When decorating a home, it’s easy to get carried away and end up buying expensive rugs and sofas but we often forget that it’s the small touches that turn four walls into a memorable bedroom or an inviting living area. The London-based tech brand Nothing’s Phone (2a) gets the small things right and these add up to ensure a phone that’s worth having in a sea of cheap smartphones. It lives by what philosopher Jagger once sang: You can’t always get what you want, but if you try sometimes, you’ll find you get what you need.

The display is superior enough for the pricing.

It’s obvious that Nothing has put design and software experience above everything else because these two things are rarely given attention in the mid-budget category. It’s not easy to make a budget phone because corners need to be cut and choosing one is about picking a device that has trade-offs that you’re okay with.
Who doesn’t like a good set of cameras on their smartphones? The same goes for build quality and software experience. And then there is battery and screen size. You may not be keen on wireless charging. You wouldn’t want titanium when the budget is less than Rs 25,000. Nothing has prioritised wants and needs to make 2a a memorable device.

Nothing Phone (2a) versus Nothing Phone 2 (left)

Funky, cool but stripped back

If you are looking for a spec-heavy smartphone then your eyes are on the wrong device. The chipset is not the most nimble we have seen and camera specs don’t make the sun, moon and stars sing.

Nothing Phone (2a) looks unique in a sea of same-looking budget phones.

But I want to buy fast fashion without feeling guilty. Nothing Phone (2a) fits the bill. The third phone from Carl Pei’s company remains true to its core philosophy of keeping technology in the background while devices connect people. The transparent design returns and so does the Glyph Interface that allows you to have a fair idea about notifications through a clever usage of lights. And if Pei has managed to get it right the third time, nothing should be stopping him from delivering more of Nothingness.

The phone evokes a reaction — good or bad. No company can please everyone. Some think the camera module looks like a pair of eyes on an alien body (an NFC coil surrounds it), others may consider it funky. But you can’t knock the company in its effort to carefully design the screen with slim bezels around the phone; it’s almost impossible to see this on rival devices. If I keep my Samsung Galaxy S24 next to Nothing Phone (2a), I wouldn’t feel that I am sacrificing a lot in terms of aesthetics. It’s a plastic body, like on all budget phones, yet Nothing has managed to celebrate the material. It’s not a mass-produced slab.

Even under uneven lighting, the camera shines.

Combine all of this with software. You can’t find a single phone in the under-25K segment which doesn’t have bloatware… except for 2a. I am using the strict black-and-white UI that I have liked on Nothing Phone (1) and Phone (2). Widgets are in plenty and so are customisation options. And the AI wallpaper generator is going to keep you busy. Overall you get exactly what you need — zero clutter. And it’s exactly the reason why many love the iPhone — a no-nonsense approach to software. We try so hard to use tech less and Nothing is genuinely helping users achieve it. The phone is meant to be a device for communication. Period. Nothing continues to celebrate that in 2a.

The phone itself is quite big. It has a 6.7-inch AMOLED display, which also means there is enough space for a big battery. And it’s a bright 120Hz (adaptive refresh rate) panel that hits 1,300 nits of peak brightness. You get HDR10+ certification, 240Hz touch sampling rate and all that razzmatazz. Some phone brands are trying to show off crazy numbers in terms of screen brightness but those don’t matter. Before I forget, there is 2,160Hz PWM dimming.

Camera and performance

The display segues into battery life. It’s a massive 5,000mAh battery that supports 45W fast-charging. The software is extremely well tuned to keep the phone running for a couple of days and the MediaTek Dimensity 7200 Pro chipset helps. There is no wireless charging but that’s fine. The chipset is not the fastest but with day-to-day activities, I haven’t had any issues. Nothing OS 2.5 on top of Android 14 is taking full advantage of the chipset to make things run smoothly. Even with gaming, you can push the chipset but not too far.

And the Glyph Interface? It’s good but I am not the biggest fan of LED strips, yet that shouldn’t stop me from using the device.

Coming to the camera, there is a 50MP main snapper and 50MP ultra-wide. Thank God for no macro. On the front, it’s 32MP. I wasn’t expecting much from the cameras but it has surprised me for a budget phone. The pictures are sharp and the dynamic range is more than acceptable. It’s quick and the autofocus works well. But colours on the main and ultra-wide don’t match. There is no zoom lens, so you are left to the mercy of digital zoom. In the video department, things are not too bad but there’s nothing out of the way to talk about.

In pictures taken on the main camera, colours pop but are not saturated.

Should you buy it?

Nothing is offering three years of major Android version upgrades and four years of security updates. That’s not bad at all. Nothing has gone with the right attitude towards making phones fun again. There is a high level of consistency and you don’t end up making too many sacrifices. Overall, Nothing Phone (2a) is a classy affair on a budget.

At a glance

Device: Nothing Phone (2a)

Price: Upwards of Rs 23,999 (excluding offers)

High points

• Excellent software optimisation

• Clutter-breaking design

• Clean UI

• No bloatware

• Decent camera

Muffled notes

• No wireless charging

• Colour disparity between main and ultra-wide snappers