Nothing Phone 2a vs. Phone 2a Plus: Here’s What Has Changed

Nothing Phone 2a launched earlier this year impressed many with its unique design, clean Nothing OS, and wallet-friendly price. But Nothing wasn’t content to rest on its laurels. The company unveiled CMF Phone 1, a budget-friendly phone with a different look, no glyphs, and fewer features. After that came Nothing Phone 2a Plus, a souped-up version of the original.

The Nothing Phone 2a Plus starts at ₹27,999, about ₹4,000 more than the base Nothing Phone 2a. It boasts a new processor, more storage, and a new color option. Here are all the key differences between the Nothing Phone 2a and Phone 2a Plus to help you know if it’s worth spending little extra.

Here’s a brief spec comparison:

It Comes In a Brand New Color

The Nothing Phone 2a Plus comes in two colors: Gray and Black. The new Gray color features a gray and silver dual-tone finish, with the disks inside also featuring a metallic finish. It looks quite refreshing compared to the Phone 2a’s Black, White, and Blue options.

That said, I still love the Phone 2a’s Special Edition color, which looks striking with its red, yellow, and blue color accents. Unfortunately, this color is not available on the Phone 2a Plus.

Other than the color options, there aren’t any differences in the designs of both phones. Their dimensions, weight, port placements, and bezels are the same.

Processor: Dimensity 7350 Pro vs. 7200 Pro

The Nothing Phone 2a Plus houses a new MediaTek Dimensity 7350 Pro 5G chipset, built on TSMC’s 4nm Gen 2 fabrication process. This new chipset features 8 cores reaching speeds of up to 3.0GHz, translating to a 10% performance uplift on paper compared to the Nothing Phone 2a’s Dimensity 7200 Pro chipset. The GPU on the 7350 Pro gets a 30% clock speed bump.

I didn’t notice a significant difference between the Nothing Phone 2a and 2a Plus, whether it be app launching times, overall responsiveness, or even gaming performance. You can play BGMI on both phones at 60fps. I wasn’t expecting much of a change, considering both processors are similar.

I did run the AnTuTu Benchmark on the two devices, and the difference was initially less than 5%. The Nothing Phone 2a scored 721,236 points, while the Nothing Phone 2a Plus scored slightly higher at 743,654 points. The main performance difference came from the GPU results. However, after a recent update, the 2a Plus scored 774,648 points, which is higher, yet the difference is only about 7%.

I also ran Geekbench 6. The Nothing Phone 2a scored 1118 points in single-core and 2547 points in multi-core tests. Whereas, the Phone 2a Plus got 1207 points in single-core and 2657 points in multi-core tests. Again, a very nominal difference.

Note that the Phone 2a Plus supports 50W wired charging, a slight upgrade over the 45W charging on the Phone 2a.

Double Storage on the Base Variant

The Nothing Phone 2a base model comes with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage. In contrast, the Nothing Phone 2a Plus doubles the base storage to 256GB, while keeping the 8GB of RAM.

Earlier rumors suggested the Phone 2a Plus might feature UFS 3.1 storage. To my surprise, the rumors were wrong. Storage speed tests on both phones showed similar results, confirming the 2a Plus uses UFS 2.2 storage, just like the older model.

Front Camera Gets an Upgrade

The Nothing Phone 2a Plus rocks the same cameras as its sibling – a 50-megapixel main shooter and a 50-megapixel ultra-wide. However, the front camera gets a significant upgrade to 50-megapixel, compared to the 32-megapixel unit on the regular 2a.

This upgraded selfie camera not only captures a bit crisper photos but can also shoot fancy 4K videos at 30fps. Plus, the rear camera now does 120fps slow-mo in 1080p.

But hold your horses before you get too excited. While these camera upgrades are nice, they don’t make a huge difference in everyday use. We snapped a bunch of photos, and honestly, the main camera performance is pretty similar between the two phones. At the end of the day, both phones have cameras that are just okay.

All-inclusive, here’s a recap of things that have changed on the Nothing Phone 2a Plus:

• Processor: Upgraded to MediaTek Dimensity 7350 Pro from Dimensity 7200 Pro.
• Storage: Base storage increased to 256GB from 128GB.
• Front Camera: Upgraded to 50MP from 32MP, with support for 4K 30fps recording.
• Rear Camera: Now supports 120fps slow-motion video in 1080p.
• Charging: Slightly faster 50W wired charging (compared to 45W on 2a).
• Color Options: New Grey color option with a metallic finish.

What to Buy – Nothing Phone 2a or Phone 2a Plus?

The Nothing Phone 2a Plus does offer a few improvements over the 2a, like a better front camera and double the base storage. The new processor is fine, but it doesn’t feel like a game-changer for everyday use. Maybe a slightly beefier processor or faster UFS 3.1 storage would have made this upgrade feel more worthwhile.

That said, I’m not complaining much. The price difference isn’t huge, especially when comparing the 8GB/256GB variants—the Nothing Phone 2a costs ₹25,999, while the Phone 2a Plus comes in at ₹27,999.

So, which one should you buy? It all comes down to your priorities and budget. If saving money is your top priority, stick with the base Nothing Phone 2a. It’s still an excellent value for the price, offering a unique design, clean software, and decent performance.

If you were already considering the 256GB Nothing Phone 2a, the Phone 2a Plus might be worth the slight premium. For not much more money, you’ll get a better selfie camera, a newer processor, and slightly faster charging. The 2a Plus is the better phone, even with small differences.

Don’t forget to check out our in-depth Nothing Phone 2a Plus review.