Nothing phone (1) has got some exciting tricks up its sleeves

An official image of the Nothing Phone (1) from the back, with a parrot perched on it
(Image credit: Nothing)

The hype around the Nothing Phone (1) is building up gradually. The company has been teasing some of its features, especially the design in the last few days.

In a bold move, the company revealed the rear design of the upcoming phone contrary to most other smartphone makers who like to closely guard the final design right up to the launch event.

There has been so much talk about the transparent design philosophy that the company wants to carry forward from its Nothing Ear (1) TWS. However, the design that the company has revealed garnered mixed reactions with people saying that it’s just another phone with a transparent rear panel – probably a durable glass.

However, a video that seems to have been shot at a promotional event hosted by Nothing in Basel, Switzerland not only gives us a closer look at the phone but also shows that the transparent rear panel may have a practical usage as well.

The company seems to have used a fair amount of LED strips on the rear panel of the phone – one around the dual camera setup which might double up as a flashlight apart from a couple of them housed at other places. 

It’s not clear if these are programmable LED lights or if they’ll just act as a notification light to inform users about an incoming call or a message. In any case, it’s a very practical and functional use of the transparent back.

Apart from this, the video also reveals that the phone will have flat edges and the phone’s body is expected to be made of Aluminum. While the front panel of the phone is not revealed in the video, however, it’s being reported that the display might have thin bezels on all four sides including the chin.

The company hasn’t revealed much apart from the fact that the Nothing Phone (1) will have a Snapdragon SoC at its core and will focus on delivering a fluid experience.

Interesting design and great hype could be a perfect formula 

Nothing’s founder Carl Pei has got people talking about the phone way ahead of the launch. He’s able to build up hype around the phone with his timely reveals and teasers and to a certain extent, this was expected from him. After all, he’s a master at creating hype.

Hype does provide an initial boost, however, it doesn’t help you break sales records. This can be achieved when the product is unique and offers a great experience or value for money. This is how he created a brand like OnePlus.

There is no doubt that in the sea of similar-looking phones, the Nothing Phone (1) stands out. From whatever I’ve seen till now, I’m looking forward to using the phone and experiencing the interesting transparent rear panel design.

Mind you, we’ve seen some interesting concepts in the recent past which includes the colour-changing rear panel on a bunch of phones from Vivo, Realme etc. but it didn’t have a practical use case. And in most cases, users would snap a protective case once the novelty fades away.

The hunch is that the Nothing Phone (1) will not experience the same fate – or is it too early to say that. Let's wait for more.

Jitendra Soni

Jitendra has been working in the Internet Industry for the last 7 years now and has written about a wide range of topics including gadgets, smartphones, reviews, games, software, apps, deep tech, AI, and consumer electronics.