Summary
- Nothing Phone 2a Special Edition offers a unique design with primary colors, limited availability.
- Marketing hype surrounds Nothing’s mid-cycle color refresh with the Phone 2a, focusing on design and aesthetics.
- Nothing Phone 2a Special Edition features the same specs as the regular model, including a MediaTek chipset and Glyph interface lights.
The Nothing Phone 2a is another phone in the sea of mid-range Android devices hoping to make a mark. It tries to do so via interesting design choices, on both the hardware and software levels. If its design wasn’t already unique enough for you, the company has launched a new special edition of the phone that leans deeper into that aesthetic.
Amongst the many things Nothing is known for, its marketing and hype-creation efforts are probably the most well-known. Unsurprisingly, it has opted to resort to a mid-cycle color refresh for its latest smartphone, called the Nothing Phone 2a — a cheaper alternative to the Nothing Phone 2.
Is that mid-cycle color refresh worth it, or is it just a cash grab?
A new color is not news, it’s a new ad
Simply called the Nothing Phone 2a Special Edition, it is essentially a mashup between the black and the white colorways of the phone with specks of red, green, and blue colors on the back. No, this isn’t a gross oversimplification of the description of the new variant. Have a look for yourself in the embedded video below.
All of Nothing’s previous products have been flashy but devoid of color. This isn’t just an observation, it’s something Nothing proudly claimed about the Phone 2a Special Edition during the announcement: “Phone (2a) Special Edition celebrates primary colors and their place within Nothing’s brand identity. This new smartphone is the first time that all three colors have been used in one piece of Nothing hardware”. A few weeks back, a community design competition was hosted, but it seems like the winner wasn’t picked for this special edition.
The Nothing Phone 2a Special Edition was available on the company’s website, but has since sold out. It may still be possible to get the new variant from one of Nothing’s retail partners such as Flipkart in India, which also gets the exclusive dark blue color. The Special Edition model will come in a single configuration — 12GB RAM + 256GB storage at £349/₹27,999/€379. There will be no availability in the US and Canada, but Londoners can pick one up from the Nothing Store in Soho, starting June 1.
The Nothing Phone 2a only makes sense in a world without the OnePlus 12R
When sheer performance meets a fashion-first line of thinking
There is no mention of any special wallpapers or UI elements, so it could be the case that the colors are limited to the back of the phone. Even the specifications and features are identical to the regular Nothing Phone 2a. They include a MediaTek Dimensity 7200 SoC, 6.7-inch 120Hz AMOLED screen, dual 50MP cameras on the rear, a 5,000mAh battery with support for 45W fast charging, and the brand’s iconic Glyph Interface lights that shine through the back panel. It is also one of the first phones to gain access to Android 15 beta.
Nothing Phone 2a
The Nothing Phone 2a is the company’s play in the affordable smartphone space. It has the same Glyph interface that makes the Nothing Phone 1 and Phone 2 popular choices. Pared down to just three lights, it can still perform the essentials like reacting to notifications or inform you of incoming calls. Elsewhere, there’s a spanking new MediaTek chipset that smoothly handles all day-to-day tasks. The dual 50MP sensors, however, don’t quite live up to the promise.
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