Nothing, the upstart UK tech brand is launching exclusively in Australia next month at JB Hi Fi, and what they are going to deliver is going to put fear into several of their smartphone competitors because these guys, deliver marketing and design that is way beyond anything we have seen before from a smartphone brand.
The Company is just 4 years old, and they already have a cult following having already generated sales of close to 3 million units, a lot of that coming from direct sales.
They are also a big sponsor of Amazon with local searches in the past for information on a Nothing product going directly back to an Amazon site.
With close to $750 million in sales to date this is the brand that is set to put pressure on Samsung, Apple and the likes of Motorola and HMD Global, and if anything, it will create problems in Australia for HMD Global as they shift to trying to launch their own brand of devices later this year especially as HMD and Nothing are going after the same target audience.
Their products look funky and different because that is their DNA.
“We’re not trying to be Apple 2023. We’re trying to be the Apple of the 1980s,” Nothing CEO Carl Pei said recently.
Nothing recognise that screen time is of the essence for their customers and having already hurt brands such as Oppo, Realme and Vivo in several markets the Company is now keen to capture share in Australia with their unique product range that in the future could include a notebook.
The latest phone is built from recycled plastic and metals, offering a less sleek alternative to the Nothing (2)’s glass and metal exterior.
Its camera sits, unusually, in the middle of the top of the phone, rather than to the side like its older models and traditional smartphones.
Nothing’s modus operandi is simplicity at every stage of the user experience, something that filters through to its design and their marketing which includes using original typewriter fonts on their web site and in their marketing material.
It’s neat smart and very retro.
According to Fortune Magazine, the latest launch for the Nothing 2(a) event, designers credited Massimo Vignelli, the creator of a simplified iteration of the New York subway map in the 1970s, as their inspiration for taking complex features of a classic smartphone and breaking them down.
Nothing recently rolled into the giant Indian market where they are already stripping share from Chinese and European as well as Apple and Samsung simple because they are seen as being the cult brand you have to be seen with.
seen below, has built a reputation as a tech influencer, Last year, Pei even managed to recruit long-running YouTube superstar Casey Neistat to post an in-depth review of last year’s Nothing 2 that involved Pei and Neistat taking the phone on a literal roller coaster ride, the video can be seen on the Nothing web site.
The first Nothing 2a and flagship 2 model will be available from April according to JB Hi Fi CEO Cameron Trainer.
Its debut smartphone, the Nothing Phone (1) was awarded Time Magazine’s Best Inventions for Innovative Smartphone Design award.
One of the key elements in owning a Nothing smartphone is that you get their Glyph Interface with the Nothing 2a.
New this technology delivers a trio of lights on the back of the smartphone that deliver a different signal for various functions, for example, you can assign different light patterns as notifications for different contacts or apps, and with the light timer, you’ll be able to track the progress of your delivery service or taxi ride without having to keep checking your phone screen.
This unique feature is designed to reduce screen time.
As for pricing the Nothing 2 will set you back $999 for a 256GB model and $1,099 for the 512GB model.
As for the Nothing 2a the 128Gb entry level model is only $529 while the 256GB model is $599.