Nothing Phone (1) is unique but misses out on this key feature at Rs 30,000

Published On: July 16, 2022

Highlights

Nothing Phone (1) comes with 33W fast charging support.
Several competing phones offer faster-charging support.
Nothing Phone (1) also does not come with a charger in the box.

Nothing Phone (1) comes as a breath of fresh air in a segment that can get pretty stale pretty quick. After a while, smartphones from different OEMs can look similar in terms of design and features. In order to offer something unique, Nothing has launched a smartphone that comes with a transparent back revealing a series of LED lights. The Glyph Interface can be customised as per the user’s taste. The Nothing Phone (1) also comes with a decent specs sheet, but there is one key feature it misses out on for a phone over Rs 30,000 in India.

Show Full Article

Here’s a quick run-through of the Nothing Phone (1)’s specifications. You get a 6.55-inch OLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate, Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G+ SoC, two 50MP rear cameras, and 33W fast charging support. It’s the last feature that looks out of place in what is otherwise a decent set of hardware.

Not the fastest charging phone around

The Nothing Phone (1) features 33W fast charging, which, if we’re being totally honest here, is not impressive given how fast charging speeds have evolved in recent years. At Rs 30,000 or less, there are plenty of phones that offer fast charging speeds of around 65W or higher.

The Realme GT Master Edition supports 65W charging at Rs 29,999. The phone also features the Snapdragon 778G 5G SoC, a 120Hz AMOLED display, and 64MP triple cameras, among other things. From Xiaomi, we have the Xiaomi 11i HyperCharge that touts a blazing fast 120W fast charging support at a much lower price point of Rs 26,999. In fact, the Xiaomi phone also packs a 108MP camera, 120Hz AMOLED display, and MediaTek Dimensity 920 chipset, making it an attractive option in the mid-range segment.

The reviews are in

We recently reviewed the Nothing Phone (1) and here’s what we had to say about the phone’s charging speed: “the device’s charging speed tops out at 33W, which means you’ll have to stay tethered to an outlet much longer than if you had say, the OnePlus 10R (review). To give you a better picture, the Phone (1) takes around one hour and fifteen minutes for a full charge.”

What’s more, the brand does not provide a wall charger in the box, which is a questionable move. Several competing devices that support faster-charging speeds in this price segment ship with fast-charging bricks in the box.

So, while the Nothing Phone (1) has a lot going for it in terms of offering a unique design, clean software, and a good primary camera, its 33W charging support leaves you wanting more.