Nothing is widely expected to launch the Nothing Phone 3 in the coming months. Unlike the Nothing Phone 2a, which hit stores earlier this year, the Phone 3 will be a flagship device.
I told you recently that you’d be better off avoiding any of the exciting mid-range Android phones hitting the market until the Nothing Phone 3 comes out. I meant you should ignore the Galaxy A55 (where available) and the Pixel 8a until you see what the Nothing Phone 3 can do.
The upcoming flagship might be cheaper than other flagships, though it could come with a compromise in the chip department. The phone might come have Qualcomm’s somewhat confusing Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 chip, which isn’t the same as the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3.
It turns out we won’t have to wait too long to see the Nothing Phone 3. Carl Pei, the company CEO, might have tweeted photos of it to show off changes to the Nothing OS user interface. The images he shared might feature the Nothing Phone 3. The device in the renders features a design detail that makes me question whether Nothing is about to pull off an iPhone 16 move before Apple announces its 2024 flagship.
The images Pei shared on X are available below. They essentially offer the same look at the software changes for dark and light modes. But forget all about the colors on the screen, widgets placements, shapes, and sizes and look at the phone’s right side.
You’ll notice something unusual. It’s something not seen on any of the three Phone models that Nothing has unveiled so far. Phones 1, 2, and 2a all feature three buttons: two on the left side and one on the right side.
The phone in Pei’s tweets has a fourth button on the right side, right under the power button. It’s unclear what the button’s purpose is and what it can do right now.
As for Nothing revealing the Phone 3 design early, well, it didn’t really reveal anything. Think about it; you’re looking at an all-screen display with a hole-punch camera and thin bezels. All Android phones look like that, including previous Nothing Phones.
The extra side button and the handset’s rear panel design will be key identifiers for Phone 3.
I didn’t mention the iPhone 16 by accident before. Apple is widely expected to introduce a new iPhone button that will be placed on the right side. It’s routinely referred to as the Capture button. Leaks say its functionality will be tied directly to the iPhone camera.
I’ll also remind you of the Action button on the iPhone 15 Pros, which can trigger various apps and shortcuts. The Action button is coming to all iPhone 16 models.
Is Nothing copying Apple here? That might seem to be the case, though technically, the iPhone 16 isn’t official. The Nothing Phone 3 will hit stores before the iPhone 16 models arrive. But there’s nothing wrong with adopting this particular design, especially if the Phone 3’s extra button also triggers the camera.
Considering Nothing’s way of teasing Phone features before a device’s official launch event, we’ll probably get more Phone 3 clues in the coming weeks.
