Nothing Chinese smartphone brand OnePlus co-founder Carl Pei is back with a new handset — only this time it’s with a different company, literally called Nothing. Pei’s oddly-named startup officially debuted its smartphone on Tuesday, after months of dropping hints and teasers for the device’s appearance. Called Phone 1, it is the second product launch from the company to date. Based in London, Nothing was founded by Pei in 2020. The company launched its first gadget last summer, a set of wireless headphones called the Ear 1, and has sold 560,000 units so far. At first glance, the Phone 1 is similar to Apple’s latest iPhones. The phone has a dual camera setup with two 50-megapixel sensors and 5G cellular connectivity, along with typical hardware you’d find in a mid-range smartphone, like Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 778G+ chipset.
Strong design
The most interesting thing about the Phone 1 is its design. The phone has a transparent back that shows a unique pattern of shapes and lines or “glyphs”. The company says it was inspired by a modernist version of the New York subway map by Italian designer Massimo Vignelli in the 1970s. Another oddity about the phone is that it lights up—literally—when you get a call or an app notification. The device is equipped with 900 small LEDs that blink intermittently along with a series of robotic-sounding ringtones when you receive a call from someone. There’s also a feature called “Flip to Glyph,” which turns the phone off when you flip it face down, showing only the flashing lights when you get a call or a notification. In an interview with CNBC last year, Pei described Nothing’s product design as “retro-futuristic,” drawing inspiration from many themes, from old Sony products to luxury fashion designs. The Chinese-Swedish tech entrepreneur said he believes modern hardware is “cold” and that “innovation has slowed down a lot” at Apple, which changed the world with the launch of the first iPhone in 2007.
Price and availability
Aside from some quirks and niche design features, the Phone 1 doesn’t separate anything from most typical mid-range smartphones. The most attractive part of the device is its price. The Phone 1 starts at £399 ($473) for a base model with 128GB of internal memory, making it cheaper than the latest flagships from Apple and Samsung. Instead of trying to disrupt the smartphone industry by focusing on foldable screens or 5G, Pei is relying on a strategy she incorporated at OnePlus — building hype from some unorthodox marketing and sales tactics. Nothing will initially launch the Phone 1 at a kiosk in London’s West End from July 16 to July 20, before going on sale to the wider public online on July 21 and at select retailers and mobile operators. It will be available in more than 40 countries, including the U.K., Japan, and across Europe — but not in the U.S. Nothing says it’s looking for a carrier partner so it can start selling the device to U.S. customers.
Tough competition
Pei’s new handset will face some tough competition. Together, Apple and Samsung have a 40% share of the smartphone market. And smaller Chinese phone makers such as Xiaomi and Oppo have gained significant ground in Europe. Ben Wood, chief analyst at CCS Insight, said making the Nothing Phone 1 launch a success would be a “huge challenge”. “The smartphone market is fiercely competitive and dominated by Apple and Samsung who have incredible resources,” Wood said via email. “The rest of the steerable market is a battle between several Chinese manufacturers desperate for share, making it even more difficult for a new entrant to break into the segment.” Smartphone shipments are projected to decline by 3.5% in 2022, according to IDC data. The market faces multiple headwinds, including a squeeze in the cost of living and an ongoing global parts shortage. Being a small, privately held start-up, Nothing doesn’t have the kind of cash the likes of Apple and Samsung can set aside to bolster their supply chains and keep international shipments flowing. However, the company has some notable investors behind it. The company has raised a total of $150 million to date from backers including iPod creator Tony Fadell and GV, the venture arm of Google parent Alphabet. More than 200,000 people have signed up to a waiting list to pre-order the phone, according to the company. Some have even bid north of $3,000 for the first 100 units on the StockX e-commerce platform.
