The Nothing Phone (3) is around the corner, and leaks are at an all-time high. It’s perhaps the most awaited and controversial phone in a long time. As Carl Pei claims, it’s a “true flagship” from the company, although the confirmed specs seem to indicate otherwise. That being said, it will also be the most expensive phone from Nothing. Here are 6 things on our wishlist we want to see in the Nothing Phone (3).
Note: Nothing is set to take place on July 1st, 1800 BST time in London.
Nothing Phone (3) Wishlist: 6 Things I am Looking Forward To
1. New AI Features And Customizable Essential Key
Earlier this year, Nothing hopped onto the AI bandwagon with its Phone (3a) series. The company introduced a new Essential Key to access the Essential Space, a dedicated AI hub. While the feature seemed useful at first, it is more of a novelty now. The company needs to expand beyond the idea of a note-taking hub. There needs to be more useful and system-wide integration of AI features rather than a fancy trick. For example, we would love to see Nothing partner with Perplexity to create a new system-wide assistant that works across apps.
For starters, Nothing could borrow something from the likes of MotoAI by offering a comprehensive bucket of AI features. Also, if Nothing wants to become the Apple of Android, why not make Essential customizable just like the Action Button? Even OnePlus realizes and offers a customizable Plus Key. Users will be able to set the Essential Key to launch the camera, silence the phone, or launch any other app of their choice.
2. Camera Collaboration and Optimization
The Phone (3) is expected to fix one of the major shortcomings of previous Nothing Phones: the camera. The company has confirmed that the Phone (3) will sport a 50MP periscope lens, which was missing on the previous models. However, Nothing needs to go one step further and optimize the camera hardware. Take the Phone (3a) series, for instance; it has great hardware, but the camera is inconsistent due to a lack of software optimization.
If the company cannot tune the camera hardware, maybe it should do what OnePlus, Xiaomi, Oppo, and Vivo have been doing for years. With OnePlus’s partnership with Hasselblad set to expire this year, Nothing has a chance to collaborate with a major camera giant to optimize cameras. This will help them leverage the best of their existing hardware by getting the color science right. Even if Nothing doesn’t end up collaborating with a camera company, it can follow in Motorola’s footsteps, listen to user feedback, and improve the camera output.
3. Glyph Matrix Support in Third-Party Apps
Nothing has killed the Glyph Lighting, its highlighting feature with the Phone (3). The company is opting for a Glyph Matrix, a dot matrix pattern similar to the ASUS ROG phone lineup. The good thing is that these Glyph Matrix lights will offer way more customization options compared to the Glyph Lights. Since it’s basically like a second screen, users will be able to see more info, such as the notification details, weather details, etc. Users could even play games, set timers, get waveform patterns when playing music, charging percentage, and more.
But Nothing needs to get the fundamentals right this time. It needs to collaborate with developers to take advantage of Glyph Matrix and open the API. Despite making six phones with Glyph Lights, there hasn’t been much progress except for three third-party apps supporting it. If Nothing wants Glyph to take off in the same way as Apple’s Dynamic Island, it needs to work with developers and incentivize them. And for the sake of users and community alone, it needs to stick with the concept of Glyph Matrix at least for the foreseeable future. If developers don’t see a future for the platform, then they have no reason to integrate Glyph Matrix in the first place.
4. Silicon Carbon Battery And Qi-2 Charging
Unlike other Chinese and even Korean manufacturers, Nothing has been a bit conservative on the battery front. Smartphones with 6,000 and 7,000mAh batteries are becoming the norm these days. Phone (3) needs to catch up. Leaks suggest a 5,150mAh battery, which is decent but nowhere close to the competition. One of the must-haves on my Nothing Phone (3) wishlist is at least a 6,000mAh Silicon Carbon battery. This will help make the phone slimmer while packing a bigger battery.
Even if Nothing ends up going for a traditional Lithium-Ion, it needs to optimize it until the very last drop. A well-optimized battery can always outperform a bigger but unoptimized battery. The Phone (3) will support 100W wired and 15W wireless charging, which is great. But Nothing needs to go one step further and add Qi-2 support if it wants to compete with Apple and Samsung. And I mean proper Qi-2 support without the need for an external case. It should work just like MagSafe on iPhone. Since there are no Glyph LEDs this time, the company has no excuse to compromise on the feature.
5. Better Multimedia Experience
What’s a good phone if you can’t consume content on it? The Phone (3) is said to pack a 6.67-inch Full-HD+ panel, which is the same as Phone (2) from two years ago. Nothing should have opted for at least a 1.5K panel given its expected $899 price tag. Hopefully, the screen will be brighter this time with support for Dolby Vision.
And given the mediocre speakers on the Phone (2), it’s only natural to expect good stereo speakers with Dolby Atmos. Nothing is collaborating with KEF for the Nothing Headphone (1), its first pair of headphones. KEF is a company known for making good speakers, so hopefully we will see of their expertise in the Phone (3)’s audio output.
6 . Compatibility And Better Availability In The US
Last but not least in my Nothing Phone (3) wishlist is better compatibility with US carriers, since Carl Pei has promised that the Phone (3) will be launching in the US. This will mark Nothing’s return after two years, since most of its budget devices were only available as part of a beta program. Maybe the third time’s the charm, and the Phone (3) could emerge successful in the US.
But for the device to succeed, Nothing needs to nail two things: availability and compatibility with carriers. Not only does the Phone (3) need to be widely available across stores with a robust online and offline presence, but it should also be compatible with all carriers. There should be support for Verizon, and maybe Nothing can tie up for better availability and more aggressive pricing.
And that’s it, folks.
