Nothing Phone 2a Plus review: is it really a top, or nonsense with a bright design?

Nothing continues to produce smartphones that attract attention at least visually. For example, we had Nothing Phone review (1). And this time we will talk about the new mid-range device Nothing Phone 2a Plus. The gadget is an updated version of the best-selling Nothing Phone 2a model, and the manufacturer claims that it has improved not only the external style (the famous glyphs have not disappeared) but also the camera performance. In this article, we will take a closer look at the updated smartphone, show you the tests, and tell you about the experience of using it.

Technical specifications of Nothing Phone 2a Plus

Display	6.70 in. 20:9, 2400×1080 pixels. 393 ppi, AMOLED, HDR, 120 Hz
Processor	MediaTek Dimensity 7350 Pro 5G 8×2 – 2.8 GHz, Cortex-A715 / A510
Graphics adapter	ARM Mali-G610 MP4,1300 MHz
Memory	12/256 GB LPDDRx 4 and UFS 3.1
Main camera	Dual, 50+50 megapixels, ultra-wide-angle module, 4K/30 fps
Front camera	50 megapixels, 4K/30 fps
Modules and systems	4G, 5G, Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax), Bluetooth 5.3 and NFC, aGPS, GPS, GLONASS, Galileo
OS	Android 14 / Nothing OS
Protection	YES, IP54
Battery	5000 mAh, fast charging 50 W
Body	Metal, plastic
Dimensions	161.7 × 76.3 × 8.5 mm
Weight	190 grams

Packaging and equipment

Nothing Phone 2a Plus comes in a compact box with stylish designs. To open it, you need to tear off a thin cardboard strip. After that, the box opens from the top and cannot be closed. However, there is another box inside, and it contains the entire set.

Here we see the phone itself with the screen protector already stuck to the screen, a USB-C to USB-C cable, a paper clip to open the SIM card slot, and documentation. Neither the power supply nor the case are included.

Design and ergonomics

Like the company’s previous models, the Nothing Phone 2a Plus looks super stylish, futuristic, and spacey at the same time. Of course, not everyone will like this design, but I really like it, so I think it’s probably the best smartphone design recently.

The body of Nothing Phone 2a Plus is plastic, but the frame is metal and matte, while the back plastic part is glossy. The dimensions of the model are 161.7×76.3×8.5 mm, and it weighs 190 grams.

On the right side we can see the screen lock button, and on the left side there are volume keys. On the bottom are a USB-C port, a speaker, a SIM card slot, and a microphone. There is nothing on the top edge.

On the front panel we see thin, uniform bezels around the screen and a round front camera.

On the back there’s a slightly protruding module with two cameras, and the flash is located on the side and below. We also see branded glyphs around the camera, and below the Nothing inscription. In general, the back panel is transparent, and under the lid you can see the elements of the device, although it is actually a stylized thing that has only a visual function.

The smartphone is IP54 water and dust resistant. This means that this model will survive rain and splashes, but not immersion in water. So be careful.

Nothing Phone 2a Plus is a relatively compact smartphone for modern models and quite lightweight. It also fits perfectly in the palm of your hand, and its body does not slip in your hand at all. Thanks to the matte finish, no scratches, dust, or traces of use will be visible here, but they will appear on the back panel over time, but no dust or other traces, at least in this gray-graphite color, are visible.

We have the Always-On Display function, which can be customized in detail. There is a choice of display colors («Live» or «Standard»), as well as a change in color temperature.

The refresh rate can be changed from 60 to 120 Hz. Three modes are available to the user: Dynamic, High, and Standard. I chose the first one, and it switches between frequencies by itself, keeping a balance between an adequate refresh rate and battery saving.

The screen of Nothing Phone 2a Plus is bright and has rich colors. In general, this is one of the big advantages of the model because the picture does not deteriorate even at angles, and its brightness is more than enough to use outdoors in direct sunlight. Indoors, I didn’t raise the brightness above 70% at all. At least it was enough for me.

Of course, the claimed 1300 nits cannot be compared with the 2000+ nits of flagships (and not all of them), but we are talking about a different category of smartphones here. Therefore, everything is fine with the brightness and the screen.

Glyphs

Nothing Phone 2a Plus has a proprietary Glyph Interface. However, in this model, the glyphs do not run along the entire back panel, but are concentrated only around the camera. Glyphs not only distinguish the smartphone from many other competitors, but also have a functional character. At least in theory, it is useful.

The main task of glyphs is to notify the user about calls, messages, etc. The flashing options of the glyphs allow you to use them for various scenarios, from calling a specific phone number to turning on reverse charging, repeating a melody by flashing, etc.

In addition to light signals, sound signals can be customized in Glyph Interface. In general, a separate menu item has been created for glyphs, which has a wide variety of settings.

The Glyph Interface is an unusual and stylish feature of this and other smartphones from the company. However, I still have doubts about their effectiveness and usability. For example, in order to use glyphs to the fullest, you need not only to put the device face down, but also to learn how to distinguish between flashes, memorize certain flashes, and so on. In other words, it requires not only getting used to it, but also learning. Not everyone will want to do this, but if they do, it will be very convenient.

But you should be prepared for the fact that after buying the device, you will use this particular feature of the model the least, or even turn it off altogether over time. Or it will be there flashing in the background, but you won’t pay attention to it.

Sound and vibration response

Nothing Phone 2a Plus has stereo sound in the speaker + earpiece format. The sound is loud and not hoarse, which is good. You can even distinguish good high and medium frequencies, but there are no low frequencies at all, although it’s hard to expect anything from tiny speakers in this regard.

The vibration is pleasant and even has two degrees of intensity: low and high. I advise you to turn on the high one, as it is much more noticeable, and you react to it better. And for some reason, I liked the vibration quality better with the high intensity of the vibration motor.

Nothing Phone 2a Plus cameras

Nothing Phone 2a Plus has a dual main camera. The main module here are 50 megapixels (f/1.88) with optical stabilization, and the second is a 50-megapixel ultra-wide-angle sensor (f/2.2) with a viewing angle of 114 degrees.

The main and secondary cameras take high-quality photos. They have adequate dynamic range, although it’s slightly worse in the ultra-wide-angle module, they have good detail, realistic colors, and almost no noise.

However, the second module sometimes displays photos in overexposure, and this often happens randomly for unknown reasons. But in general, the quality of the Nothing Phone 2a Plus cameras pleasantly surprised me. For this price category, we have some of the best photographic capabilities.

The same can be said about the night mode. It turns on automatically and takes good night photos under conditions of more or less available lighting in the frame. I have seen much worse options on more expensive models. Or, for example, Xiaomi 14T, which is an actual competitor to the model and takes worse night photos at a similar price.

The front-facing module is also 50 megapixels (f/2.2) and can shoot 4K video at 30 frames per second. There’s also a good portrait mode and various beauty modes, but you can leave the latter off altogether. The photos are realistic and detailed. And most importantly, the face does not look artificial.

The main cameras can also shoot video in 4K 30fps, and there is also a slow-motion mode of 120fps, but it is only available in 1080p.

Productivity, software, and games

The Nothing Phone 2a Plus is powered by an 8-core Dimensity 7350 Pro processor made using the 4 nm process technology. ARM Mali-G610 MC4 is responsible for graphics. The smartphone has only one version of memory, and it is 12/256 GB in LPDDRx 4 and UFS 3.1 formats. There is no memory card slot, but there is room for two nano-SIMs. The smartphone supports 4G and 5G, but no eSIM, Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax), Bluetooth 5.3 and NFC. Navigation options include aGPS, GPS, GLONASS, Galileo and digital compass.

The novelty has a medium-powered processor, but it is cold and does not lag at all. Yes, it’s not 1,300,000 AnTuTu, like the aforementioned Xiaomi 14T, but the available 778,000 is more than enough to keep the system running fast and run all popular games.

Projects like Wreckfest or COD: Warzone are best set to medium graphics settings to get a nice fps, but most games will run at maximum settings with an adequate frame rate. I also recommend turning on the existing game mode because it improves system performance quite a bit, but it doesn’t heat up the system much at all.

The Nothing Phone 2a Plus runs on Android 14 with the proprietary Nothing OS 2.6 add-on. The manufacturer promises three operating system updates, including Android 17, and four years of security updates.

Fans of Google Pixel smartphones and «clean» Android in general will definitely like the local shell. Because it is minimalistic and unobtrusive, but at the same time has a lot of customization of this Nothing corporate style: from basic icons and tons of wallpapers to creating them by hand with the help of AI.

And all of this allows the system to work efficiently and stably. No glitches, freezes, or slowdowns were noticed during the tests at all. The smartphone flies and works as well as the flagships.

Autonomy of Nothing Phone 2a Plus

Nothing Phone 2a Plus is equipped with a 5000 mAh battery. The smartphone supports 50W fast charging, but remember that there is no bundled power supply. Therefore, the charging speed depends on the PSU you use with the smartphone.

If you have a suitable power supply, the smartphone will charge from 0 to 50% in 21 minutes. And it takes an hour to fully charge. There is no wireless charging.

Nothing Phone 2a Plus performed well in PC Mark battery tests. Its result was 17 hours and 49 minutes, and this is one of the best results in my memory.

Overall, the device has excellent battery life. Its processor is powerful, but not so powerful that it puts a lot of strain on the battery. Therefore, without the active AOD function and with moderate use, you can easily count on a day and a half of work. And if you add games and Always-On Display, it will still give you a full day of work. In my opinion, an excellent result for the available battery.

Experience of using Nothing Phone 2a Plus

Nothing Phone 2a Plus attracts attention with its packaging, but in my opinion, it’s not cool that the first box has to be torn and doesn’t close as usual. But it is what it is.

The smartphone is very stylish and looks cool. I’m talking about the gray-graphite color that’s in the review. I’ve seen its black version, and it’s not as stylish, in my opinion, but still, even it differs significantly from the same type of competitors, as if made in a copy, and definitely attracts attention.

Nothing Phone 2a Plus is a pleasure to hold in your hands. You would rather not cover this smartphone with any case, even a transparent one because it has a stylish look and a tactile body. It’s also good that they decided to make the bezels matte so that traces of use are less visible, and the glossy back panel has nothing but potential scratches.

I liked the bright screen with rich colors. This is a definite plus of the phone. It has a good processor, cool and powerful enough. Yes, it won’t run all the games at maximum settings, but it will run them easily at medium-high settings. Moreover, there is an adequate game mode.

For some people, 256 GB of memory will not be enough, and you can really find fault with it. I’m definitely fine with it, but I know people who have 512 GB, so it’s strange that there are no versions with different memory, and you can’t even insert a microSD card.

I was pleasantly surprised by the cameras, both main and front-facing. For the money, the smartphone can take great photos, which are more than enough for social networks, as well as for narrow use and editing. I also liked the battery life, and the tests of the smartphone in PC Mark were among the best.

I’d also like to mention the system’s performance and the ability to choose the signature Nothing minimalist design. I recommend using it because it is ascetic but stylish at the same time and has many visual settings for the user.

Price and competitors

Nothing Phone 2a Plus is sold at a price from UAH 16,289but these are all gray versions of the smartphone. Because it is sold officially in «Allo» and there the price tag is 19999 UAH. In my opinion, this is an adequate price for all the features that the smartphone offers. It has enough competitors in this segment, but the model has something to surprise.

If you’re looking for something similar in style and versatile, then there areXiaomi 14T with a significantly more powerful processor and full IP68 water protection. Samsung Galaxy A55 with a price tag of UAH 15,200, as well as a time-tested sub-flagship Samsung Galaxy S23 FE. You should also pay attention toGoogle Pixel 8a (price from UAH 16,900) and on Motorola Edge 50 with a price tag starting at UAH 16,900. If you’re looking for a phone for mobile gaming, then it’s better to look atrealme GT 6T (price from UAH 17,500) orPoco F6 Pro with a price tag of UAH 18,400.

Дякуємо мережі магазинів «Алло» за наданий на огляд смартфон Nothing Phone 2a Plus.