Nothing officially announces premium Nothing Phone (2) for this summer
Nothing showed up today and said "Nothing to see here" and it was something else. Cringey puns aside, it's been an exciting morning because Nothing took to twitter to officially announce that the Nothing Phone (2) is on schedule for summer 2023, and it will be a premium device.
Premium.
— Nothing (@nothing) May 3, 2023
Phone (2) is coming summer 2023.
Sign-up for updates: https://t.co/FEJL4Jb2Awpic.twitter.com/Nj8YONbYvm
This isn't the first time we have heard about the upcoming Nothing Phone (2). Carl Pei, the company's CEO, has himself spoken about it and several tidbits about the phone's alleged specs have already been leaked. One of these tidbits happens to be the chip that powers the device, which is speculated to be a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 2 — a powered-up version of the latest Snapdragon 8 Gen 2.
What today's announcement reveals
It's no secret that Carl Pei and Nothing are masters at the art of teasing product announcements in a way that sparks the public's interest. They did it with the Nothing Phone (1) and with the Nothing Ear (1) and (2), and today's announcement was no exception.
The partial reveal is simple, yet intriguing, featuring what appears to be the upper right hand corner of the device with a blinking red light. When following the link on the tweet to sign up for updates, you are shown a larger version of the teaser image that shows a bit more detail and an additional design element.
Nothing Phone (2) teaser image on Nothing's website
This has, of course, sparked conversations on social media and the Nothing Community on Discord, where heavy speculation is already taking place on what each design element reveals about the phone's features.
Two details are apparent right away: The blinking red light and the presence of what appears to be a slider. The Nothing Phone (1) is known for its blinking LED lights on the back and already includes a recording light indicator that blinks just like the one in the teaser does. This begs the question of whether this blinking light will have the same functionality as the one on the Phone (1) or if it will serve an additional purpose, perhaps as a notification LED.
The apparent switch is another fun detail to speculate about. One could assume this is an alert slider or mute switch, but when viewed in relation to the the Phone (1)'s design and where this supposed switch would be positioned on the phone itself, it is possible that it is just a design element. The below tweet by concept designer Ben Geskin better illustrates where this piece would fit and what it would look like, in addition to noting that this couldn't possibly be a real physical switch, since everything on the back of the phone would be behind glass.
Nothing Phone (1) + Phone (2) teaser pic.twitter.com/uTrrOHYOI3
— Ben Geskin (@BenGeskin) May 3, 2023
One thing that can be said for sure is that the teaser has done its job at sparking discussion on what the final design will be and what premium features the Nothing Phone (2) will have that the first iteration didn't. It will also be interesting to see where the device will be positioned in terms of pricing.
The Nothing Phone (1) was definitely built and priced as a mid-ranger, and then priced aggressively when it became available in the U.S. as part of the Beta program. Since the Nothing Phone (2) is expected to be a U.S.-first premium release, as confirmed by Carl Pei himself in interviews, pricing is not expected to be as low as last time.
However, Nothing's intent is to compete with the likes of Apple, Google, and Samsung in the United States' smartphone market, while positioning itself as an innovative company that cares about cutting edge design. As a Nothing Phone (1) owner, I am very interested in what follows this already great mid-ranger device.
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