Nothing Phone (3a) Review: Familiar Face, Familiar Reliability

With MWC 2025 wrapped up, it’s time to take stock of all the tech treats launched this week. Right at the start of the global event, Nothing revealed its 2025 contenders for the mid-range smartphone market. Don’t let that category fool you, though, because, with the fast-paced development of mobile technology, the lines between tiers have gotten a bit blurry. Add that to the fact that Nothing launched two models, it’s pretty understandable to be more than just a little confused.

It’s only too easy to underestimate the Nothing Phone (3a) since it doesn’t have a Pro in its name. After all, that’s how our brains have been trained to think by highly effective marketing campaigns. That’s why we had to take a closer look at the Phone (3a) to see if it’s even worth considering in the face of the mighty Nothing Phone (3a) Pro. And truth be told, the competition is quite neck and neck.

Designer: Nothing

Aesthetics

The design of the Nothing Phone (3a) is a bit of a mixed bag, even considering fans of the brand’s unique Tron-esque aesthetic. Nothing Phones have always had a distinctive and somewhat divisive flavor to them, and that is best seen in the Phone (3a) Pro’s camera design. In contrast, the Phone (3a) seems almost like a copy of the Phone (2a), and that’s actually the best part about it.

Although the camera array has been expanded, the overall design of the Phone (3a) is familiar and reassuring. Fans of this design need not fear the huge yet controversial change of the Pro version, allowing them to enjoy the simpler and more minimalist character of this design. You can almost call it an underdog because it’s easy for others to dismiss it from the way it looks, while you silently laugh at their misguided ignorance.

Of course, Nothing did make some changes to the Phone (3a), almost all of them for the better. The back panel, for example, has been upgraded from polycarbonate to glass, giving it a more reflective sheen and a more sophisticated look. The mid-frame is still the same plastic, though, but you wouldn’t be able to tell at a glance. The Glyph Interface is still there, as is the translucent aesthetic, giving a sense of confidence and reliability from a design that has been tried and tested over time.

Ergonomics

Sticking to the same design, despite the additional camera, proves to also be beneficial to the phone’s ergonomics. With a ginormous camera bump, the phone is lighter and easier to hold. It isn’t as top-heavy as the Nothing Phone (3a) Pro, inspiring that same confidence. That said, the switch to glass material could be its downfall for some owners whose hands find it too slippery for comfort.

Thankfully, the design’s flat edges deliver that grip you need to hold the phone tightly. Some people are not a fan of how that cuts into your palm, though, but it’s also a personal matter at best. The side edges’ material also adds some texture to further improve the phone’s ergonomics, making the Nothing Phone (3a) a true delight to hold.

Performance

Despite looking like the Phone (2a) on the outside, the Nothing Phone (3a) is nothing like it on the inside. The company has made improvements in areas where they matter the most, starting with the newer Snapdragon 7s Gen 3. It’s no premium silicon, of course, but it balances performance and power efficiency with distinction. Paired with 12GB of RAM, it won’t choke on most of the tasks you throw at it. It will struggle with games a bit unless you dial down the effects, but it will definitely serve nicely as a gaming phone with the right settings.

The already decent display of its predecessor gets a huge bump in max brightness, boasting 3,000 nits of brightness when playing HDR content. Of course, that’s only in the best-case scenario, but an auto-brightness of 1,300 nits is definitely plenty already. Needless to say, the Phone (3a) packs quite a punch with its vibrant and immersive 6.77-inch 120Hz AMOLED screen, making your content pop whether displaying static images or moving pictures.

The battery is another area where the Phone (3a) gets an update, but not in its capacity. The charging speed now reaches 50W, up from 45W, which means your charging downtime will be shorter, about less than an hour from zero to full. Given how the Qualcomm Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 isn’t as power-hungry as higher-end chipsets, you won’t be eating through that battery quickly anyway. Sadly, Nothing continues to withhold wireless charging from its mid-range phones, something we hope will change in the next iteration.

Things get a little bit spicy when it comes to the cameras. Nothing added a new member to the team in the form of a 50MP telephoto camera with a 50mm equivalent focal length. It’s capable of 2x optical zoom and 4x lossless in-sensor zoom, which is, again, a bit of a mixed bag. On the one hand, it’s definitely better than a cropped 2x zoom without a telephoto camera, but on the other hand, it also falls short of what the Phone (3a) Pro offers with its periscope camera. Mind you, the difference in output isn’t night and day, but if you’re a fan of close-up shots, you might come off disappointed.

More disappointing, however, is how the Phone (3a) sacrificed its ultra-wide capabilities for this newcomer. Down from 50MP, the 120-degree shooter now only has an 8MP sensor. You’ll definitely be able to tell how the image quality is only “passable” in ultra-wide shots, but thankfully it isn’t that terrible either. This is the one area where Nothing clearly had to cut corners, whether it was to provide a lower price point or to keep the design slim.

The good news is that, in most cases, the Nothing Phone (3a) performs quite well in the photography department. Even on overcast days, it manages to deliver crisp and detailed photos with colors that lean more toward realism than saturation. As mentioned, ultra-wide shots are decent but stop there, and you might be tempted to just use the main 50MP camera for wide shots anyway.

As with any modern smartphone these days, the Phone (3a) has been enhanced with some AI functionality. It’s called “Essential Space,” perhaps a nod to the short-lived phone brand that the company acquired a few years back, and its purpose is a little more constrained than other AI-powered features on other phones. It basically collates and organizes photos, screenshots, and voice notes, almost like a note-taking AI assistant. It’s still a bit basic at the moment, but it’s still in its early days. It will definitely be interesting to see where Nothing takes it and if it can do something more with it.

Sustainability

As part of its revolutionary character, Nothing has always been quite vocal about its role in protecting the planet for future generations. The Nothing Phone (3a) is no different and is, in fact, a step up above its own kin with a carbon footprint of 51.3kg CO2e, the lowest of any Nothing phone. It also boasts of using 100% recycled aluminum for its mid-frame, making sure that over 60% of its plastic parts are sustainably sourced, and using 100% plastic-free packaging.

Nothing has also made sure that the Phone (3a) is longer lasting, delaying any trip to landfills or recycling centers. Now flaunting an IP64 dust and water resistance, it can withstand more accidents. One area of its longevity we’d like to see improved, however, is the length of software updates. Currently, only three years of Android updates are promised, but it’s not clear whether that includes Android 16 this year, since the phone is only launching with Android 15 out of the box.

Value

The Nothing Phone (3a)’s solid mix of performance, design, and a $379 price tag easily marks it as a cut above the rest. Curiously, its biggest rival isn’t other phones from competing brands but its own sibling, the Phone (3a) Pro. With many things in common, it might even be confusing why Nothing has two models on this tier. At the end of the day, however, the answer all boils down to whether you think the Pro’s added features are worth that $80.

The Nothing (3a) Pro definitely has the advantage when it comes to photography. The 50MP main sensor has a bigger full well capacity that lets it take in more light, and the periscope telephoto camera clearly outshines one without. It comes at the cost of not only a higher price tag but also a design that might not be to everyone’s tastes. The Pro’s front camera has also been bumped up to 50MP, but it might not be that noticeable except to avid selfie-takers and live streamers. If none of these sing to your heart, you might still be better off with the Nothing (3a).

Verdict

While the first Nothing Phone turned heads with its distinctive design and Glyph Interface gimmick, the brand has made a name for itself with its blend of well-thought design, impressive performance, and competitive pricing. Nowhere is there truer than with Nothing’s “a” series that continues to shake up the mid-range smartphone market, especially with the arrival of the Phone (3a).

It might not look like a significant upgrade from the outside, but Nothing combines a familiar and trusted design with improvements across the board, prioritizing reliability over fancy new designs and features. The best part is that it comes with a price tag that almost makes it feel like a steal. The Nothing Phone (3a) is definitely something you should consider for your next purchase if you’re in the market for a solid all-rounder that won’t burn a hole through your wallet.

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