VITALSTATS
Nothing Phone 2a
from £319 /nothing.tech
The upstart brand’s latest smartphone is just as eye-catching but more affordable than ever
Flagships and foldable phones demand the most attention, but they also demand lots of cash. Nothing’s smartphones already combine eye-catching designs with wallet-friendly prices, but the Phone 2a drives the cost down even further without losing too much of what makes the full-fat Phone 2such an appealing proposition. While the number of glyph lights on the back has been scaled back to three, they still provide 15 different visual alternatives to antisocial audible notifications, and it still has that semi-industrial vibe to make it stand out from other budget blowers.
If you’re familiar with the Nothing Phone 2, you’ll probably notice that the 2a’s camera setup is also different: it’s moved to the middle, so you’re less likely to block it with your fingers. You still get two 50MP sensors –one with an f1.88 lens and optical image stabilisation, one ultrawide with a 114° field of view. And you still get AI-enhanced portraits, automatic shutter speed adjustment for moving subjects, and an Ultra HDR mode that shoots eight RAW frames with varying exposure levels to ensure maximum detail.
So what about the front? That screen is a 6.7in AMOLED, with avariable refresh rate that goes as high as 120Hz and as low as 30Hz, plus peak brightness of 1300 nits. Underneath it has a MediaTek Dimensity 7200 Pro processor, paired with up to 12GB of RAM and 256GB of storage. It’s all powered by a 5000mAh battery –the biggest yet in a Nothing phone –so you should get acouple of days between charges. There’s no wireless charging, but when you plug it in it should hit 50% in just 23mins.
Nothing’s OS 2.5 version of Android 14 includes loads of widgets that can be added to your home screen –including a new one for music playback.
