Nothing keeps silent about new releases. The London phone company’s PR effort hinges on drip-feeding gadget information. Since so many of its launches have been first-gen goods, they’ve generated attention outside the company’s passionate audience, which is good but irritating as a journalist.
The Nothing Phone (2a) fits. The company’s third phone targets a different audience than the flagship phones (1) and (2). As you may expect from prior phones, the “2a” indicates a cheap model. In recent years, that’s primarily been determining which flagship features to surrender to lower the price while maintaining a premium experience.
After hints and a few official picture releases, the Phone (2a) debuted at MWC 2024 in Barcelona. It was the honored guest at last night’s Nothing after-show party, shining in a glass case in its low-cost brilliance. Nothing has avoided the large mobile trade show floor.
Operations Ivy paraphrases Plato’s Socrates: “All I know is that I don’t know anything.” Current details are few. However, the design reveals much about the product. Naturally, nothing retains part of the line’s translucent appeal. Returning to a trio of bands on top, the light-up glyphs cover less surface area than the preceding variants.
Phone (2a) preserves Phone (2)’s dual-camera arrangement but moves it to the middle. I wonder whether that’s aesthetic or pragmatic. Given Nothing’s design emphasis, I wouldn’t be shocked if it were relocated to differentiate the smartphone from its flagships. Whatever the case, this inexpensive phone looks excellent and is well-built. Although the back may be too cluttered for others, I like what Nothing has done to move away from the style most manufacturers have settled onto.
We don’t know the camera arrangement beyond number and orientation, but I wouldn’t be shocked if it’s lower than the Phone (2), since camera configurations affect manufacturing costs. We do know that the phone will use a custom MediaTek Dimensity 7200 Pro processor.
Price remains unanswered—and crucial.
Nothing enters budget with Phone (2a) at MWC 2024.
