do.

Even when Nothing manages to safe extra app help for custom-made notifications and Glyph utilization, it may not be sufficient. The corporate must discover revolutionary methods to make use of it first, which is a tall order. For instance, envision a state of affairs the place Nothing creates a free common commonplace, enabling Nothing Cellphone customers to make use of their gadget as a buzzer alternative in eating places or retail institutions. Collaborating with main retailers and chain eating places to implement such a function may very well be a strategic transfer. That’s only one half-baked thought, however the level is the extra locations the Glyph can be utilized the extra it can show itself as a legit function.

• Nothing Cellphone — July 21, 2022
• Nothing Cellphone 2 — July 17, 2023

There have but to be any early leaks or rumors on the Nothing Cellphone 3, nevertheless it’s nonetheless all however assured the telephone will exist in some kind until Nothing closes its doorways immediately. That’s to not say the corporate couldn’t change the path, design, and identify of the Nothing Cellphone 3. In spite of everything, the Nothing Cellphone 2 noticed a push in the direction of premium over its predecessor. The Nothing Cellphone 3 may proceed to maneuver additional upscale, or may meet someplace in the course of the 2 if it needs to focus extra on worth over worth. It doesn’t matter what kind it exhibits up although, there’s no signal that the corporate is finished with producing telephones or advertising and marketing its distinctive Glyph lighting gimmick.

Relating to the discharge date of the Nothing Cellphone 3, if historical past serves as an indicator, it’s extremely possible that the telephone will adhere to an analogous launch window as its predecessors. This is able to place its launch in the summertime of 2024, most likely in late July.

The one motive to attend for the Nothing Cellphone 3 is should you’re intrigued by the current-gen mannequin however can’t recover from its downsides like decrease construct high quality and its less-than-wonderful digital camera bundle. If the Nothing Cellphone 2’s shortcomings aren’t dealbreakers for you, there’s actually no different telephone that appears prefer it, so it may completely be definitely worth the purchase. In case you simply need a good telephone? The Google Pixel 8 ($699 at Amazon) or Samsung Galaxy S23 ($799 at Amazon) are most likely extra sensible choices with higher software program help, higher cameras, and related (or generally even higher) efficiency.