I Love the Look of the Nothing Phone 3

UK-based phone-maker Nothing says that its new Phone 3 is its first “true flagship,” featuring a high-end processor and a potentially powerful triple-camera array. I’ve been hands-on with the phone at its London launch event, and I’m quite impressed so far. 

The phone goes on sale in the US, the UK and Europe next week for $799 or £799. 

Scroll through this gallery to see more of this unusual Android phone.

The main new feature is the Glyph Matrix, a small dot-matrix display on the back of the phone. It can be used to show standard things like battery levels or incoming notifications, but can also be put to more fun uses, including functioning as a spin-the-bottle or as a Magic 8 Ball. 

The 6.67-inch display looks pretty decent, though I’ll reserve judgement on how well it copes under the midday summer sun until I can take it out of the dark venue where Nothing held its launch. 

The Glyph Matrix is arguably a novelty, but when so many phones are so similar, it’s nice to see something a bit quirky like this. 

Nothing’s software skin remains quite stark and monochrome, but I like it. The phone will receive four years of software updates and a total of seven years of security updates, meaning it should still be good to use in at least 2032. 

The front-facing camera has a 50-megapixel resolution.

Seen first on the Nothing Phone 3A, the Essential Space is basically a repository for your voice notes, screenshots and other items. It uses AI to summarise your musings and try to provide some clarity to your daily stream of consciousness. 

There’s a dedicated Essential Space button on the side; press and hold it to record notes directly into Essential Space. As a busy journalist always wanting to keep track of my random thoughts when I’m working, this really appeals. 

The key specs of the phone. The Snapdragon 8S Gen 4 processor should provide plenty of power for your daily needs.

The interface is very monochrome. I like it, though I do sometimes forget which apps are which. 

The 6.67-inch display makes the phone quite large, but it’s comfortable enough for me to use one-handed.

It retains the transparent design seen on all of Nothing’s phones.

The “inside” of the phone has this cubist layout that reminds me a touch of the Bauhaus art style. I’m here for it.

CNET’s Katie Collins enjoyed playing rock-paper-scissors with the Glyph Matrix interface.

Collins described the Glyph Matrix as “her favorite thing about the phone.”