Nothing pitches itself into the premium realm with its new flagship Nothing Phone (3)

As Nothing eases into its new role as pioneer and not simply a disruptor, the company has also announced its first true ‘flagship’ Android smartphone, the Nothing Phone (3). Launched in London alongside the new Nothing Headphone (1), Phone [3] takes the tech brand into territory occupied by the likes of the Google Pixel 9, Samsung S25 and iPhone 17.

According to Nothing’s Carl Pei, the company built Phone (3) ‘to show that there is still room for joy and creativity in the tech we carry everyday’. An evolution of the design language developed for Phones (1), (2), (2a) and (3a), the Phone (3)’s design follows an abstract approach derived from ‘turning the internal logic of the phone into something visual.’

Describing the design as something that ‘brings rhythm and structure to the layout,’ Pei says that Phone (3) is ‘an object that deserves to sit on your desk’, all part of the mission to make Nothing the most instantly recognisable device brand in an era of identikit black mirrors.

The rear of the phone features a tri-column grid, based on the location of the PCBs below. Into this grid goes three camera units and a new display, the ‘Glyph Matrix’. Developed from the arrangement of light on the rear of the original Nothing phones, the new Matrix is a secondary display with a pleasingly low tech pixellated screen.

As Pei notes, the company found that 8/10 users enabled the old-style Glyph interface when using their devices, describing it as a ‘a calmer and more expressive way for you to stay connected.’ The Glyph Matrix goes further, serving as an abstracted second screen that’s intended to lower screen time whilst also adding a dose of functionalism and fun.

Apps that can take advantage of the Matrix include a stopwatch and pixellated selfie screen, along with alerts, notifications and battery indicator. As well opening up the Glyph SDK to developers, Nothing worked with its community team to develop two throwaway fun ideas, a Magic 8 Ball and Leveler toy. There are further playful ambient experiences such as Spin the Bottle and Rock, Paper, Scissors. As Pei notes, ‘we believe that fun also deserves a place in tech.’

The fun is provided alongside some serious horsepower. Phone (3) comes with a generous 6.67” AMOLED screen, protected by Corning Gorilla Glass and powered by a Snapdragon 8S gen4 processor. The crucial camera upgrades include a suite of four 50MP cameras, including a 1.3” sensor on the main lens, along with optical image stabilisation. The Periscope telephoto lens has a 3x optical zoom and a 60x AI-enhanced digital zoom – it can also double as a macro lens.

The ultrawide lens has a 114-degree field of view, while on the front there’s a 50MP selfie camera, up from 32MP on Phone (2). Another neat touch is the square red filming light on the back, an element that was once simply decorative given a useful function. Photos can be edited using the new Nothing Gallery app, including presets and filters created in collaboration with professional photographers.

Another innovation is Essential Search, a new AI-powered on device search function. ‘Nothing is taking a different approach to AI,’ Pei explains, ‘We think the smartphone is the place for consumer AI in the foreseeable future. No other device has better context on you. AI gives us a real shot to redefine the software experience, but it has to be useful. Essential Search uses AI to give you answer directly in the UI. Over time it’ll surface more personalised suggestions, depending on how you use your phone.’

All this is powered by a larger battery that’s capable of being fast-charged from 0 to 50% in just 19 minutes. Coming soon is Nothing OS 4.0 – for the time being the new apps and features run on Nothing OS 3.5. We’ll have a more complete report on the ins and outs of Phone (3) in due course.

Nothing Phone (3), available in black and white, £799 / $799 / €799 for 256GB storage, £899 / $899 / €899 for 512GB storage, available from nothing.tech, @nothing