Nothing Phone (2a) Plus Smartphone Review – Nothing smartphone is expanding its reach to the mid-range segment with Nothing Phone 2a Plus. Even though, the hype of the Nothing CMF Phone 1 didn’t fade yet, the smartphone makers unveiled a new phone in just four months. For the last couple of years, the track record of Nothing phones hasn’t been that extreme. But, being a new smartphone company, they were able to pull some great phones within a few years.
Not long ago, Carl Pei introduced the brand new Nothing Phone (2a) Plus. It can be considered the upgraded version of the Nothing Phone 2a with a larger design and powerful hardware configuration. Overall, the Plus variety ensures that the users aren’t lacking when it comes to performance, designs, over even size. There’s no denying that it’s a better option than its sibling. But still, is it worth purchasing or not, let’s find out from the following review!
Table of Contents
Nothing Phone (2a) Plus Smartphone Review
Highlights
- The device equips a 6.7-inch AMOLED panel with 1300 nits brightness support.
- As for the software layering, it will bring the Android 14-based Nothing OS 2.6 update.
- Alongside this, the hardware section is handled through the Dimensity 7350 Pro chipset.
- In terms of camera support, the phone relies on the 50MP dual camera on the back and a 50MP selfie camera.
- Under the hood, the device brings a 5000 mAh battery configuration that tags with a 50W wired charger.
Design and Display
There’s no denying that Nothing Phone (2a) Plus is an aesthetic masterpiece when it comes to the back panel design. The raw texture with gradient effect makes this phone stand out from the rest of the phones. Even the camera island grants an appealing feeling in the first impression. But, the real charm lies in the multi-function LED lights.
On the other hand, users can pick up this fabulous phone in black and grey color variants. Both of them look pretty attractive with their signature metallic back panel touch. With thick borders, the phone becomes grippy, while the three LED lights integrate the Glyph interface. You can perform up to 26 different functionalities, including notification timer, progress, charging, and more! Apart from this innovative function, the lightweight body gives the single hand usage smooth.
As for the front display, the 6.7-inch AMOLED display comes with Gorilla Glass 5 protection with pre-applied thin screen protection. However, this pre-installed protection is made of plastic, which can be later replaced with glass later on. Anyway, the display grants 1B colors, HDR10+ support, 120Hz refresh rate, and FHD+ screen resolution. Furthermore, the brightness levels are managed properly with different refresh rate mode support.
Memory and Internal
The Nothing Phone (2a) Plus performance department has got the due update with the Dimenisity 7350 Pro chipset. It’s an exclusive chip developed by the collaboration of Mediatek and Nothing. Through this chipset, the users can receive Dimesmity 7200 equivalent performance, which is pretty evident. The octa-core CPU will perform normal tasks, while the GPU won’t stay behind to provide an impressive gaming experience. Following this, the device was onboarded with 256GB non-expandable storage with either 8GB to 12GB RAM.
The Nothing Phone (2a) Plus attains the Android 14 with a Nothing OS 2.6 UI. The software interface will provide three years of core Android updates with a year of security patches. As far as the track record is concerned, the Nothing phones usually provide software updates on time. However, the custom skin does take several bugs testing to launch to a wide section of audiences.
Apart from the classic notification and custom Nothing theme, there are tons of always-on display features available. At the same time, the users won’t notice any additional bloatware apps, except traditional Google ecosystem apps. The thermal management of this phone isn’t that bad, even in the overclocking settings. Besides, the screen didn’t get that hot either.
Camera
Spec-wise, the Nothing Phone (2a) Plus offers a dual 50MP sensor on the rear and a 50MP selfie lens at the front. unlike the Nothing 2a, the primary camera setup presents a main and ultrawide lens. The native camera app comes with minimalistic features, with an identical layout from OnePlus and Realme phones. Alongside this, there are many exclusive modes like Expert, Live Photos, Cinematic videos, and so on. The daylight camera usage does produce crispy colors, textures, and natural lighting in almost every shot. Following this, portraits look fantastic with autofocus control, while the ultrawide lens captures accurate details.
But still, the skin tones, textures, and background colors are accurately managed. Overall, the photos look pretty good with dynamic range and proper contrast control. As for the lowlight images, the camera app produces low-noise video with plenty of details in each shot. The light sources are contained so that it didn’t give the glare effect. The video recording aspect of Nothing 2a Plus goes beyond our expectations. It can record up to 4K videos up to 30fps with natural colors and partially no noise.
Battery and Others
Offering a 5000 mAh battery keeps the Nothing Phone (2a) Plus on the right track. The device provides excellent battery life, whether it’s calling, internet browsing, content consumption, or extreme gaming. The battery configuration performance is pretty well compared to the same price range devices. Generally, the users can squish out roughly 6+ hours of screen time for all of the necessary activities.
The battery drain isn’t a concern since the device comes with a decent standby time. Besides, you don’t have to worry about the charging speed with this Nothing phone. It’s possible to refuel the battery up to 50W wried charge. But sadly, the phone lacks the wireless charging. Besides, there’s no retail charger inside the box, so purchase a new one with a type-C to type-C charger.
Last but not least, let’s talk about the miscellaneous aspects like speakers. The phone can produce above-average ratings during the speaker test, while the loudness can be considered great. However, the same set of stereo speakers was used on the Nothing 2a, which gives identical results. Aside from this, the phone offers 5G connectivity, NFC, Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.3, and other sensor support. But sadly, there’s no FM support. Last but not least, the smartphone is expected to be priced at $334 (Rs 27,999 in India) approx.
Nothing Phone (2a) Plus Pros and Cons
Nothing Phone (2a) Plus Specifications Detail
Down below you can see the full specifications of the Nothing Phone (2a) Plus smartphone.
| Specifications | Nothing Phone (2a) Plus |
| Network | 2G, 3G, 4G, 5G |
| Announced | July 2024 |
| SIM | Dual SIM |
| Dimensions | 6.37 x 3.00 x 0.33 inches |
| Weight | 190 g |
| Size | 6.7 inches |
| Display | AMOLED 1B colors 120Hz HDR10+ 700-1300 nits brightness 20:9 ratio ~395 PPI density Always On Display |
| Protection/Others | Corning Gorilla Glass 5 IP54 – splash, water, and dust resistant 26 LED lights on the back |
| Resolution | 1080 x 2412 pixels |
| OS | Android 14, Nothing OS 2.6, up to 3 major Android upgrades |
| Chipset | 4nm – Mediatek Dimensity 7350 Pro |
| CPU | Octa-core 2×3.0 GHz Cortex-A715 6x 2.0 GHz Cortex-A510 |
| GPU | Mali-G610 MC4 1.3GHz |
| Card slot | No |
| RAM | 8GB, 12GB |
| Internal | 256GB |
| Camera | 50 MP (wide), PDAF, OIS 50 MP (114Ëšultrawide) LED flash, panorama, HDR Max – 4K@30fps, gyro-EIS |
| Selfie | 50 MP (wide) HDR Max – 4K@30fps |
| Loudspeaker | Yes (stereo speakers) |
| 3.5mm jack | No |
| WLAN | Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/6, dual-band, Wi-Fi Direct |
| Bluetooth | 5.3, A2DP, LE |
| GPS | GPS, GALILEO, GLONASS, BDS, QZSS |
| NFC | Yes, 360Ëš |
| Infrared port | No |
| Radio | No |
| USB | USB Type-C 2.0, OTG |
| Sensors | Under display fingerprint, accelerometer, gyro, proximity, compass |
| Battery | 5000 mAh 50W wired |
| Colors | Black, Grey |
| Expected Price | $334 (Rs 27,999 in India) approx |
Conclusion
Nothing Phone (2a) Plus is a unique smartphone in the mid-range segment. You won’t see that many phones that put effort into making the design out of the box. But is it a better choice than the Nothing 2a? To a certain extent, the Plus does bring slightly higher performance, brightness, and an upgraded selfie camera. All of those improvements are greatly appreciated.
But, both of the devices are in a rather close price range. Generally, the company often compromises when it comes to performance, cameras, batteries, and other departments. Hopefully, that’s not the case with Nothing phones. However, if you are looking for a value-for-money deal, the Nothing Phone 2a Plus is a considerably good choice. But, you will also find several other competent phones like the Xiaomi Redmi Note 13 Pro Plus smartphone in the same price range. Still, we recommend going with a phone that makes you happy.
