Dubai: Nothing, the youngest global smartphone brand, is widening its model range - and price points - with the rollout of the Phone (2a). Apart from the pricing itself, the Nothing (2a) does push the envelope when it comes to design, featuring what it says is the ‘first-ever internal smartphone’ concept.
What this does is ‘integrate’ the handset’s components onto its external design, thus ‘showcasing key functions in new innovative ways’.
“Over the past decade, there is a sea of sameness in the tech industry,” said Rishi Kishor Gupta, Regional Director for Middle East and Africa at Nothing. “There is clearly a lack of excitement and optimism like we used to feel back in our childhood days.
“In every single smartphone launch, we see iterations vs. innovations. Here’s where we’re trying to fil the gap.
“With the launch of Nothing Phone (2a), we have made some of the greatest smartphone features more accessible for users, such as our unique design, immersive display and top-notch performance.”
The new handset goes on sale March 8th in GCC after the global keynote on March 5th.
In UAE, users will have the chance to be among the first in the world to purchase Phone (2a), as well as get some exclusive perks and offers available on a first come first served details. Full details below:
- Address: Sharaf DG, Deira City Centre
- Start time: 6pm
- Only 100 units available of an exclusive bundle including Phone (2a), complete with a customized thank you card from Carl Pei, CEO, Nothing. The devices will come with a complimentary Nothing Phone (2a) case that has the drop city printed, the CMF Buds and the CMF 65W GaN charger. The bundle pack will also include phone straps and a Nothing branded tote bag.
Pricing and rollout
The Nothing Phone (2a) will retail at Dh1,199 for the 128GB version, while the 256GB is Dh1,399.
Exclusive Limited time offer at Dh999 in UAE with Amazon and Lulu Hypermarket for the 8GB/128GB version.
Price-wise, that opens up a new more ‘affordable’ range after the Nothing Phone (2), which launched in July 2023. It was priced at Dh2,499 and Dh2,799 for the 128GB and 256GB versions. (It was July 2022 that the first Nothing phone came to market, with the design going some way towards being seen as disruptive.)
“The Middle East is a key part of our growth strategy,” said Gupta. “Our goal is to bring our unique offering, leveraging the brand innovative ethos to respond to new customer’s need”.
“Some people are power users and highly tech-savvy, seeking the latest specs. Others look for a smartphone with core functions, but are still eager to experience Nothing's unique and innovative hardware and software design. This led us to develop Phone (2a), ensuring that we could meet every user's expectation and rally even more people behind the Nothing mission.”
Nothing currently is present at over 1,000 stores in the GCC, The plan is to expand further into new markets “In the GCC, Nothing has gained significant traction since 2023,” said Gupta. “The recent shipping estimate from Canalys showed that Nothing has been ranked third in smartphone brands in Saudi Arabia in the $500 and above price range for the first quarter of 2023.”
Recently, the brand has signed up Dubai headquartered Eros as its exclusive distribution partner for the UAE and Bahrain. On the Eros alliance, he added: “Our partnership will leverage Eros’s presence in the region along with their relationships with retailers and overall capabilities. By working with Eros, we look forward to not only expanding our regional presence, but also provide our customers easier access to our products overall.”
Not just a Gen Z brand
On who exactly would fit into the Nothing user’s profile, Gupta said: “We are not strictly limited to Gen Z. We call our target audience as the young & creatives’.
“To capture their hearts we must question everything - everyday. Otherwise, we might just start believing we’re something that we’re not.”
And clearly, Nothing is in no mood to be that…
Launch Event
After the initial design reveal at MWC in Barcelona, Nothing has formally launched the Nothing Phone (2a) today via an online event t ‘Fresh Eyes’, tune into Nothing Event: Fresh Eyes to watch “This year is all about accelerating our progress, and Phone (2a) is our first big step forward,” said Carl Pei, CEO and Co-founder of Nothing. “Phone (2a) is going to enable more people to experience the Nothing innovations that many have come to love, and we’re confident it will become our best selling product ever.”
The handset’s ‘Dimensity 7200 Pro’ processor has been exclusively co-engineered with MediaTek. It is built on TSMC’s latest 4nm process technology. Paired with a 20 GB RAM with RAM Booster technology, the 8-core chip – clocking speeds up to 2.8 GHz – ensures ‘swift and responsive multitasking all day long’.
“This results in a performance that is 13 per cent more powerful than Phone (1) and 16 per cent more efficient,” said the brand.
“From Phone (1), Nothing has increased battery longevity by over 25 per cent,” said a statement. “This means it can maintain over 90 per cent of its maximum capacity after 1,000 charging cycles, corresponding to over three years of daily charging.”
The CMF by Nothing sub-brand is also launching two new products today: Neckband Pro and Buds. Neckband Pro, the first 50 dB Hybrid ANC device in this category, will have limited availability outside of India. Whilst all global markets will have access to Buds, which deliver the best-in-class for ANC across the market.
