(3a) is just a budget phone

Marko · 2025-03-17T16:45:29+00:00

Or is it? I have been using SonyEricsson P800, P900i, HTCs, iPhones, from which I have switched to OnePlus, then to Pixel, then back to OnePlus, but only top specced versions. Nothing phone has been my interest for some time now, and I was so eager to get one now, that I completely ignored my initial plan to wait for the 3 to be released and got the 3a. I was thinking to myself, 350€ is not really much money for a phone, so even if it's crap, I won't be sorry. I didn't even go for pro version, just the lowest specced 3a. The phone arrived today. That's when the surprise came. The phone feels premium. I held phones that cost 2-3 times more money and feel like a toy, compared to this one. Since I don't care that much about camera, because I use my phone for calling and communication, I was blown away. OS is so fluid, nothing glitches, it's just the way it should be, especially with the monochrome. I hope it's not like other brands where everything is fluid and flawless for first 6 months, and then suddenly it's glitchy hell, but considering Carl's history, I doubt this will be the case. To me the word flagship has lost its meaning. OK, phones have great cameras (if you're a photographer, you take pictures with a DSLR anyway, since a 10 MP digital camera is always better than a 200 MP phone camera), they have 24GB RAM (why?), 1 TB storage (why?), can run heavy games (again, why?). In my opinion phone should be a tool to get in touch with someone, not a centerpiece of your whole day for doomscrolling and alienating from life. This so called budged phone is a proper damn piece of tech in my hands, and I'm amazed how well it's put together and what it offers. Anyone who says it doesn't feel premium is just talking nonsense. We need more products like this, so that people who actually can't afford overpriced flagships can afford a decent flagship. In my opinion, this is the new flagship category. Low cost, awesome specs and performance. Others are just premium priced devices that don't really offer THAT much to a regular user. This is coming from a guy that's using his phones at least 3-4 years. I don't care about upgrading every year, as it's just a waste of money, and upgrades aren't really that big from year to year. It's mostly slight processor and camera bumps, and that's it. Let's be real, 99% of users won't EVER use the full Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, so the fact that reviewers moan that it's a bad thing Nothing phone has SD7 chip, is just rubbish. There was a time they were boasting the chip and raising it to heavens just because it was new AT THAT TIME. It's still a good chip. Apple does same thing. Using old components with optimized software - great product. I am blown away. Keep up the good work guys.

Antonis_Pap

Marko More and more I see comparison of nothing phones with higher tier ones. And not wrongly. Coming from a mid range phone segment I see big difference with my new 3a. Before buying my 3a I thought this was a direct competitor of the Nord 4 for example. But how do you explain the fact that I chose this over the 13R? Your story explains something similar and I ve seen more and more stories like yours lately. We ve never heard of a mid range Samsung taking sales from…an iPhone or a high spec OnePlus. They managed to do some pretty awesome stuff at this price point that was never done before. And I am happy to be part of this as an owner of such a great device.

CMF1_hacker

I feel the same way about the CMF1 Phone 1 and am shocked that it’s only £169 (UK). Not the design specs but the value-for-money.

japhets62

Marko je suis d accord ce téléphone n est pas du tout entrée de gamme ,il est premium .

Anonymous717

Marko i feeling also all what you wrote with my 2a, it’s satisfuyning device almost like 3a with 1 more camera.

Anonymous784

I’m just glad the 3a has a high quality AMOLED panel

Mine looks great - better colours ad brightness than my One Plus 11 which was a flagship panel 2 years ago.

JudasKipKas

Id say its a premium phone for a budget price 😉

anders_carlstein

Insane battery life also, 2 days here. Had it for a week now. I dont play any games just doing everything else 🙂

Marko

anders_carlstein Yeah, battery life is awesome! 48h without any issues. Charged it last night, and it was still on 17%.

georgios1

Marko It sounds great! Do you get this strong battery life with the display refresh rate always set to high? Thank you

Marko

georgios1 Hey, yes. Refres rate is set to high.

georgios1

Marko Thank you!