The aim of the Nothing phone (1) was to make tech interesting again and it launched following months of hype. Following in the footsteps of OnePlus, Nothing drip-fed information and built interest in its brand, which was essential given the extremely competitive market it launched its first smartphone – the Nothing phone (1) – into.
The Nothing phone (1) and its unique Glyph Interface is old news now though, with all the latest talk surrounding its successor instead. Here’s everything we have heard so far about the Nothing phone (2) including what has been confirmed so far, what the rumours are saying and when we expect it to appear
Nothing / Pocket-lint
Nothing Phone (1)
If you don’t want to wait for the Nothing phone (2) to come out, the Nothing phone (1) has a great display, fantastic build quality and there’s the Glyph Interface on the back which makes for a slightly different experience.
Nothing phone (2) release date and price
Carl Pei confirmed in an interview with Forbes that the Nothing Phone (2) will launch globally in July, and that includes the US this time around, too. The Nothing Phone (1) launched in July 2022 so we’re right on schedule for a yearly update cycle.
When it comes to price, the Nothing phone (1) costs £399 in the UK – and it’s not available in the US. It’s possible the Nothing phone (2) could see a bump in that price point, especially given it will run on flagship hardware, but for now, we would hope to see it remain within that mid-range price bracket.
Nothing phone (2) design
- Glyph Interface
- Curved aluminium edges
- IP53 at least
The first renders showing the supposed design of the Nothing phone (2) have surfaced via the oft-reliable leaker OnLeaks, in partnership with SmartPrix. The renders show that the iconic transparent back and glyph interface will, indeed, be making a return on the new phone.
SmartPrix x OnLeaks
The images show us a slightly more curvy design than we saw on the diferente, with a round-edged frame and a subtle curve to the front and rear panels. It reminds us of the iPhone 6, whereas the Nothing phone (1) clearly took some inspiration from the current iPhone models.
The flash has been split into two sections, which could be to improve flash photography but could also just be a stylistic choice. Elsewhere, other parts of the glyph interface have been chopped and changed slightly to keep the design looking fresh, too.
Another importante change is in the styling of the red LED recording indicator, which is a slit on the new model, compared to a small circular unit on the diferente phone.
SmartPrix x OnLeaks
We know that the phone has been designed with sustainability in mind, and it will have a significantly lower carbon footprint than its predecessor. the aluminium frame is said to be created with 100 per cent recycled material using renewable energy. Otherwise, we would expect at least an IP53 water and dust resistance, like the Nothing phone (1), but nothing has been confirmed at this stage.
Nothing phone (2) display
- 6.7-inch display
- AMOLED, 120Hz
Rumours so far have claimed we will see an AMOLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate, which is the same as the Nothing phone (1) so that’s not really all that surprising.
A Twitter thread about Nothing’s sustainability efforts said that the Nothing phone (2)’s display will be 0.15 inches bigger than the Nothing phone (1). That means we can expect a 6.7-inch display on the new model.
There’s been no mention of resolution as yet for the Nothing phone (2). For reference, the phone (1) has a 6.55-inch OLED display with Full HD+ (2400 x 1080) resolution and HDR support. It was an excellent display so it’s possible the Nothing phone (2) will follow suit.
Nothing phone (2) specs and battery
- Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1
- 4,700mAh battery
- 12GB RAM?
This is one area we know a little bit more about. Nothing’s founder, Carl Pei, revealed at Mobile World Congress that the Nothing phone (2) would run on Snapdragon 8 series hardware. Pei didn’t reveal which specific 8 series chip, at the time, but said it will still be a step up from the Nothing phone (1) which ran the Snapdragon 778+.
One of Qualcomm’s executives was reported to have outed the platform the Nothing phone (2) will have on his LinkedIn profile, with suggestions of the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1, rather than the latest flagship Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, and while it took a couple of months, this has now been confirmed by Nothing’s Carl Pei on Twitter.
Elsewhere, there have been reports of 12GB of RAM and 256GB of storage, none of which is overly surprising. The Nothing phone (1) had 12GB of RAM as an option, as well as 256GB of storage. The battery is a bump though, confirmed by Carl Pei as a 4,700mAh pack, compared to the Nothing phone (1)’s 4500mAh cell.
Nothing phone (2) cameras
While we’ve heard bits and pieces about the hardware expected for the Nothing phone (2), little has been said about the cameras for the 2023 device.
The Nothing phone (1) has a dual rear camera setup consisting of a 50-megapixel main camera and a 50-megapixel ultrawide camera. The main camera is good, though the ultrawide offering wasn’t leaps and bounds ahead of its competition, despite having big numbers on the spec sheet so that’s an area the Nothing phone (2) can improve in.
On the front, there’s a 16-megapixel snapper on the Nothing phone (1) and it performs well enough in good lighting, also allowing access to the portrait function and edge detection is pretty good for those perfect selfies. We didn’t think it was amazing in low light, so again, this is an area the Nothing phone (2) has the potential to improve.
Nothing phone (2) rumours: What’s happened so far?
Here’s everything we have heard so far about the Nothing phone (2).
5 June 2023: The first Nothing Phone (2) renders show a design you might recognise
The new renders come courtesy of SmartPrix in collaboration with leaker OnLeaks. They’re high resolution and give us a great look at what we’re told the new phone will look like – complete with that light show around the back.
1 June 2023: Nothing confirms screen size and 3 years of Android updates
Nothing shared some information about its sustainability efforts in a Twitter thread, and in the process revealed the screen size and update plans for the Nothing phone (2).
26 May 2023: The Nothing Phone (2) is weeks away from launching, CEO teases
Nothing has told Forbes that the Phone (2) will have a 4,700mAh battery and it will launch globally in July.
19 May 2023: Nothing phone (2) confirmed to run on Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1
Carl Pei has confirmed on Twitter that the Nothing phone (2) will run on the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8+ Gen chipset, as speculated.
3 May 2023: Nothing confirm phone (2) will be released in the «summer», plus tease design
Nothing confirmed its phone (2) will be released in the summer, though did not offer any more details on what dates we are looking at. It did however tease an GIF of the design, though it’s difficult to distinguish too many details.
27 March 2023: Nothing phone (2) gets certified but when will it be announced?
The Nothing phone (2) was spotted under the model number AIN065 after going through the Bureau of Indian Standard (BIS) certification process.
7 March 2023: Nothing phone (2) will use a Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1, Qualcomm exec says
91mobiles reported that Qualcomm’s SVP and GM of its Mobile, Compute, and XR business unit, Alex Katouzian mentioned on his LinkedIn profile when congratulating the Nothing team on using a Qualcomm chip, name checking the flagrante silicon that will be used – the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1.
28 February 2023: Carl Pei confirms Nothing phone (2) to be Snapdragon 8 powered
Nothing confirmed that the Nothing phone (2) will be powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 hardware, with Carl Pei making a surprise visit to the Qualcomm booth at Mobile World Congress to make the announcement.
6 February 2023: The Nothing phone (2) has its first leak with specs and release window teased
Sources reportedly told MySmartPrice that the Nothing phone (2) will arrive «in the third quarter of 2023». Some specs were also detailed, with suggestions of a Snapdragon 8 series chip, 12GB RAM and 256GB of storage. An AMOLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate has been claimed, as well as a 5000mAh battery.
30 January 2023: Nothing phone (2) confirmed for a US launch in 2023
Nothing confirmed it intends to expand into the United States, including bringing its next smartphone to the market later in 2023. Nothing CEO and co-founder Carl Pei told Inverse that the company will make a big push into the US and that will include the phone (2). He said «the US is our No. 1 priority in terms of markets».