Nothing is gearing to launch its first smartphone under the CMF sub-brand. While there’s a bit of confusion around whether or not Nothing will launch the Phone 3 this year, the London-based startup has come up and confirmed the launch of CMF Phone 1. The exact launch date isn’t out yet, but it won’t be long before more details start to trickle in, after today’s announcement.
As has been the short and sweet history of the Nothing sub-brand, the CMF Phone 1, too, will make standout design quirks more accessible. Nothing in fact mentions that it will serve as an “entry point to our entire product ecosystem” hinting that it could be cheaper than its current most affordable phone—the Phone 2a.
The announcement is accompanied by a teaser photo of the CMF Phone 1 in its hallmark “orange” hue replete with a dial that could be anything from a lanyard connector (like the CMF Buds) to a volume knob (like the CMF Neckband Pro). The orange variant of the CMF Phone 1 will have a vegan leather finish on the back and appears to have a flat chassis with rounded edges. Nothing has previously teased a black product with a distinct screw as well. It isn’t immediately clear if it’s the CMF Phone 1 at the time of writing or another audio product to join it.
CMF was launched last year with a deep focus on making unique designs available in the value segment. Carl Pei had. emphasised that Nothing and CMF will serve separate, distinct roles. To prevent distractions from Nothing’s main products, CMF is managed by a different team within the UK startup. So far it has dabbled with audio and even a smartwatch. CMF Phone 1 will be its maiden smartphone venture.
“Leveraging @nothing’s innovation and meticulous attention to design, it serves as a wonderful entry point to our entire product ecosystem,” Nothing said about the phone, adding that, “As others overlook this category, we’re giving it our full attention.”
The CMF Phone 1 is rumoured to come with a 6.7-inch 120Hz OLED panel and a MediaTek Dimensity 7200 chip under the hood. It is said to come with 6GB of RAM and either 128GB or 256GB of expandable storage. The phone’s camera setup is expected to include a 50MP main camera, a 50MP ultrawide camera, and a 16MP front-facing camera for selfies. Reportedly, it will have a 5,000mAh battery supporting 33W charging.
