Nothing Phone 4a review: Making phones fun again

Of the hundreds of phone models released every year, flagships are usually the ones we tend to give most of our attention. After all, they’re the ones that get all the exciting new innovations, more powerful processors and more advanced cameras. It’s not often that a mid-range phone gets the same sort of hype as a premium device from Samsung or OPPO, but then Nothing has always been a little different.

The Nothing Phone 4a may be less than half the price of the flagship Nothing Phone 3, but you wouldn’t know it. In fact, the brand’s latest mid-range entry encapsulates the Nothing experience so well, it’s no surprise that Nothing CEO Carl Pei decided against dropping a successor to the Phone 3 this year. After all, when the mid-range model is this good, who needs a flagship?

The Nothing Phone 4a hasn’t deviated far from the transparent, early 2000s tech-inspired design we’ve come to expect from the brand. There’s still exposed hardware aplenty, a pill-shaped camera bar and, of course, glyphs. That said, this year Nothing has swapped the circular light bars found on the Phone 3a for a more minimalist glyph bar, comprised of 63 mini LEDs spread out across six square segments. It’s not quite as flashy (and I mean that literally) as its predecessor, but it’s still just as useful for keeping you apprised of notifications and tracking timers without needing to be glued to your phone.

Chances are, if you’re in the market for a Nothing Phone, that’s probably because of just how damn cool they look. If that’s the case, the Phone 4a won’t let you down. In addition to the black, white, and blue colourways of the Phone 3a, this year we also get a muted pink hue. I’d even argue that it looks better than the pricier (and slightly more bonkers-looking) Phone 4a Pro, which swaps out that iconic transparent back for a more standard metal finish.

All of the Nothing Phone 4a’s design changes this year feel considered and practical. Take the relocated Essential Space button, for example. On the Phone 3a, it was annoyingly located right below the power button, but on the Phone 4a it’s been moved to the left side of the device, making it much harder to trigger accidentally.

The display is a smidge larger at 6.78 inches (compared to the 6.77 inches of the Phone 3a) and also boasts a higher resolution and significantly higher brightness (4,500 nits compared to 3,000 nits). Once again you’ve got a 120Hz refresh rate for buttery-smooth scrolling, but upgrading to the Nothing Phone 4a Pro will get you a beefed-up 144Hz refresh rate, along with a bigger display and slightly higher brightness.

As for the water and dust resistance rating, the Nothing Phone 4a remains the same at IP64, however Nothing has swapped the Phone 3a’s Panda Glass for the superior, more drop-resistant Gorilla Glass. They’ve also thrown a clear case in the box that provides a decent amount of protection while still allowing you to show off the phone’s unique design and glyph bar.

One of the biggest changes to the Nothing Phone 4a comes in the form of camera improvements. Although the Phone 4a keeps the same 50MP main lens and 8MP ultrawide lens found on the Phone 3a, the 50MP telescope lens has been swapped out for a 50MP periscope lens that’s capable of 3.5x optical zoom, 7x in-sensor zoom and 70x ultra zoom.

This new periscope lens is genuinely impressive, capturing crisp detail up to about 15x zoom, realistically. Crank that up to 70 and the results are significantly less impressive, but it’s still far beyond what most mid-range phone cameras can do.

When I tested the Nothing Phone 3a last year, I found the camera to be capable but with some struggles in low-light conditions and with moving subjects. Fortunately, the Phone 4a has gone a long way to rectify some of these issues, managing to capture my very fast-moving pup during a trip to the beach without resulting in a blurry mess. In low light conditions, the cameras struggle to focus on up-close subjects, but the photos are fine enough. If you’re someone who takes a lot of night shots, consider upgrading to the Phone 4a Pro, which has a larger main sensor, allowing it to let in more light.

With the RAM shortage driving prices for just about every electronic upwards, mid-range phones will only become more popular. Fortunately, if you’re considering “downgrading” from an older flagship iPhone or Samsung Galaxy to the Nothing Phone 4a, unless you’re planning on editing 8K video or playing AAA games, it won’t feel like that much of a downgrade. The Snapdragon 7s Gen 4 that powers the Phone 4a is more than zippy enough to handle all your usual day-to-day tasks and casual gaming.

It helps that Nothing OS is pretty lean as far as custom Android UIs go. It’s actually my favourite, after stock Android, with a distinct, minimalist design philosophy and no preinstalled bloatware.

One feature that does come preinstalled (and with its own aforementioned buttoned) is the Essential Space. Unlike most smartphone brands, Nothing isn’t trying to shove AI into every little nook and cranny. Instead, it has the Essential Space, where you can collate screenshots, voice memos, and more. When it debuted on the Phone 3a, it felt like more of a nuisance than a feature, mostly due to the Essential Key’s annoying placement. This time around, it’s grown on me a little. I like the idea of having a central location where I can dump things I find around the internet, add some context, and revisit them later.

The Nothing Phone 4a is set to get three years of software updates and five years of security updates, which is decent for a mid-range device but could be better. For reference, its closest Samsung competitor (the A56) gets six years of both software and security updates.

This year, the battery is marginally larger (5,050mAh vs 5,000mAh on the Phone 3a), but it doesn’t make a noticeable difference. That’s not a bad thing, however, as the Phone 3a’s battery was one of its strongest suits, and I’m glad to see it’s been carried over to the Phone 4a, which can last up to two days with lighter use or a full day of moderate to heavy use with a little left over.

Once again, and as expected at this price range, the Nothing Phone 4a does not support wireless charging, however the trusty 50W wired charging is more than speedy enough to get your battery from flat to full in about an hour.