Nothing Phone (4a) Review: Transparent temptation

Finest Costs At present: Nothing Cellphone (4a)

Whereas it’s the flagship telephones that the majority followers look to because the guiding mild in an organization’s lineup, it’s typically the mid-range entries that actually carry probably the most weight and shift probably the most items. Final yr’s award-winning Nothing Cellphone (3a) collection proved an enormous success for the model, as a number of the most refined and well-balanced entries of their class, while nonetheless being unapologetically Nothing.

Quick-forward to the beginning of 2026, and Nothing CEO Carl Pei used his opening deal with to not solely proclaim that the corporate is now prepared to maneuver into “part two,” however that we gained’t be seeing one other Nothing flagship this yr, inserting much more significance on the success of the corporate’s subsequent mid-range choices.

Cue the Nothing Cellphone (4a), the model’s new baseline mid-ranger and a tool that serves to not solely proceed the success established by the earlier generations of A-series telephones, however marks the primary entry to launch on this new period for Nothing.

The query is, does the Cellphone (4a) greatest showcase the place Nothing claims it’s headed, or does it spend an excessive amount of time merely iterating on the previous?

Design & Construct

• New Important Key placement and Glyph Bar 
• Harder Gorilla Glass 7i
• New colourways

Visually, the Cellphone (4a) continues the design narrative first established with 2024’s Cellphone (2a), most obvious with the horizontal rear digital camera bar that – like final yr’s mannequin – performs host to a trio of rear sensors.

The largest visible shift is the digital camera module’s migration upward, now accented by a pill-shaped aluminium ingredient that resembles a working monitor, slightly than the round association that outlined the look of the Cellphone (3a)’s rear.

However this variation is greater than a beauty transforming round a brand new key form. The Cellphone (4a) additionally marks the tip of Nothing’s Glyph Mild configuration, as we’ve recognized it for the reason that authentic Nothing Cellphone (1), right here changed by the brand new Glyph Bar.

I might have assumed Nothing’s subsequent A-series telephones have been going to go all-in on the round Glyph Matrix launched on its newest flagship – the Cellphone (3) – however that seems to have solely been reserved for the (4a) Professional. The (4a)’s Glyph Bar is extra a reimagining of the established Glyph Lights; packing the same diploma of knowledge density right into a smaller, linear array.

A single bar of six white LEDs (plus a purple recording mild LED – a trait lifted straight from Nothing’s flagship) can pulse or animate simply because the Cellphone (3a)’s Glyph Lights did. I wouldn’t say it’s inherently higher or worse than the earlier implementation, simply… completely different.

Foundry | Alex Walker-Todd

The one notable new performance it brings is help for Stay Notifications, (constructed on prime of Android 16’s native Stay Updates function), providing you with a glanceable progress bar when paired with real-time actions on supported apps, like Uber, Google Calendar, Zomato, Simply Eat, and Google Maps, nevertheless, I by no means discovered an app expertise that really used this function in my time testing the cellphone. Nothing says extra suitable apps are coming down the pipeline, although, which could help its utility.

The Glyph Bar is extra understated and unassuming on the Cellphone (4a)’s distinctive clear again, however alternatively, it’s as much as 40% brighter than Cellphone (3a)’s Glyph Lights, making incoming notifications simpler to identify when your cellphone is throughout the room, face down.

As for Stay Notifications by way of the Glyph Bar, while it’s appreciated that Nothing has taken the time to combine its bespoke {hardware} with a local a part of the most recent main Android launch, I query simply how a lot of a bonus this implementation affords over Stay Updates, as they seem on the All the time-On Shows of different supported Android 16 telephones.

Foundry | Alex Walker-Todd

The Cellphone (3a) Collection gave us our first style of Nothing’s Important Area, and with it the Important Key. The primary downside with this new button, nevertheless, was placement; maybe overestimating how important customers would possibly really discover the Important Key. As such, its location and design have been too near the facility button, set low on the proper aspect of the cellphone’s body.

Cellphone (4a) Collection addresses this by shifting the metallic quantity up/down keys to the proper aspect of the body, above the facility key, and relegating the Important Key to the higher portion of the left aspect of the cellphone as an alternative. Proper-handed customers, specifically, will possible recognize this variation, and in apply, the Important Key stays simply accessible, while working far much less of a danger of being activated unintentionally.

Elsewhere, the Cellphone (4a), in fact, sports activities the model’s signature transparent-backed design, with toughened Panda Glass defending varied floor finishes and kinds, which add curiosity over the swathes of flat, uniform designs in any other case on the market. Some parts are genuinely practical too, just like the metal-covered speaker unit within the backside left, which is a pleasant contact.

A small however welcome improve that the Cellphone (4a) affords over each different entry in Nothing’s portfolio to this point is a bigger alternative of colourways than ever earlier than. What’s extra, there’s no regional exclusivity this time, as was the case with final yr’s India-only blue Cellphone (3a) Lite, and the Rakuten Cell purple model in Japan.

Identical to the Cellphone (3a), the (4a) is available in black, white and blue, however there’s additionally a brand new pink choice (harking back to raspberry yogurt), which I believe has the largest potential to show heads. It sports activities the identical diploma of textural and tonal color variation as the opposite fashions, granting the design a lovely quantity of depth and curiosity, and I’m all the time for extra decisions of end; particularly when – like this – it’s performed so tastefully, whereas remaining true to Nothing’s design DNA.

Within the months I’ve lived with the Cellphone (4a), cosmetically it’s held up completely nicely. The glass again remains to be scuff-free, and regardless of more durable Gorilla Glass 7i on the entrance, solely the pre-fitted plastic display protector has proven any signal of damage (one thing Nothing telephones are extra liable to than most, because the Glyph Interface actively requires that you just place your cellphone face-down, to ensure that it to perform).

Like its predecessor, the Cellphone (4a) makes use of a polycarbonate outer body, which on this occasion feels nice and repels scuffs and scrapes nicely, with solely larger impacts prone to take chunks out of the fabric. The one actual downside is that – in comparison with its most like-minded rivals – the Cellphone (4a)’s kind is usually a bit thicker and heavier, one thing the thinner metal-bodied type of the pricier Cellphone (4a) Professional seems to be to deal with.

The identical IP64-certified mud and water resistance as its predecessor, whereas nonetheless spectacular for a transparent-backed cellphone, feels prefer it’s beginning to lag behind opponents from the likes of OnePlus, Xiaomi and past, who all now provide mid-rangers with as soon as flagship-exclusive IP68 and even IP69-certified safety.

Nothing does now state that its newest cellphone is examined to resist being submerged in as much as 25cm of water, for as much as 20 minutes, although.

Display screen & Audio system

• 6.78-inch AMOLED show
• In-display optical fingerprint sensor
• Stereo audio system

Though the Cellphone (4a) is barely marginally bigger than its predecessor, it’s considerably sharper, because of a lift from Full HD+ to a 1.5K decision, granting it one of many clearest screens in its class, set inside pleasingly uniform bezels too.

Whereas nonetheless counting on LTPS expertise means it will probably’t shift its refresh fee as dynamically (or as energy effectively) as most flagship cellphone screens, you’re handled to super-smooth 120Hz visuals more often than not, from swiping across the UI to nearly all of Nothing’s first-party apps (in addition to quite a few widespread third-party apps too).

Foundry | Alex Walker-Todd

Nothing’s engineers have additionally upped the ante on touch-response fee, boosting from 480- to 2,500Hz when gaming (its predecessor topped out at 1,000Hz), which implies your inputs register that a lot faster; ideally suited for first-person shooters, for instance.

Essentially the most significant technical improve, nevertheless, comes with brightness. A brand new 4500-nit peak (up from 3000nits) will not be best-in-class, however it’s nonetheless wonderful for having fun with HDR content material, and even brighter than the highest iPhone, Pixel and Samsung flagships proper now. It’s the raised panel-wide 1600-nit brightness ceiling that makes for a extra tangible improve within the day-to-day, granting even higher visibility outside, towards shiny daylight.

The Cellphone (3a) collection already delivered a good viewing expertise, however the enhancements throughout all of the core aspects of the (4a)’s show warrant much more kudos. It solely actually falls wanting Xiaomi’s current Redmi Be aware 15 Professional and Professional+ rivals, each of which supply higher color depth (12-bit, as an alternative of 10-bit) and Dolby Imaginative and prescient help, for across the similar cash.

Foundry | Alex Walker-Todd

I’d even have cherished the – admittedly dependable and responsive – in-display fingerprint sensor to take a seat a bit greater from the underside bezel; nevertheless, the optical tech (rather than smaller, extra superior, pricier ultrasonic expertise) means house behind the show is fairly restricted, forcing most telephones to take a seat these sensors as little as potential.

As for audio output, the Cellphone (4a) will get decently loud and, most significantly, doesn’t endure from distortion, even at most quantity. Even better output would nonetheless be appreciated, although. Although mids and highs provide depth and readability (plus nice stereo separation), bass response is decidedly weak.

Specs & Efficiency

• Qualcomm Snapdragon 7s Gen 4 SoC
• First A-series cellphone with quicker UFS 3.1 storage
• LPDDR4X RAM, USB 2.0

Though efficiency is seldom on the prime of Nothing’s checklist, the well timed Snapdragon 7s Gen 4 is well-equipped to deal with every day use and even high-fidelity gaming, with out problem.

On paper, there aren’t enormous beneficial properties available over the Cellphone (3a) Collection’ 7s Gen 3 silicon, however players specifically will welcome a cited 10% increase to GPU efficiency, particularly when taking part in demanding titles, like BGMI and CoD: Cell.

Foundry | Alex Walker-Todd

In reality, alongside that elevated contact response fee, Nothing has tuned efficiency in choose video games – like the 2 above – which means 120fps gameplay is on the desk for Battlegrounds Cell India, and as much as 90fps gameplay in Name of Obligation. No phrase but on which different video games will profit from such optimisations.

In testing, the Cellphone (4a) had no qualms delivering 30-minute classes in Name of Obligation: Cell at a rock-solid 90fps, paired with that on the spot contact response fee. The one time efficiency dipped was when swimming in water, at which level body fee appeared to cap at 60, at the very least till I used to be again on dry land.

In reality, the one noticeable efficiency dips got here from opening high-intensity apps, just like the above video games and the Digicam app. Every thing else felt quick, fluid and persistently responsive; one thing some similarly-specced rivals extra readily struggled to ship (right here’s taking a look at you, Xiaomi).

Nothing Cellphone (4a) benchmarks

The extra vital {hardware} change between generations is the transfer from UFS 2.2 to UFS 3.1 storage. It was one of many weaker parts of the final technology of A-series telephones, a lot in order that Nothing reps pre-emptively wrote an article on their boards, justifying the selection.

This implies sequential learn speeds which can be nearly 2.5x quicker, and sequential write speeds nearly 5x quicker than the storage on the Cellphone (3a).

That additionally has a constructive knock-on impact with the cellphone’s RAM Booster function, which means even quicker multitasking and the like, for those who determine to reallocate as much as 8GB of the cellphone’s storage as further reminiscence (which means as much as 20GB of RAM whole, on the higher-specced variant of this cellphone).

The actual-world advantages this extra superior storage brings to the desk embody quicker app load instances, much less UI lag, quicker file transfers, higher thermal administration and fewer battery drain; so wins throughout. The (4a) additionally comes with 8 or 12GB of LPDDR4X RAM (I examined the highest 12/256GB model on this overview), whereas the Professional mannequin boasts quicker and extra power-efficient LPDDR5X RAM.

As nice because the Cellphone (4a)’s show is for having fun with media, like virtually each different mid-ranger, the cellphone’s USB port can nonetheless solely pull by means of USB 2.0 speeds, which means giant native file transfers (like high-res motion pictures) must be performed with consideration.

Cameras

• 50Mp essential and telephoto, 8Mp ultrawide, 32Mp entrance
• First non-flagship cellphone with a tetraprism pericope telephoto zoom
• As much as 4K/30fps video

From the surface, the Cellphone (4a)’s digital camera system seems to be identical to the one on the again of the Cellphone (3a); a bar of snappers, with two clustered to the left and a lone third sensor on the proper. Behind the scenes, it makes use of the identical essential, ultrawide and front-facing sensors because the Cellphone (3a), however there’s one stark distinction.

Regardless of the acquainted {hardware} format, with each final yr’s and this yr’s telephones in hand, it’s clear that one sensor is considerably bigger: the telephoto sensor. The magic of all of it is that it isn’t bulkier, however simply sports activities an even bigger lens. Why? As a result of the Cellphone (4a) is the primary non-flagship cellphone to undertake a tetraprism periscopic telephoto digital camera (an improve that the Professional additionally possesses).

Utilizing the identical dual-prism folded optical method discovered on the likes of the iPhone 17 Pro and Oppo Find X9 Pro, Nothing has given the Phone (4a) a major telephoto upgrade, whilst still keeping the module 32% smaller than the equivalent conventional L-shaped periscopic telephoto, found on last year’s Nothing Phone (3a) Pro.

Better yet, the sensor used is the same as the one found on the company’s top Phone (3), and grants the (4a) far greater camera versatility than either of its predecessors, with a 3.5x optical zoom, a 7x crop zoom, and up to a 70x Ultra Zoom (that’s further than Nothing’s flagship 60x limit).

In side-by-side testing, there’s a subtle shift in colour science across all of the Phone (4a)’s sensors, compared to its direct predecessor, with a tilt towards warmer tones, and more prominent magenta hues. It’s subtle in so much that you’re getting natural-looking shots either way, but it’s interesting to see Nothing’s True Lens Engine 4.0 make different decisions this time around, despite near-identicial imaging hardware underneath.

The Phone (4a) also manages to capture detail and motion with less processing and sharpening than the Phone (3a), with defined, but more natural-looking edges around subjects. Flip on Portrait Mode and I noticed significantly better edge detection too, meaning cleaner separation of subject from background, while the default artificial bokeh seems a little heavy-handed (but can, thankfully, be dialled back manually).

I only wish Nothing’s camera experience let you adjust the degree of artificial bokeh both at and after capture, as you get on iPhones and Samsung’s Galaxy phones. As it stands, you can only increase or decrease the background blur effect around a subject before you hit the shutter button. Head to the gallery and that is baked into the image, with no way to dial it up or down retroactively.

Selfies adopt more vibrant colours and contrast in comparison to the Phone (3a)’s front-facing shots. The results also seem to suggest a shift in how dynamic range is processed, with less specularity against the same ambient lighting conditions, something I actually wish Nothing brought back to the (4a)’s camera experience.

In low light, the (4a) uses slightly more sharpening, without looking over-processed, and offers better detail retention throughout the whole frame. That’s compared to its predecessor’s superior centre-frame detail, but notable image quality fall-off, towards the edge in dimly-lit scenarios.

While most of the camera quality improvements appear to be subtle, almost hair-splittingly so, the difference in telephoto performance is night and day. You get significantly better colours and contrast, with far less noise in the darker areas of shots. It’s also much easier to freeze motion in zoomed shots, even with a slower shutter speed.

It feels like the final piece of the puzzle that brings true parity to the A-series camera experience, meaning you can expect better consistency and higher quality throughout the phone’s focal range. If you do tend to favour zoom shots or longer portrait photography, image quality does start to break down at around 20x zoom, where the processing can no longer convincingly retain image quality, but that’s not an issue exclusive to Nothing’s mid-range.

You once again get up to 4K at 30fps recording, and video is delivered with impressive stability when shooting handheld. Side-by-side with comparable footage from the Phone (3a), Nothing looks to have improved contrast and colour rendition, as well as audio capture; with more dynamic-sounding voices, boasting more prominent bass.

Zooming in while recording is still an Achilles’ Heel for the video experience, with immediate quality drop-off, represented by noise and artifacting, even in bright shooting conditions. It also is unclear why Presets can’t be applied to video when shooting above 1080p at 30fps.

Speaking of Presets, another interesting feature introduced with last year’s Nothing mid-rangers is the ability to create your own custom photo and video filters. Enhanced in Nothing OS 4.1, you can now tune specific attributes – like contrast, warmth and grain – all on-device, and as before, Presets can be saved and shared for other Nothing users to apply to their photos as well (at or after capture).

Alongside being another interesting way for Nothing to engage with its fan base and promote collaboration between users, it proves to be a more powerful first-party solution than, say, Samsung’s custom filters or Honor’s new Magic Colour mode; both of which use AI to automatically match image characteristics from one image to apply to another.

Nothing has even thrown in a trio of new in-house Presets on the Phone (4a) Series, with my personal favourite being the warmth that the new Cine Amber dresses footage with.

Battery Life & Charging

• 5080mAh battery (global) | 5400mAh (India)
• 50W wired charging
• 50% charge in 22 minutes

Unlike Honor’s tariff excuses, Nothing’s clear about the regional differences with battery capacity on the Phone (4a), and they’re wholly based on customer need. Whichever version you have access to in your market, you’re getting a larger cell than its predecessor, with the Indian variant boasting a significantly bigger 5400mAh power pack, to better account for the higher mobile gaming demands of users there.

In real-world testing, my 5080mAh battery-toting Phone (4a) outlasted pricer and larger-celled mid-rangers – like the OnePlus Nord 5 and Xiaomi 15T Pro – delivering 8.75 hours of screen-on time per charge. That equates to about a day and a half of confident use, and potentially two days if you’re careful. Pretty respectable.

Foundry | Alex Walker-Todd

The (4a) otherwise offers familiar 50W wired charging and PD 2.0 charging support, with Nothing claiming a full day’s charge (60%, by their accounts) in just 30 minutes. Nothing doesn’t include an in-box charger with its phones, but with a compatible adapter, my Phone (4a) actually surpassed 66% charge in that target 30-minute window, and hit a full 100% in less than an hour (Nothing quotes a full recharge time of 64 minutes).

If you want an official Nothing power adapter, their future-proofed 100W CMF GaN charger can refill the Phone (4a) at top speed, and costs £49/£39/€59.

Nothing also goes out of its way to say that the Phone (4a)’s battery uses impact-resistance “Safe Cell Technology,” and that it’s rated to retain 90% of its original capacity after 1,200 charge cycles; equivalent to about three years of charging.

Check out our rundown of the best battery life phones for alternatives.

Software & AI

• First phone running Nothing OS 4.1
• Essential Space gains cloud sync
• 3 years OS + 6 years security updates

Alongside design, user experience is easily one of Nothing’s defining characteristics, and the Phone (4a) is the first of the company’s phones to run the latest iteration – Nothing OS 4.1 – out the box.

Before diving in, after the hot water Lock Glimpse (an unprovenanced lock screen content service with baked-in ads) landed the company in late last year, Nothing has confirmed upfront that the service isn’t even installed on the Phone (4a) Series at all. As such, this ‘feature’ looks to remain exclusive to Nothing’s more affordable Lite models and its CMF phones, which those of you considering the (4a) will likely be happy about.

Visually, there’s little that sets Nothing OS 4.1 (running atop Android 16) apart from previous releases beyond tweaked icons, although you do now have the option to create depth-effect lock screens (where the clock elements fall behind segments of your wallpaper).

It’s a feature that’s become increasingly prevalent in recent years, popularised by iOS and since found on a myriad of competing Android-based user experiences: from ColorOS and OxygenOS, to Honor’s MagicOS and Xiaomi’s HyperOS 2, to name a few.

Foundry | Alex Walker-Todd

Nothing OS already has an excellent assortment of native widgets, plus community-made offerings too (dubbed ‘Essential Apps’), but with 4.1, there are a couple of noteworthy additions.

A trio of new Breathing Break widgets let you hop into guided breathing exercises, focused on calming, relaxation or focus. Tapping any of these new widgets activates a full-screen experience, each complete with its own unique visuals, audio and haptics (precise vibrations). As a mindfulness tool, it’s nice to have a baked-in solution, and one that caters to different scenarios, with next to zero setup required.

Nothing has also promised a Soundscape widget too, which looks as though it’ll mirror the likes of iOS’ Background Sounds accessibility feature, but how exactly the implementation will work, we won’t know until it’s added to the Phone (4a)’s experience via a software update down the road.

When adding widgets to your home screens, Nothing’s widget picker now better surfaces user-created ‘Essential Apps,’ reducing friction in terms of both browsing and downloading these fan-made creations. This tweak also reinforces the close relationship the brand has cultivated with its active creator community; something practically no other phone brand has been able to ape.

Using Nothing OS is otherwise a familiarly clean experience, with the brand’s signature minimalist aesthetic across menus, app icons and so on. It’s perhaps a little more on-rails versus the rival Chinese launchers mentioned earlier, but the default look and feel of the Phone (4a)’s software remains undeniably unique, easy to use, and free from bloat, clutter or over-complication.

Three years of OS updates and six years of security updates are serviceable for Phone (4a)’s price, but unquestionably lag behind the 7+7 years of support companies like Apple, Google and Samsung offer on their mid-rangers and up, which is a huge boon when considering long-term value for money.

Price & Availability

• More expensive than predecessor in UK & India
• Cheaper than predecessor in Europe
• Same RAM and storage options across all markets

Regardless of where Nothing is setting its sights in this new chapter, its products still have to find success – first and foremost – with the loyal fanbase the brand has already cultivated; predominantly across Europe and India, where the company’s phones are most readily available.

The Phone (4a) starts at £349/ €349/₹31,999 for the base 8GB RAM and 128GB storage configuration, marking a larger generational price hike this time around, at least in the UK and India. The increase will be felt by Indian consumers, in particular, where the (4a) arrives with a starting price that’s almost 30% higher than its predecessor’s.

The other models – 8/256GB and 12/256GB – cost £379 and £399, respectively. It’s worth noting that the Pink and Blue colours only come in the most expensive option.

Foundry | Alex Walker-Todd

Those keeping tabs on the wider tech industry may have anticipated such increases before the Phone (4a) was even made official, primarily as a result of the inflated cost of RAM – fueled by the ever-increasing demands of AI infrastructure. What’s more, Pei said as much back in mid-January, in an extended post on X, where the CEO stated, “pricing will inevitably also increase across our smartphone portfolio, particularly as we will upgrade some products launching this Q1 to UFS 3.1.”