With Phone 1, the upstart tech brand Nothing demonstrated its ability to rival established players in terms of price and performance while injecting excitement with unique features like Glyph lighting. It was one of last year’s standout mid-range smartphones and would have likely been a success even without founder Carl Pei’s talent for generating pre-launch buzz. And yet, Nothing Phone 2 in Dubai, has generated even more anticipation among gadget enthusiasts for its sequel.

While not a direct successor, it doesn’t fall into the category of a full-fledged flagship either. However, the internals have been upgraded, the screen size increased, charging speeds accelerated, and battery capacity enhanced. The NothingOS Android interface has also undergone significant improvements. Furthermore, Nothing has identified a price range that cleverly avoids direct competition and customers in the US will have access to it right from the launch. These factors easily position it as one of the most eagerly awaited releases 2023. The question remains: Will it also rank among the best?

Design and Built of Nothing Phone 2 in UAE:

Nothing Phone 2 represents a clear evolution from Phone 1, retaining the angular aluminum frame while introducing a 2.5D curved glass back panel. This design change enhances its aesthetics and improves ergonomics, making it more comfortable to hold despite the substantial increase in screen size to 6.7 inches. The rear glass is remarkably sturdy with no flex, giving Nothing Phone 2 a solid feel that addresses the slight hollowness of Phone 1.

Additionally, it boasts an IP54 dust and water resistance rating, although it falls slightly behind Google and a few other competitors. The display is protected by Gorilla Glass, ensuring minimal scratches and scrapes, although Nothing has not specified the exact version used.

Naturally, the iconic see-through styling returns, accompanied by the Glyph lights. The new Dark Grey color option accentuates the finer details even more than the Black model of the original phone, and a more striking white variant is also available.

The overall layout remains familiar, but the glyphs have received significant upgrades, now featuring 33 LEDs compared to the previous 12. They are now brighter and offer an auto mode that adjusts their intensity for nighttime use. The animations and effects have been enhanced, allowing the longer light strips surrounding the wireless charging coil to countdown alongside timers or illuminate as the phone’s ringer volume increases. The glyphs continue to animate to indicate charging status, flash for incoming notifications, and serve as a fill light for the rear cameras. Of course, if these features don’t appeal to you, the software provides a simple way to disable them. However, where’s the fun in that?

Nothing’s attention to detail is exceptional throughout. The included USB-C cable and SIM tray eject tool have been given transparent makeovers to match the phone’s aesthetic. Moreover, Nothing Phone 2 incorporates more recycled materials and avoids plastic in its packaging, demonstrating a commitment to sustainability. The under-display fingerprint sensor is positioned near the phone’s bottom edge and offers excellent accuracy in detecting fingerprints.

Screen and Sound of Nothing Phone 2

Nothing Phone 2 features a 6.7-inch OLED panel, which may sound significantly larger than the 6.55-inch display of its predecessor, but in reality, the difference is minimal. It has yet to do an excellent job of slimming down the screen bezels, allowing for more screen real estate without increasing the overall size. The 2412×1080 resolution is on par with most mainstream models and provides a sharp and satisfying viewing experience for Full HD videos.

Unlike Phone 1, which requires users to choose between 60Hz and 120Hz refresh rates, Nothing Phone 2 introduces a new dynamic mode that automatically switches between the two based on the displayed content. This feature ensures smooth scrolling when needed while optimizing power consumption during other tasks. The LTPO technology minimizes battery drain and responds quickly to on-screen changes. Additionally, the screen brightness has been boosted to an impressive peak of 1600 nits, greatly improving outdoor visibility compared to Phone 1. It rivals flagship phones that cost twice as much and offers fantastic viewing angles.

The OLED panel delivers exceptional contrast and vibrant colors, enhancing the visual impact of still images and HDR10+ videos. While it may not offer the same level of nuance as top-tier models, it is easily comparable to high-end alternatives at slightly higher price points. The color temperature and white balance are well-calibrated out of the box. Still, the Settings screen allows for further customization, including adjusting the temperature and switching to a Standard color mode for a more subdued vibrancy if desired.
In terms of sound, Nothing Phone 2 is equipped with a down-firing main speaker and an earpiece driver primarily responsible for high-end frequencies. This combination produces ample volume, with the main speaker delivering a more prominent presence. However, it’s worth noting that the bass response may be less pronounced. While there is no headphone port, the wireless connectivity options are top-tier, including aptX Adaptive Bluetooth streaming.

Software Experience:

With Nothing Phone 2, Nothing’s custom Android UI, NothingOS 2.0, has reached a significant milestone. It embraces custom icons and widgets, allowing users to add them to the always-on display to access information and shortcuts quickly.

The UI features oversized folders and a dark color scheme, providing a unique aesthetic without venturing too far into the realm of heavy customization that plagued early Android phones. Notably, it works seamlessly with popular apps like Facebook, Instagram, and Google Podcasts, which may need to integrate better with Android’s default Material You theming. While locating specific apps in the monochrome app drawer can be challenging, organizing favorite apps into dedicated home screen folders makes practical sense.

The ability to turn quick settings toggles into home screen shortcuts is a neat feature, and including more diverse weather and clock widgets is a welcome addition. However, it would be great to see Nothing expand further by introducing calendar and to-do list widgets that sync with Google Calendar and Keep Notes or a now-playing widget that recognizes major streaming apps like Spotify. While you can add a widget to monitor the battery life of your Ear 2 earphones, its design doesn’t align consistently with the rest of the available widgets.

Underneath the customized interface, NothingOS 2.0 is still based on Android 13. It retains the app drawer to house all your applications, offers easy access to the Google Discover feed with a swipe from the home screen, and notably lacks third-party bloatware. Nothing’s native voice recorder returns, along with the Nothing X app for pairing Ear 1, Ear 2, and Ear Stick earphones. Additionally, thnew Glyph composer app dewas veloped with input from the daSwedish House Mafia dance groupWhile it’s enjoyable to experiment with and allows you to share your creations with friends, it remains fairly basic, lacking features such as audio layering or the ability to import custom sound effects.

Performance and Battery Life of Nothing Phone 2 in UAE:

Although the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 CPU in Phone 2 is a generation behind, it still offers flagship-level performance at a considerably lower price than high-end competitors. Qualcomm has addressed the heat and power consumption issues that affected the original iteration, resulting in only a minor performance drop-off compared to rival handsets.

Nothing Phone 2 demonstrates significantly improved app opening speeds compared to Phone 1, handles multitasking without slowdowns, and never feels sluggish during usage. With 12GB of RAM and 256GB of storage (an 8GB/128GB base model is also available), Phone 2 offers more than enough power and storage for a better-than-midrange device. The tested mid-range version with 12GB/256GB is worth the extra investment, although the 12GB/512GB model at a higher price point may appeal to users who require ample storage space.

While newer CPUs offer better gaming performance, Phone 2 can comfortably handle demanding titles, albeit with some detail settings dialed back for consistent smoothness. Games like Diablo Immortal can run at 60fps, and while few games fully utilize the 120Hz display, rivals with newer CPUs have a better chance of delivering higher frame rates.

The 4700mAh battery in Phone 2 is a modest improvement over the 4500mAh cell in Phone 1, but any increase is welcome, considering the larger screen and more powerful processor. Even with heavy use, it lasts a full day, including social media scrolling, gaming, photography, music streaming over Bluetooth, and video watching. Standby battery drain is excellent as well. Phone 2 outperforms the Google Pixel 7 in terms of battery life.

Charging speeds are decent, with a maximum of 45W over USB-C and 15W Qi wireless charging support. However, it’s important to note that Nothing does not include a power brick in the box, so you’ll need to provide your own. Phone 2 also offers reverse wireless charging, allowing you to wirelessly charge smaller devices like Nothing’s Ear 2 wireless earphones.

Camera of Nothing Phone 2:

While Nothing Phone 2 has the same pixel count as Phone 1, Nothing has significantly improved the main camera. It now features a brand new Sony IMX890 sensor with a 50MP resolution. The camera combines an f/1.88 aperture lens, phase-detect autofocus, and optical image stabilization. By default, photos are downsampled to 12MP, but there’s a 50MP toggle in the camera app’s settings to utilize the full surface area of the sensor. Additionally, there’s a 2x toggle that combines sensor cropping and algorithms for a less-lossy zoom.
Phone 2 also includes a 50MP, f/2.2 ultrawide camera, which uses the same Samsung JN1 sensor in Phone 1. It offers a wide 114-degree field of view and a 4cm focus distance, allowing it to function as a macro lens for close-up shots. Both cameras benefit from a year’s image processing improvements, including an HDR mode that captures eight separate exposures per shot, an upgrade from the three exposures on the previous phone.

The main camera captures vibrant, detailed, and well-exposed photos with minimal image noise in well-lit scenes. Colors are slightly more punchy than the Google Pixel 7, featuring richer greens and reds, although they remain visually pleasing. The dynamic range is very good, though not quite at the level of current class-leading smartphones. In portrait mode, there may be instances where the camera leans towards overexposure.
Regarding overall image sharpness and clarity, Nothing Phone 2 falls slightly behind Google Pixel 7 and 7a, which have set new standards for affordable phones. However, the difference is minimal, and Nothing Phone 2 exhibits more nuance in its photos than Phone 1.

Conclusion:

Nothing Phone 2 maintains the distinctive design and value for money that its debut smartphone had. While there are only minor tweaks to the styling, the pricing has been pushed slightly upmarket. However, Nothing Phone 2 surpasses the higher bar with ease. It offers a well-rounded experience, delivering ample power, long-lasting battery life, and cameras that capture impressive photos considering the price point. The Glyph lighting is no longer just a novelty, and the redesigned UI feels more cohesive.

The increased performance, sleeker build, and larger screen justify the cost increase over Phone 1 while still keeping it below true flagship territory. It fits smartly among mainstream competitors, coming in at a lower price than the Google Pixel 7 in the UAE.

If you prioritize vanilla Android and the best cameras available, The Pixel is the way to go. However, for everything else, Nothing Phone 2 is a strong contender in Dubai, UAE . Its pocket presence sets it apart from other mid-range smartphones.