I didn’t take Nothing Phones seriously — now I think they’re some of the best options under $500

I think I owe the folks at Nothing an apology.

I've always found the upstart phone maker easy to dismiss, even as category experts like my colleague John Velasco were praising the company's devices. Maybe it was the company's too-cute name, which struck me as more confusing than playful. ("What are you writing about?" "Nothing." "Ah, well you better think of something.") The trademark Glyph design, while hailed by some, left me a little cold.

What finally drove me over the edge, though, was the weird distribution strategy, where U.S. consumers interested in buying some of Nothing's handsets could only do so through the company's beta program. That struck me as an odd way to try and grow your customer base, so much so that a little more than a year ago, I was moved to write that I couldn't take Nothing seriously as a phone maker.

In the year that's passed since I wrote that article, I've had the chance to use Nothing's phones. And boy, am I taking them seriously now.

Testing the Nothing Phone 3a

Credit the Nothing Phone 3a for helping me see the light. I had a chance to review the phone earlier this year when it debuted alongside the Nothing Phone 3a Pro. And it really shows that whatever else you might think of Nothing, the phone maker really delivers a lot of value to consumers who don't want to pay big bucks for their next device.

After that flashing Glyph design, the most eye-catching thing about the latest Nothing phones are what they cost. The Nothing Phone 3a starts at $379 while you can pick up a Nothing Phone 3a Pro for $459.

Going through Nothing's beta program is still the best way to pick up either handset. That said, I've noticed the Nothing Phone 3a appearing on Amazon. It appears to be more expensive there than it would be through Nothing, but at least it's a more conventional route to getting a phone.

Nothing Phone 3a: $379 at Nothing Tech - USA

Don't be put off by the fact that the best way to get the Nothing Phone 3a is through Nothing's U.S. beta program. This is a very capable phone that costs less than $400 but still delivers a dedicated telephoto lens that takes great zooms. The phone also lasts a long time on a charge and offers a distinctive design. You can also buy the Nothing Phone 3a through Amazon, though it costs more than you would pay at Nothing.

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That's not what convinced me to rethink my attitude toward Nothing, though. Rather, it's the amount of features Nothing packs into either device that makes these some of the best cheap phones you can buy right now.

Nothing Phone 3a models versus the competition

Both the Nothing Phone 3a and Nothing Phone 3a Pro undercut the $499 Pixel 9a on price. They'll also cost less than the Galaxy A56 when that $499 arrives in the U.S. (It's already on sale in other parts of the world.) And don't even get me started on the iPhone 16e, the cheapest iPhone you can buy that still manages to cost $179 more than the iPhone SE it replaces.

The thing is that, on paper at least, the Nothing phones boast some better specs despite costing less than the competition. Maybe not when it comes to chipsets, where the Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 powering either Nothing model can't keep up with the chipsets powering older midrange models from Google and Samsung, but in other areas where you're more likely to notice the difference.

I'm thinking mostly of the camera setup where the Nothing Phone 3a and Nothing Phone 3a Pro both come equipped with telephoto cameras — something you won't find on the Pixel 9a nor the Galaxy A56. The Nothing Phone 3a clearly turned out better phones than the cheap models I tested it against. And John's more definitive Nothing Phone 3a vs. Pixel 8a camera comparison found the Nothing model holding its own against one of the best camera phones you can buy for less than $500.

The latest Nothing models also excel at battery life. In our battery test, which involves having phones surf the web until they run out of power, the Nothing Phone 3a lasted 15 hours and 24 minutes, just missing a place on our best phone battery life list of the longest-lasting devices. The Nothing Phone 3a Pro topped the 14.5 hour mark.

To put those results in context, the Pixel 8a lasted 11 hours and 21 minutes on that same test. The Pixel 9a figures to do better, given that it's powered by a bigger battery, but it will really have to push things forward to equal the Nothing Phone 3a's time.

Giving up on AI

If there's an area where the Nothing Phone 3a and 3a Pro come up short compared to the Pixel A series devices and the iPhone 16e, it's AI features. There's an Essential Space tool on the Nothing phones for organizing screenshots and using AI to provide summaries and reminders based on the screenshots you capture. But it's not the most intuitive feature to use, and certainly not as extensive as the capabilities you're going to find on the Pixel 9a or iPhone 16e.

Then again, that's a trade-off some people might be willing to make for a cheap phone that doesn't skimp on more essential areas like cameras and battery. I find myself pretty ambivalent about mobile AI, having to remind myself to incorporate many of those features into my workflow. I didn't really miss things like writing tools or a more conversational digital assistant when I was testing the Nothing Phone 3a.

Rethinking midrange phones

Taking a step back from flagship phones in favor of cheaper midrange models used to entail a lot of sacrifices for that lower price tag, but not so much anymore. While Google's still a leader in this area, other phone makers are up to the challenge of providing more for less as well. And it's time to start including Nothing in that group.

More from Tom's Guide

• I just tried astrophotography on the Nothing Phone 3a Pro — and I'm shocked by the results
• Google Pixel 9a vs. OnePlus 13R: Which budget phone is better?
• Google Pixel 9a — reasons to buy and skip