💬 My Honest Thoughts on Phone (3)

dineshnavee💫

Like many of you, I was super hyped for the Nothing Phone (3) launch. I was genuinely waiting to buy it… but after seeing it, I’m not fully convinced.

✅ The design language is bold and different — I love that Nothing keeps experimenting. But honestly, this time it feels half-cooked. The new glyph matrix (tiny 24×24 display) replaces the signature glyph lights. They say it conveys “more info”, but to me, it only feels like maybe 10% more information, and it loses that iconic vibe.

👎The major downgrade in Phone 3
The display — Phone 1 and 2 had LTPO displays, but Phone 3 no longer has an LTPO display.
Only Optical Fingerprint — No untrasonic
Only USB 2.0 — Not 3.1 or 3.2
Only Gorilla Glass 7i (Front) — No Gorilla Glass Victus

Only Snapdragon 8s Gen4 - where is snapdragon 8 elite

Why would you downgrade such a key flagship feature and still call this your “first true flagship phone”?

💰 Pricing? At ₹80K, they call it a flagship, but it runs on Snapdragon 8s Gen 4 — not a true flagship chipset. Other brands like OnePlus, iQOO, and Poco offer this same chip for under ₹35K. Meanwhile, OnePlus 13 and iQOO 13 come with the powerful Snapdragon 8 (Elite), at even lower prices (₹50–70K).

📸 The only areas where Nothing really shines are the camera system and the software experience. The camera setup looks excellent, and the software is always clean and unique — I respect that.

💡 Personally, if this phone was priced around ₹60K, it would make a lot more sense and feel like a great deal.

✨ Apart from that, I still appreciate the new wired design language and the bold glyph matrix experiment. It definitely feels fresh and unique in a market full of copy-paste designs.

Overall, it’s a beautiful idea… but needs more balance between concept and practical value.

🔥 Can’t wait to see how Nothing evolves this design language in future versions!

pidugukwaissh

dineshnavee💫

I agree, the price doesn’t make a damn sense to me either. Looking at the leaked specs I thought it would be prices around 60K - 65K.

I know that there is a new Dot matrix display was coming in, 50MP triple camera setup was being given and the Nothing OS is undoubtedly the best Android OS in the present scenario with such a smooth performance but just for these 3 qualities I am not interested to spend 90K.

This is kinda disappointing because I have been waiting for Nothing Phone 3 since an year as I was heavily impressed by my Phone 2 which I am using even today which I purchased in the first week of its launch on Flipkart and I have never loved an Android OS so much or seen an Android OS with such an elite performance.

I guess I’ll wait till Phone 3 drops it’s price under 65K or keep waiting for Phone 4 and hope there wouldn’t be anymore disappointments.

emenemy

dineshnavee💫 When will Nothing start thinking about present sales by getting proper design ? 😂 Billion dollar in revenue and 100 rs toy in the back.

MuhammedJoghatayi

dineshnavee💫 Exactly!

With this price, you can buy a Google Pixel 9 with Gemini Nano, a Tensor Flow chip set, a way better camera with AI features, stock Android designed by Google itself, immediate updates, many offers and discounts for Google 1 subscription and 7-9 years of support…..

Personally, I was thinking about upgrading to Phone 3, but honestly, it’s not worth it

pixcel25

dineshnavee💫 so well said take my like, 1 think i would like to add glyph lights had limited potential but the community devs made it better hopefully same happens to glyph matrix it can be better then g.lights by atleast 50% if worked upon by nothing

vovan-v

yes it half backed product, with not needed gimmick.

Ani_Vri_007

vovan-v

It’s the first time Vovan v that I have saw you criticising a Nothing product , which actually tells how disappointed were Nothing’s extreme fan boys after seeing the Nothing Phone 3

Because otherwise I have seen you singing birdsongs about how good Nothing Products are and about Nothing’s products various concepts

ClaudiuStanescu

vovan-v Let’s be honest the Glyph lights are as well a gimmick and we loved it, give it a chance.

dineshnavee💫

pidugukwaissh

Even at 60K, I’m not interested in buying this Phone 3. Right now, for under 50K, the iQOO 13 is a far better flagship option — it offers killer performance with a Snapdragon 8 Elite, a great display, and decent cameras, making it the best value flagship on the market.

I’ve been waiting for Phone 3 for a long time too. I started with Phone 1, then moved to 2a, and now I have the 3a. I was really excited and planning to buy Phone 3, but after seeing the design choices and specs, I’ve completely changed my mind.

Now, I think it’s better to wait for Phone 4 and hope they fix these issues and deliver a true flagship experience next time.

Vaibhav-j

I agree but for this price I’ll buy Samsung or iphone both offer good software and cameras

And I’ll get the best display with flagship performance

dineshnavee💫

Vaibhav-j

I don’t even think this phone is worth the ₹80K price point. Like you said, there are way better branded phones available for that price.

shafi_22

Vaibhav-j “I’ll buy an iphone” . Really bro? IOs is so different from Android, that’s like saying you were in the market for a dog, but you’ll settle for a scorpion😅

KamleshParihar_Qe34blV17X

Im still rockin my Nothing 2 phone

Vaibhav-j

dineshnavee💫 True I too have nothing 3a got it for 20k for that price i am happy with it

Smii

I’m not sure I get the fuss about the chip set.

If I’m buying a laptop, there’s a wide range of available processors and I know I don’t need the absolute cutting edge to get the job done - I’ll buy the fastest one I can afford.

Similarly, Nothing are a design-forward company, they’ve said themselves that they aren’t focusing on the biggest numbers. As much as Poco et al put the fastest processors in, they don’t optimise so the software experience is bad and the reputation for reliability isn’t great. It’s a balance, isn’t it? Fast, cheap, good. Pick two.

Also, I don’t know about you all but I am not an expert on how these individual components (processor, camera modules, glyphs and so on) actually affect the BOM. What I do know is that things have gotten more expensive nowadays so maybe the compromise for the 8s gen 4 was to get better camera modules in for the price, or something similar.

All that to say - I dare say there’s more to this than is immediately obvious. I don’t think most users would notice the difference between the chipsets, even if synthetic benchmarks puts one well in front.

dineshnavee💫

Smii

Not just saying this — but if Nothing claims to be a design-forward company and markets this as a “true flagship phone”, then we should compare it with what other brands offer in the flagship category.

Just look at phones in the ₹50K–₹70K range — they deliver flagship-level specs across the board: display, battery, fast charging, camera, software experience, and chipset. Nothing says they’re not chasing big numbers — fair — but then why attach a premium flagship price tag to a product that doesn’t match those standards?

Sure, Poco’s reputation for software isn’t great — I agree. But at the end of the day, consumers evaluate the overall value of a product. For example, the Poco F7, which costs just around ₹30K, comes with:

Snapdragon 8s Gen 4
7500mAh battery
95W charger in the box
Unique design
Decent cameras

I’m not saying the Poco F7 is a perfect phone — but it shows what’s possible at half the price. If they can offer that at ₹30K, it’s confusing how Nothing, even at almost ₹80K, can’t deliver on key flagship aspects — especially when they’re calling it a flagship.

I also don’t buy the argument that things are just more expensive now — even if they are, compromising on the flagship chipset for a flagship phone is still questionable. I get that Nothing says, “this is what our phone needs”, but there’s a big difference between creative direction and consumer expectation.

Yes, maybe we won’t notice much difference in chipsets in daily use, but when you’re promising 5 years of software updates, the question is: Will this chipset keep up in the long run — with the same responsiveness and speed?

All that said — my main point is this:

Nothing is asking too much for a phone that doesn’t deliver enough to justify the price.

Smii

dineshnavee💫 Respectfully, then - if the Poco F7 ticks all your boxes, why not go buy it?

I mean - let’s move away from such divisive territory for a second and have a look at Headphone 1. It’s £300 in the UK, which is a lot of money. But, for well-designed and well-performing headphones, I can maybe consider that.
My touchpoint is always the Beyerdynamic DT770 Pro headphones - they’re about £120 and the performance is very hard to beat even for more money. So, what is Headphone 1 offering that The DT770s aren’t - for nearly three times the cost. Design is a huge part of that - and I expect (as we all should) to have to pay more for fancier design, different materials and different usages of materials. All of these things cost money to develop and produce (any idea what the cost is for milling out the aluminium pieces that make the headphones? I don’t - it all adds up) - especially vs the simple plastic shells of the Beyerdynamics which you could argue they’re charging quite a lot for. But with the headphones you also get lots of tech inside - Nothing have a great reputation for software and optimisation and the headphone tuning bits of their apps are very well regarded.
Do you see what I’m saying? Beyond the physical hardware itself, beyond even the Nothing design ethos, there are other factors that all contribute together to make the greater sum that go beyond the cost of the raw parts.

The same is true for phones. Flagship can mean “top spec” but it can also just mean - premium. The nicest thing they make. That can mean materials and look/feel as much as it can performance - because on the performance front there’s fast est and then there’s fast enough. You don’t need to be on the bleeding edge to get fast enough.

So - can you say that they’re asking too much for a phone that doesn’t deliver enough? Well, no, none of us have seen any proper reviews yet. But even then - the whole ensemble is a value proposition and it’s totally OK if it doesn’t meet your needs or is too expensive. It’s still a hell of a leap to say that the company has failed.

emenemy

Smii If anyone criticize the phone, you will start saying him to buy another phone. Why don’t you go & ask Nothing what they are doing first. The lie about caring & listening from community is gone. They are now Apple either with expensive price tag or like a 60hz screen. Stop defending a crap product bro.

asalynskii

Smii, man, you really compare wired headphones with wireless ANC headphones with in-headphones sound customization and an app? DT770 pro is an excellent product in its category, but they are playing in different ones with Headphones (1). You are looking for a comparison with other reference wireless ANC headphones - Bose Ultra/QuietComfort or WH1000. And its price doesn’t look off.

Nothing Phone (3) is a different case. We have other competitors to compare to. In my opinion, the closest one in terms of UX/Value is the OnePlus 13R (not the OnePlus 13!) since both phones fall into sub-flagships. They are on par if you look at the chip used, camera setup, OS, and so on. A little difference in traits:

LTPO display and wired charge speed for OP 13R
Charging and front camera for NP (3)
Chips are SD 8 Gen 3 vs SD 8s Gen 4 - but generally speaking, this is more a renaming than an actually new chip. The core composition and tech-process are the same, just minor difference in clocks (higher with 8 Gen 3 in OP 13R)

But for God’s sake, OP 13R you can buy for €510 in Germany. The release was half a year ago and had a price tag of €749. And according to the discounts, it completely failed.

So, who was the Product Manager of Nothing Phone (3) that justified the price and market positioning? Because both are completely off.

AbsoluteRainbow

Smii I agree with that sentiment of yours!

vovan-v

Ani_Vri_007 yes becouse it really high drop of what we all hoped to see.

Amudhan_Sundararajan

I’m seeing a lot of comparisons between Nothing’s flagship and other devices, especially those with the Snapdragon 8s Gen 4. I get it—the price feels steep, the design isn’t winning any beauty contests, and some specs like storage type and USB version lag behind the competition. Fair points.But let’s talk about those “cheaper” alternatives like Poco, Xiaomi, or iQOO. Sure, they’re wallet-friendly, but there’s a catch. These phones often come loaded with bloatware, and their low prices can mean your data is being sold for profit. Their software experience? Often clunky and intrusive. With Nothing, you get one pre-installed app (Essential Space) that collects data—just disable it, and you’ve got a clean, bloat-free experience. Good luck doing that with the others.I’m not here to defend Nothing. Their pricing needs work, the design’s a miss, and they could offer more for the cost. But comparing them to budget phones that compromise on privacy and software quality feels off. If you’re going to critique, at least compare Nothing to flagships or premium mid-rangers with clean UIs—that’s a fairer fight.If a cheap phone is all you want, go for it, but you might miss out on a smoother, less invasive experience. Hold off, see what Nothing does next. The ball’s in your court—choose wisely.

dineshnavee💫

Amudhan_Sundararajan

I totally get your point — and I’m with you on how Nothing nails the clean UI experience. That’s definitely a rare gem in today’s market! 💎

But just to clarify — I’m not comparing Nothing with “cheaper” phones just for the price tag. My whole point is: look how much hardware others are squeezing in at nearly half the price. Whether it’s battery size, display tech, or chipset — some brands are throwing serious punches with specs alone. 🥊

Of course, Nothing has its own vibe — the design, the OS smoothness, and that signature feel. But if they call Phone (3) a flagship at 80K, then it’s fair to expect flagship-level everything, right?

I’m still rooting for Nothing — I love what they’ve brought to the table so far. But this time, I just felt like the hardware-to-price ratio wasn’t quite there. Hoping Phone (4) brings the 🔥 back!

Lukas_F

emenemy If you hate what Nothing does so much, why are you even here? I’ve seen you in other posts as well being super hateful for no reason, if you don’t like the phone, keep it to yourself and stop ruining it for everybody else man.

LarryFy

MuhammedJoghatayi isn’t the tensor chipset quite underpowered???

richardlawton1

The whole Nothing design ethos was transparent design with internals that looked awesome.

When they brought out the Phone 2a they made a standard phone with hidden internals and just made it look as if you could see the internals. I’m guessing this is because it’s WAY cheaper to do this, so for a budget handset this is acceptable but they’ve now taken this approach with the Phone 3, which feels like they have created a cheap imitation of themselves.

They’ve turned their back on their own ethos.

_aQ_t3IznHqhNP

I think this location of the camera is not accidental, it will be very convenient for her to shoot in difficult places. like a crack in the door… the gap under the bedside table. where the cameras located in the middle simply will not be able to take pictures. I’ve been waiting for something like this.