Nothing recently launched its much-awaited flagship, the Nothing Phone 3. Touted by CEO Carl Pei as the brand’s first “true flagship,” the Phone 3 aims to redefine the smartphone experience with its iconic Glyph Interface at the core. The device largely lives up to the pre-launch leaks, showcasing an unconventional design, a flexible camera setup, and more. After spending a week testing it out, here’s our in-depth take on what the Phone 3 brings to the table.
Nothing Phone 3 Display:
The Nothing Phone 3 features a stunning 6.67-inch OLED panel that delivers an immersive visual experience. With its 10-bit color depth and a sharp resolution of 1260 x 2800 pixels, the display offers rich, vibrant colors and crisp details — perfect for media consumption, gaming, and everyday use.
One of the standout features is the ultra-smooth 120Hz refresh rate, which ensures fluid scrolling and responsive touch interactions. Whether you’re navigating the UI or playing fast-paced games, the display keeps up effortlessly.
Brightness performance is also exceptional. The screen boasts a peak brightness of 4500 nits, making it easily visible even under harsh sunlight. Its typical outdoor brightness of 1600 nits ensures comfortable viewing in most lighting conditions without straining the eyes.
Overall, the Nothing Phone 3’s display punches well above its weight, combining premium specs with real-world usability to deliver a top-tier visual experience.
Nothing Phone 3 Design:
The Phone 3 refines Nothing’s distinctive transparent aesthetic, featuring layered metal and glass with a new asymmetrical back panel. It boasts an IP68 rating for dust and water resistance, and its display is protected by Corning Gorilla Glass 7i on the front and Corning Gorilla Glass Victus on the back. A slimmer and symmetrical 1.87mm bezel (18% reduction from Phone 2) frames the display.
The star of the show is the new Glyph Matrix with 489 individually addressable LEDs for glanceable caller ID and app notifications. Complementing this is the new Glyph Button, adding interactivity for cycling through tools, widgets, and Glyph Toys, which include a Glyph Mirror and a Digital Clock. A subtle red recording light also activates on the back during video or voice notes.
Nothing Phone 3 Performance:
The Nothing Phone 3 is equipped with Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8s Gen 4 chipset—new, but not flagship-grade. Built on TSMC’s older 4nm process, it houses an 8-core CPU clocked at 3.21GHz, paired with the Adreno 825 GPU. While not the most powerful chip on the market, it brings substantial improvements over the previous generation.
Overall, the Phone 3 delivers strong upper-midrange performance, balancing efficiency and power well for most users—even if it doesn’t quite reach flagship heights.
Paired with Nothing OS 3.5 based on Android 15, the phone feels snappy and responsive in daily use. With a promise of five years of Android updates and seven years of security patches, long-term support is a standout bonus. Overall, it’s a well-balanced performer, even if not cutting-edge.
Nothing Phone 3 Camera:
The Nothing Phone 3 steps up its photography game with an impressive all-50MP camera setup capable of shooting in 4K at 60fps across all lenses—a rarity even among flagships. The primary 50MP sensor (f/1.68, 1/1.3″) delivers sharp, detailed shots with excellent dynamic range. Thanks to in-sensor zoom, it offers lossless 1.5x and 2x zoom without compromising image quality. Low-light performance is notably improved, capturing bright and noise-free images.
The standout feature is the 50MP periscope telephoto lens (f/2.68), offering 3x optical zoom, 6x lossless in-sensor zoom, and a staggering 60x AI Super Res Zoom. It even supports macro photography through the periscope module, allowing for close-up detail with clarity.
The 50MP ultra-wide camera (f/2.2) delivers a wide 114° field of view, ideal for landscapes and group shots, while also supporting ultra-steady video—great for action shots and handheld recording.
On the front, the 50MP selfie camera (f/2.2, 1/2.76” sensor) is equally powerful, offering stabilized, high-resolution video and crisp selfies, making it a solid choice for vloggers and video calls.
In short, the Nothing Phone 3’s camera system is not only versatile but also flagship-level in quality, delivering consistent performance across every lens and shooting scenario.
Conclusion:
The Nothing Phone 3 blends cutting-edge hardware with a bold, transparent design, delivering flagship-level features at a competitive price. With a powerful all-50MP camera system, a bright and responsive OLED display, solid performance from the Snapdragon 8s Gen 4 chip, and the unique Glyph interface, it stands out in a crowded market. Priced at Rs 79,999 for the base variant and Rs 89,999 for the top model, it may not be cheap—but it offers a distinct, premium experience for those looking to break away from the ordinary.
