Nothing has lastly joined the flagship smartphone membership with the launch of its all-new Telephone 3 in London. This high-end smartphone membership primarily contains gadgets from Apple and Samsung, priced above Rs. 70,000, whereas others, resembling Oppo, Vivo, OnePlus, and Xiaomi, are additionally represented with choose gadgets.

In response to Counterpoint’s April report, Nothing was the fastest-growing brand in India throughout the quarter. It recorded a whopping 156% year-over-year development, primarily pushed by the launch of the 3a sequence. The market analysis agency noted that this was the fifth consecutive quarter by which Nothing was the fastest-growing model within the nation. The launch within the premium finish may have been a results of the model’s constructive outlook out there. Now that Nothing has began a brand new chapter in its smartphone journey, it’s almost definitely to be in comparison with the best-of-the-best smartphones within the premium vary.

At a beginning price ticket of Rs. 79,999, the Phone 3 is priced very carefully to a number of the hottest premium smartphones. For instance, Samsung’s entry-level Galaxy S25 is retailing at Rs. 74,999, and Apple’s iPhone 16, which launched at Rs. 79,900, is now accessible at a cheaper price level by each offline and on-line channels. To not neglect, Apple’s just lately unveiled iPhone 16e is accessible at Rs. 59,900. So as to add to the record, Oppo’s Find X8 is accessible for below Rs. 70,000, whereas the X200 Pro is accessible for below Rs. 95,000. Xiaomi’s compact flagship, 15, is accessible for Rs. 65,000, whereas the OnePlus 13 is priced below Rs. 70,000. So, lengthy factor quick, Nothing’s race to the highest membership implies that it has to beat all of those gadgets to be value that worth.

So, what does the Nothing Telephone 3 deliver to the desk? Here is my evaluation, the place I break down each small element.

The Telephone 3 design might be polarising for some customers
Photograph Credit score: Mohit Dawar/ Devices 360

Nothing Telephone 3 Design and Show: Mr. Reliable

The Telephone 3 carefully follows Nothing’s signature clear design language, and you will not mistake it for every other gadget accessible in the marketplace. The boxy design, with a flat show, appears refined, and the curved edges be certain that lengthy hours with the cellphone aren’t uncomfortable. The 92.89% screen-to-body ratio means you get extra display screen actual property, and the bezels are sleeker than these of the Phone 2. At 218 grams, the Telephone 3 is barely heavier than the OnePlus 13 (210 grams), whereas it may be categorised as very heavy when in comparison with the iPhone 16 (170 grams).

The waterdrop notch on the entrance now feels dated, and I want Nothing may have finished one thing with it. The corporate has made a concerted effort to design the brand new gadget sustainably. The mid-frame is comprised of 100% recycled aluminium alongside the buttons and SIM tray. The smartphone packaging is now additionally plastic-free.

The show on the Telephone 3 is vibrant and sports activities a refresh charge of 120fps
Photograph Credit score: Mohit Dawar/ Devices 360

Returning to the aluminium body, it provides a stable hand really feel – one thing that provides you confidence in sturdiness throughout every day use. The buttons – energy and Important key on the precise and quantity rockers on the left really feel good and supply an excellent tactile really feel.

The again panel is the place issues get fascinating. The design workforce will need to have had subject days whereas engaged on this one. The asymmetry with geometric aptitude is on full present on the rear of the Telephone 3. The three-column grid with totally different design parts appears elegant, whereas the periscope lens on the prime proper nook does look rebellious.

The rear digital camera alignment on the Nothing Telephone 3 is so off that it is virtually a design characteristic now—a really unintentional one.

 

One other fascinating addition is the crimson recording gentle on the again that prompts when capturing video or utilizing the voice recorder. For content material creators, this blinks while you’re importing a video. The addition of the IP68 ranking is reassuring for normal customers.

The Telephone 3’s weight is 218 grams, and it’s handy to make use of it with only one hand
Photograph Credit score: Mohit Dawar/ Devices 360

The lens setup on the again does not sit flush with the rear, and in reality, the large and ultra-wide lenses have a raised stance. Nevertheless, the cellphone does not wobble fully when positioned on a flat floor whereas typing.

The Telephone 3 encompasses a 6.67-inch AMOLED show with a decision of 1260×2800 pixels and provides a 460PPI pixel density. The most important spotlight of the show is that it might probably hit a peak brightness of 4500nits when taking part in HDR content material, 1600nits open air, and as much as 800nits guide brightness. It will get all the opposite customary bells and whistles of a premium smartphone. There’s HDR10+ help together with a 120Hz refresh charge and help for 2160Hz PWM dimming. In real-world utilization, the show is vibrant and produces crisp colors. The textual content is sharp, and daylight legibility is rarely an issue on the Telephone 3. The Nothing Telephone 3 comes with Widevine L1 help, which implies you’ll be able to stream HD content material on the gadget out of your favorite OTT apps. It emerges as an honest multimedia gadget appropriate for each binge-watching and gaming. Nevertheless, taking a look at this competitors, the Galaxy S25 and OnePlus 13 sport a greater show.

The show on the Telephone 3 is vibrant, however we now have seen higher shows within the worth bracket
Photograph Credit score: Mohit Dawar/ Devices 360

Nothing Telephone 3 Glyph Interface

What began as a light-weight strip on the again (Telephone 1) that might be used for various features has advanced right into a full-blown characteristic. Now you can use Glyph Interface for quite a few issues, together with interactions from an app or seeing a battery standing at a look. The Glyph Matrix, positioned within the prime proper nook, is an LED disc with 489 individually firing LEDs, providing a monochrome dot-based show. The Matrix is so helpful that you simply not want to have a look at the display screen each jiffy. Be it a notification for a caller ID or any system app. Nothing says that it’s going to roll out extra options to the Glyph Matrix quickly.

The Glyph Interface on the Telephone 3 is a enjoyable component, but it surely must evolve, as proper now, it has fairly restricted performance
Photograph Credit score: Mohit Dawar/ Devices 360

It’s a enjoyable strategy to work together together with your cellphone, as you’ll be able to assign customized icons to contacts with pixelated avatars that seem each time they name. There’s additionally a Glyph Button, which you need to use to test all parts of the Glyph Matrix. Nothing has additionally launched what it calls Glyph Toys, which embrace options resembling a Spin the Bottle, Digital Clock, Battery Indicator, Stopwatch, Photo voltaic Clock, Magic 8 Ball, a community-developed recreation, and even taking part in rock, paper, and scissors.

The Telephone 3 comes with Corning Gorilla Glass 7i on the entrance and Gorilla Glass Victus on the again
Photograph Credit score: Mohit Dawar/ Devices 360

Nothing Telephone 3 Efficiency: Every single day ninja

• SoC – Qualcomm Snapdragon 8s Gen 4
• RAM + Storage – 12GB + 256 GB and 16GB + 512 GB
• Biometric – In-display fingerprint sensor
• Glyph Interface and Nothing OS 3.5 primarily based on Android 15

The Telephone 3 can deal with multitasking with ease, and the app launch velocity was fast. It feels fluid even when taking part in titles like COD: Cell, BGMI, and different closely graphics-intensive video games. By default, video games like COD: Cell and Genshin Influence launch on the highest supported settings. Even after 45 minutes of steady gaming, the Telephone 3 does not get too heat, and it means the VC cooling system does its job effectively. The Telephone 3 helps as much as 16GB of RAM and 512GB of storage, however there is no 1TB storage mannequin.

It is available in 12GB + 256GB and 16GB + 512GB RAM and storage fashions
Photograph Credit score: Mohit Dawar/ Devices 360

It’s powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 8s Gen 4, a chipset we now have seen powering the smartphones below Rs. 50,000 recently. And, by wanting on the price ticket of the Telephone 3, one would have anticipated to get probably the most highly effective processor presently accessible on Android, the Snapdragon 8 Elite. However, Nothing’s plan might need been to regulate the price of the gadget. On the subject of benchmarks, the Nothing Telephone 3 performs effectively, as proven within the comparability desk under.

 

Nothing’s first guess within the flagship vary, the Telephone 3, does not really feel like a slouch in on a regular basis duties and may deal with some intense duties, resembling enhancing pictures on the go together with the Canva app and transferring giant recordsdata. The twin-stereo audio system are loud and may be capable of fill a medium-sized room. On the connectivity entrance, the smartphone will get all of the bells and whistles like NFC, Bluetooth 6.0, 5G help and extra.

It runs Android 15-based Nothing OS 3.5 out of the field
Photograph Credit score: Mohit Dawar/ Devices 360

Out-of-the-box, the Telephone 3 runs on Nothing OS 3.5 primarily based on Android 15. The UI is generally the identical as what we noticed on the 3a Professional and telephones earlier than that. The animations are easy, and the Dot Engine nonetheless retains Nothing gadgets distinct from the gang.

The nice factor is that Nothing guarantees 5 years of OS updates and 7 years of safety patches. The corporate has even confirmed that the Telephone 3 will obtain Android 16-based Nothing OS 4.0 by Q3 2025.

The Telephone 3 additionally will get Nothing’s next-big guess in private house, Important House, the place it believes it is going to serve the consumer in a really totally different means in comparison with the present set of gadgets. The corporate refers to it as a second reminiscence, the place customers can hold their concepts flowing by recording them or retaining notes in a single place. With Telephone 3, Nothing launched new options like Flip to report, which works as meant. It’s also possible to immediately seize your display screen or ship a photograph from the digital camera app straight into Important House by urgent as soon as. On long-press, it additionally information a voice notice, which might now be transformed from voice to textual content on-device. Throughout my evaluation, I used Important House a number of occasions, and it felt like a novel method to retaining your concepts locked in a single place. Will probably be fascinating to see how this pans out for Nothing in the long term.

It comes with an in-display fingerprint sensor, which is snappy
Photograph Credit score: Mohit Dawar/ Devices 360

Moreover, it launched Important Search, which is one thing you will have seen on different gadgets as effectively. When looking out on the Nothing Telephone 3, you may get outcomes for contacts, pictures, and paperwork and even do an on the spot seek for climate or every other data without having to open a browser or summon an AI assistant. The corporate has confirmed that it’s going to roll out extra personalisation updates later this yr.

Calls on the Nothing Telephone 3 are clear, and I did not face any points with name high quality both. The smartphone labored effective with 5G networks on Airtel and Reliance Jio, and it may latch onto networks at comparatively darkish spots, resembling basement parking, the place I’ve seen sub-Rs. 25,000 smartphones are struggling.

The Telephone 3 will get an IP68 ranking, however in contrast to a whole lot of Android flagships this yr, it misses out on an IP69 ranking

In a nutshell, the Telephone 3 is a superb on a regular basis smartphone and may deal with gentle picture and video enhancing with out a sweat. It could additionally deal with gaming, but it surely’s not a gaming-centric gadget, so do not anticipate quite a bit.

Nothing Telephone 3 Digicam: Combined bag

• Digicam – Triple 50-megapixel setup (Broad, Periscope, and Extremely-wide)
• Selfie – 50-megapixel sensor
• Movies – 4K Extremely XDR at 30 or 60fps

Nothing has gone all out within the digital camera division, and the Telephone 3 packs 4 50-megapixel sensors general. Digicam alignment apart, the first digital camera on the Telephone 3 is a succesful one, capturing photographs with good publicity and a large dynamic vary. The white steadiness in digital camera samples was impartial, and many of the samples clicked throughout the day had good colors.

The first sensor on the Telephone 3 is an OmniVision OV50H, whereas the telephoto is a Samsung ISOCELL JN5 sensor
Photograph Credit score: Mohit Dawar/ Devices 360

Underneath vibrant gentle and indoor lighting, there was a excessive degree of effective particulars, together with in macro mode. The autofocusing was fast and easy. I additionally seen that the samples had comparatively low noise ranges—some daylight pictures are included under in your reference.

Nothing Telephone 3 daylight digital camera samples (faucet photographs to increase)

The Telephone 3 also can take some pretty portraits with good face publicity, first rate colors, and pure pores and skin tones. The smartphone additionally handles the background blur effectively.

Nothing Telephone 3 portrait digital camera pattern (faucet picture to increase)

Shifting on to low-light samples, the Telephone 3 carried out effectively in most difficult gentle situations however seen some inconsistencies when switching lenses whereas clicking – one thing I additionally seen whereas clicking throughout the day.

Nothing Telephone 3 close-up pattern (faucet picture to increase)

As soon as you turn between 24mm (1x), 50mm (2x), and 70mm (3x) lenses, the colors hold altering. For instance, a crimson bus is captured completely by the first sensor, however I wish to strive totally different angles and lenses. Then, it seems barely much less crimson on 2x, and on 3x, the identical bus is nearly gentle crimson. So, the color inconsistency is there. Hopefully, a brand new software program replace may repair this. Nothing is one model that is recognized for fixing points fairly shortly, and reviewers obtained an OTA replace proper out of the field with loads of modifications to the digital camera, which was fairly common earlier than the replace.

Nothing Telephone 3 low-light digital camera samples (faucet photographs to increase)

The 50-megapixel selfie shooter can seize some first rate pictures throughout the day, providing an excellent quantity of element and a large dynamic vary. The noise ranges are additionally managed, and colors are vivid. Nevertheless, the standard suffers at evening and is not as detailed as pictures taken throughout the day.

Nothing Telephone 3 telephoto daylight samples (faucet photographs to increase)

The zoom efficiency of the Telephone 3 is great. The goal publicity is correct, with pretty colors, particularly in vibrant situations, and it stays comparatively constant when taking pictures indoors. The nice factor was that when zooming, the telephoto did effectively, although I seen that there was an absence of element. The dynamic vary was acceptable.

Nothing Telephone 3 ultra-wide samples (faucet photographs to increase)

The ultra-wide digital camera is certainly one of my lowest-ranked sensors on the Telephone 3. Essentially the most inconsistent outcomes I acquired had been from the ultra-wide sensor, and this was fixed throughout lighting situations.

Nothing Telephone 3 selfie digital camera pattern (faucet picture to increase)

 

The video high quality is first rate on the Nothing Telephone 3, and all 4 50-megapixel cameras help 4K 60fps recording. Total, the Telephone 3’s cameras are a blended bag, with the primary digital camera excelling, whereas the telephoto and ultra-wide lenses aren’t among the many finest we now have seen on this worth bracket.

Nothing Telephone 3 Battery: Nicely-rounded

• Battery capability – 5500mAh
• Quick-charging – 65W help (no charging adapter within the field)
• Wi-fi charging help – 15W

In India, the Nothing Telephone 3 comes with a 5500mAh battery, whereas world models characteristic a barely smaller battery pack – 5150mAh. The smartphone additionally helps 65W quick charging, 15W wi-fi charging, 5W reverse wi-fi charging, and seven.5W reverse wired charging. In real-world use, the Nothing Telephone 3 can simply final greater than a day with heavy utilization. My utilization included roughly 7 hours of screen-on time, which consisted of streaming, searching, gaming, messaging app utilization, utility app utilization open within the background always, and digital camera use. With medium or gentle use, the Telephone 3 may even last as long as 36 hours on a single cost.

Very similar to different Nothing telephones, there is no charging adapter within the field
Photograph Credit score: Mohit Dawar/ Devices 360

The Telephone 3 carried out effectively in our HD video loop take a look at, which performs a regionally saved video in a loop (till the battery dies); it managed an honest 21 hours roughly. The determine was spectacular. I additionally examined it with PCMark’s Battery take a look at, and the Telephone 3 lasted for 13 hours and 20 minutes.

On the fast-charging entrance, the 65W wired charging is a bump from the 45W seen on the Telephone 2. The smartphone can totally cost (from 0 to 100%) in below an hour, which is spectacular. A mere 20 minutes of cost can bump the battery from 0 to 50%. Contemplating the handset’s pricing, the corporate ought to have deliberate to ship a charging adapter within the field and even bundle it as a particular supply for a number of gross sales.

Nothing Telephone 3 Verdict

The Nothing Telephone 3 is a superb first-gen flagship from an organization that has delivered many unbelievable merchandise. The design is a basic Nothing. The extra you employ it, the extra it grows on you. Glyph Interface is a superb strategy to mess around with the product. There is not any pointless AI push throughout the gadget, and Important Search is a step in the precise path (hopefully, it stays this manner with out turning into too intrusive). The efficiency is top-notch, and you’ll barely really feel that you simply want a greater chipset for on a regular basis duties. Nothing OS comes with a signature dot theme that’s recent and in contrast to what you see on different gadgets. The cameras are okay, and whereas I sort this, I am hoping that the Nothing workforce fixes the inconsistencies quickly sufficient. The battery may even impress you.

Nothing guarantees 5 years of Android updates and seven years of safety patches
Photograph Credit score: Mohit Dawar/ Devices 360

The most important query mark is on the pricing! At Rs. 79,999, the Nothing Telephone 3 is a cellphone that is troublesome to advocate to premium customers in India, as there are higher alternate options accessible out there. Whereas Nothing has made the deal sweeter with financial institution provides and change provides as a launch supply, however that does not keep ceaselessly. If the Nothing Telephone 3 had been priced below Rs. 60,000, it will have had a greater market positioning.

As we at all times advocate in our evaluations, you’ll be able to contemplate the iPhone 16 or 16 Plus, which is a decent device for the price; the Oppo Find X8 got here out as an excellent device in our review, and there is, after all, the OnePlus 13 packs top-notch specs and delivers worth at that worth.