Nothing Phone (2a) Plus review

Introduction

Nothing seems to be on a roll lately when it comes to expanding its smartphone portfolio. Hot on the heels of the Nothing CMF Phone 1 and just four months or so after the unveiling of the Nothing Phone (2a), Carl Pei's venture now has yet another new model.

As its name suggests, the Nothing Phone (2a) Plus is a souped-up version of the Nothing Phone (2a). The design is largely the same, though there are new metallic color finishes. The Dimensity 7200 Pro chipset has been swapped for a more powerful Dimensity 7350 Pro 5G chip, developed exclusively for Nothing by MediaTek. Apparently, it offers up to a 10% boost in CPU and 30% GPU performance, so that will be interesting to test.

Nothing Phone (2a) Plus specs at a glance:

• Body: 161.7x76.3x8.5mm, 190g; Glass front (Gorilla Glass 5), plastic frame, plastic back; IP54 - splash, water and dust resistant, 26 LED lights on the back (notifications, camera fill light).
• Display: 6.70" AMOLED, 1B colors, 120Hz, HDR10+, 700 nits (typ), 1100 nits (HBM), 1300 nits (peak), 1080x2412px resolution, 20.1:9 aspect ratio, 395ppi; Always On Display.
• Chipset: Mediatek Dimensity 7350 Pro (4 nm): Octa-core (2x3.0 GHz Cortex-A715 & 6x 2.0 GHz Cortex-A510); Mali-G610 MC4 1.3GHz.
• Memory: 256GB 12GB RAM, 256GB 8GB RAM.
• OS/Software: Android 14, Nothing OS 2.6, up to 3 major Android upgrades.
• Rear camera: Wide (main): 50 MP, f/1.9, 24mm, 1/1.57", 1.0µm, PDAF, OIS; Ultra wide angle: 50 MP, f/2.2, 114-degree, 1/2.76", 0.64µm.
• Front camera: 50 MP, f/2.2, (wide), 1/2.76".
• Video capture: Rear camera: 4K@30fps, 1080p@60/120fps, gyro-EIS; Front camera: 4K@30fps.
• Battery: 5000mAh; 50W wired, 50% in 21 min, 100% in 56 min (advertised).
• Connectivity: 5G; Dual SIM; Wi-Fi 6; BT 5.3; NFC.
• Misc: Fingerprint reader (under display, optical); stereo speakers.

The new Nothing Phone (2a) Plus also has an upgraded 50MP selfie capable of crisp 4K capture. Last but not least, charging has been further optimized, and the Nothing Phone (2a) Plus now supports 50W charging, which promises to be nearly 10% faster than the regular Nothing Phone (2a).

We do have to wonder why Nothing decided to come out with a slightly better version of their own "mid-ranger" of sorts in the current lineup, the way it is shaping up, and potentially risk cannibalizing the sales of the regular Nothing Phone (2a). Nothing CEO Carl Pei apparently doesn't see it that way. He says that the Nothing Phone (2a) was so popular that it invited the opportunity to create a sequel of sorts. Plus, there is also the fact that the Nothing Phone (3) is expected to launch in 2025, and in the meantime, the company wants to offer enthusiasts a more powerful device to get excited about.

That all sounds fine and dandy, but the Nothing Phone (2a) Plus is a bit more expensive than its non-plus sibling. It is not exactly a drop-in replacement price-wise. Thankfully, at least for now, Nothing does not plan to retire the vanilla Nothing Phone (2a), which is good to see. We can't exactly be mad about having more choices.

Unboxing

Nothing has always had a certain aesthetic touch and vision regarding its products, extending to packaging and accessories. The Nothing Phone (2a) Plus comes in an eye-catching cardboard box embossed with the phone's design elements on the top.

There is a sleeve on top of the actual box that is complete with Nothing's signature dot matrix font. The box itself is sturdy and seems to be made entirely of cardboard, including the inside cradle that securely holds the phone.

It's not just the packaging that is all pretty, though. This attention to detail extends to the accessories. They are quite limited. However, both the SIM ejector tool and the USB Type-C to Type-C cable have a special design inspired by the phone itself.

We like the transparent connectors on the cable. Still, unfortunately, the cable itself is a simple non-eMarked cable, which means that it is limited to 3A of power throughput and 5Gbps of data transfer. Still, neither is hampering the respective capabilities of the Nothing Phone (2a) Plus, so we can't complain. We wish a charger was in the box, but it is what it is.