Nothing Phone (2)

The Nothing Phone sequel is asensation that gets the basics right and adds a dollop of fun along the way too

When Nothing was first introduced, as the plucky London-based upstart, we wondered: could a newcomer really succeed in this bustling market? But Nothing has doubled down since it released the Nothing Phone (1), pouring mass resources into its software and upping its hardware game too.

When a phone really stands out, just as the Nothing Phone (2) does, it's a real thrill. From the very moment we first held the handset it's the incredibly low weight - it's just 201g - that stood out the most.

The Phone (2)'s display is a big improvement over the Phone (1)'s offering. While both phones are as sharp as one another, low peak brightness was a criticism of the Phone (1), with its screen capping out at around 700 nits. The Nothing Phone (2), by contrast, climbs up to around 1,000 nits in typical use, though can pump images out at 1,600 nits when displaying HDR (high dynamic range) content. Add a 120Hz refresh rate for great fluidity and there's nothing more we could ask for from a display.

The original Nothing Phone (1) didn't have performance issues per se, but the Nothing Phone (2) does still upgrade its internals to be more powerful. Sure, it's 'one step' behind the current Qualcomm top-tier chipset, but the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 on board here does a sterling job - and without getting too warm too.

The main concern we had when first setting up the Nothing Phone (2) was related to its predecessor's cursory battery life. Thankfully the Phone (2)'s largercapacity battery delivers a significant longevity boost. Getting a full day of 16 hours use with many hours of screen time and still getting to bed with 20%+ battery remaining isn't an issue.