Carl Pei, founder of OnePlus, has launched his new venture, Nothing, which aims to challenge Samsung and Apple in the premium smartphone market. The company’s latest flagship phone, the Phone (3), has just been released, priced at $799.
Not much is known about Carl Pei, but he is the mastermind behind a scrappy brand that offered affordable phones to tech enthusiasts. He brought this same approach to Nothing, focusing on design and software as key differentiators in a market dominated by Samsung and Apple.
The Phone (3) features a transparent design with an asymmetric camera module, which has divided opinions among reviewers. While some find it unique and cool, others have criticized its unusual arrangement. The phone also lacks the glyph LED arrangement that was prominent in previous models, replaced instead by a Glyph Matrix, a circle-shaped second screen.
In terms of hardware, the Phone (3) is powered by a Snapdragon 8s Gen 4 processor and features three 50-megapixel cameras for different purposes. However, camera quality falls short of top-tier devices like iPhones and Samsung Galaxy phones, with color accuracy issues in low-light conditions.
The phone also boasts an AI-powered search feature, called Essential search, which uses Google’s Gemini models to surface web results. Additionally, it includes a meeting note transcriber and a customizable hardware key called the Essential Key.
Nothing is making the Phone (3) available through its website and Amazon in the US, while partnering with Best Buy in Canada. At $799, the device competes directly with Samsung Galaxy S25, Google Pixel 9, and iPhone 16. However, prices in India are higher than those of its rivals, which may impact sales.
While Nothing’s ambition is to make AI features useful for users, some critics argue that its feature set is similar to that of other phone makers. Nevertheless, Carl Pei remains committed to leveraging AI technology to help people become better and more creative.
Source: https://techcrunch.com/2025/07/08/nothing-phone-3-review