If you missed Nothing Phone (1), here’s your chance to catch up with its successor. The Nothing Phone (2), designed by the former OnePlus, improves on its first version in every way and shines with its original design, in particular its Glyph on the back, a luminous interface whose mission is to keep you away from the screen on the go. to the daily essentials.
Paradoxical for a smartphone manufacturer? Yes, but a solid philosophy rooted in the very design of the device. The Nothing Phone (2) is a high-end device that does not skimp on anything to be good in all aspects (or almost). All for a price slightly higher than its predecessor, but more content than the competition (from 679 euros).
The advantages
Design: the palm of originality
Seen in profile, the Nothing Phone (2) passes neither more nor less than another clone of the iPhone with its straight edges and rounded corners, its metal frame. It’s available in black or white with a fairly premium finish, reinforced Gorilla Glass on each side to counteract shock. The fingerprint sensor is located under the screen and works quite efficiently. The back is rounded and thus offers a pleasant grip that, however, prevents soapy effect. All dressed in glass, the device is not the lightest on the market (201 g).
It features a 6.7-inch OLED display (versus the phone’s 6.5-inch(1)) with adaptive image refresh rate (10-120Hz) that allows you to adapt the screen to your activity and thus, and Above all, limit consumption. All this with a central punch at the top that houses a selfie camera (16 Mpx) that will have a slight tendency to soften the face of the photographed subject. This 5G smartphone only has an IP54 certification that does not allow resistance to immersion, but it tolerates a few large splashes to the maximum.
The Glyph interface, the good idea
This is the little coquetry of the Nothing Phone (2) and its distinctive sign. Glyph’s interface is not new. Motorola also uses the back of the smartphone and the camera LEDs to signal notifications when the device is placed on the front. But Nada has the merit of taking the concept much further.
So the back is lined with multiple LED strips that will light up in a specific way when you receive a call (ringtone and light animation of your choice), a notification, put your device on charge, activate a timer with chronograph progress indicator. The LEDs even make it possible to act as a flashlight or “ring light” (for recording a video) in a pretty convincing and effective way.
It is not yet possible to use the Glyph as you see fit. Eventually, the interface should be enriched with other operating tips. At the moment, it’s still nice, but it still can’t replace everything to take our gaze away from the screen.
Power in substance and form
After equipping its first model with a mid-range chip, the British company has revised its copy and the Nothing Phone (2) is based on a Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 processor. It is not Qualcomm’s most powerful, but the 2022 version , more than enough to play, the device does not suffer from slowness or heat, it lasts a long time and is capable of everything with a certain fluidity. It is also compatible with Wifi 6 and Bluetooth 5.3.
We particularly appreciate its software interface. The mobile runs Android 13 with a simplified and well thought out internal overlay, Nothing OS 2.0. You can add multiple widgets (weather, time, appointments, photos, etc.), take advantage of round and monochrome app icons so you don’t get “distracted” by the multiple colors on your home page. Too bad the black and white look only works with some apps and not all.
our reservations
A photo that could be much better
At a time when smartphones want to be more and more efficient in photos, the Phone (2) would settle for almost the bare minimum with its two sensors (50 Mpx main and 50 Mpx ultra-wide angle), but without a telephoto lens and therefore with zoom. . Photos are quite effective during the day with nice color reproduction, but slightly flattering overexposure. The 50 MP mode doesn’t show a huge difference between shots compared to the standard photo mode.
At night, this is where the shoe pinches. If you are in a well-lit environment (or at dusk), the phone (2) works fine.
As soon as it gets too dark, it’s quickly catastrophic, with noise, too much grain, and stark blur, a scene generally difficult to perceive at best or artificially overlit.
does not charge
It’s nice to bring the details down to the ultra-slim packaging that opens like a surprise the first time. This contributes to the unique experience of the product and gives the feeling of a gift that we discovered. But who says delicacy of the box necessarily says absence of the charger. There is only the cable and a very nice pick to open the SIM card door, located on the bottom edge. Too bad I gave in to the fashion of removing the power adapter.
Conclusion
The Nothing Phone (2) is a very beautiful smartphone that shines with its originality. It knows how to do everything and quite well, although we must not forget to make the last update to take advantage of an improved device (a good omen for the future). This is not yet at the level of the Samsung Galaxy S or the more expensive iPhone, Honor or Xiaomi. The Phone (2) is a good mid-range top or a very good entry-level top, depending on each one.
For its price range, it doesn’t really have any major faults to point to and some significant advantages. However, it is also its price that can be a handicap. Aside from the Nothing site where the basic configuration (6GB RAM/128GB storage) is sold, it’s listed at €729 (12GB RAM/256GB storage) elsewhere and even at €849 (512GB). ).
If you are after a very good camera, the Google Pixel 7 is cheaper and much better (around 550 euros), or even its little brother, the Pixel 7a, is not without some criticism, but it does better for 479 euros, with some energy concessions in particular.
Source: BFM TV
