Carl Pei’s expertise model Nothing has been rising over time and has step by step expanded its smartphone presence in varied segments. The firm has a wide range of smartphones to select from such because the CMF Phone 1, that’s priced as little as 15,999, or the marginally dated Phone 2, which acquired a everlasting worth minimize in December 2023 and was retailing at Rs. 39,999 (at present out of inventory) in India. It’s been a prolonged two-year wait, and Nothing lastly introduced the Phone 3, which for the primary time is positioned on the larger finish of the premium phase. It bypasses its non secular predecessor the Phone 2 in phrases of pricing and so, it now appears that Nothing is able to tackle the massive boys.
Once the cellphone was introduced, it was apparent that comparisons (whether or not pricing or options) needed to be drawn to see the place Carl Pei’s latest product stands. While the worldwide scene seems fairly completely different with what’s a restricted alternative of smartphones and types, issues in India all the time pan out fairly in another way given the quite a few Chinese manufacturers which are bought in our market.
Samsung Galaxy S collection in India wants no introduction. It’s been a premium staple for years and this yr Samsung added its all-new Galaxy S25 Edge to the lineup, which makes an attempt to reignite the skinny smartphone development. With the Nothing Phone 3 priced at Rs. 79,999 for the bottom variant, it makes good sense to match it with Samsung’s long-standing Galaxy S collection smartphone, the Galaxy S25, which is priced equally. So, let’s take a better take a look at what’s completely different between these two telephones.
Nothing’s Phone 3 does have an edge on the subject of pricing. The Phone 3 is priced Rs. 79,999 for the 12GB + 256GB variant with the top-end 16GB RAM + 512GB storage mannequin priced at Rs. 89,999. Indeed, the pricing is above and past Nothing’s normal worth vary even for its premium smartphones.
As for Samsung, the Galaxy S25 is priced at Rs. 74,999 for the bottom 12GB + 128GB variant, whereas the highest finish mannequin with 512GB storage is priced at Rs. 92,999.
Starting off with the fundamentals, the Nothing Phone 3 is out there in two finishes—White and Black. Samsung’s Galaxy S25 is out there in Navy, Ice Blue, Silver Shadow, and Mint. It can also be obtainable in some particular colors (on-line solely) that are Blue black, Coral purple, and Pink gold.
The Nothing Phone 3’s retro-modern design combine is kind of distinctive and follows the standard Nothing philosophy of reflecting what’s contained in the cellphone, however in a delicate manner. The oddly positioned digital camera structure first revealed with the Phone 3a Pro, will get even crazier with no digital camera island or module on the Phone 3. The handset will get particular person cameras coming out of the flush and clear rear glass panel. Their placement can also be very random though there’s a sure symmetry to the rear panel’s design. The LED flash can also be effectively hid in this “abstract art piece”. And the tiny purple field glows when a video is being recorded. Of course, such a design isn’t everybody’s cup of tea, however that doesn’t imply it will not discover takers who’re in search of one thing greater than a slab of glass.
And after all, there’s the brand new Glyph Matrix, a smaller, round show, consisting of 489 individually controllable micro LEDs. According to Nothing, it may be used to show animations, charging standing, notifications, time, and extra. Nothing’s engineers have additionally added some widget-like mini instruments known as Glyph Toys, which have video games like Spin the bottle, Glyph Mirror, Magic 8 Ball and extra.
In quick, it is a enjoyable (and distracting) method to view caller ID, battery standing (and extra) when you do not wish to flip the cellphone over. The Glyph Matrix is managed by a button embedded into the rear panel slightly below. Strangely, the mini video games on Glyph Matrix additionally remind me of the Playdate, a hand-cranked gaming system. The Playdate (by Panic Inc) was additionally designed by Teenage Engineering.
Samsung’s design is kind of the distinction; there’s actually nothing to take a look at across the again other than the three rear-facing cameras which have switched from a single digital camera module to particular person floating rings over the previous few years. At 162g the Samsung Galaxy S25 is a lightweight and compact flagship. The greater Galaxy S25+ weighs 190g which isn’t too heavy both. But each of those are nonetheless lighter than the Nothing Phone 3 which weighs 218g. Both telephones in this comparability supply an IP68 score for mud and water resistance.
Nothing’s Phone 3 has a 6.67-inch AMOLED panel with a decision of 1,260 x 2,800 pixels (460 ppi). Strangely it is not of the LTPO selection however an LTPS panel, that means its refresh fee can’t drop to 1Hz when idle to avoid wasting battery life.
The Galaxy S25’s panel is a smaller 6.15-inch panel on account of its compact dimensions. It has a 1,080 x 2,340 pixels (FHD+) (416 ppi) Super AMOLED LTPO panel with a 120Hz refresh fee. Indeed, each panels are spectacular, however Samsung’s is extra energy environment friendly due to the underlying LTPO expertise.
The Nothing Phone 3 has a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8s Gen 4 SoC, which gives a most clock pace of 3.2GHz and is constructed utilizing the 4nm course of. It is a just lately launched processor from Qualcomm, however not the flagship chipset at present obtainable. The Nothing Phone 3 runs on Nothing OS, a customized model of Android 15. The interface may be very completely different in comparison with what you will notice on most Android-powered smartphones. It’s tastefully made however falls quick on the subject of AI instruments and options. Nothing claims that the cellphone will get 5 years of software program updates and seven years of safety patches.
Samsung alternatively makes use of the flagship Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite SoC, which gives a most clock pace of 4.47GHz (as a result of it is customised for Samsung). It is the processor of alternative for many of the high-end premium Android flagships on sale at present. Samsung’s One UI 7 relies on Android 15 and gives a ton of AI methods utilizing each Google’s AI and Samsung Galaxy AI fashions. Samsung prides itself on its 7 + 7 years of software program and safety patches.
When you take a look at their specs on paper, the Nothing Phone 3 does have an edge over the Samsung Galaxy S25. It incorporates a 50-megapixel main digital camera with OIS, a 50-megapixel periscope telephoto digital camera with OIS and 3X optical zoom, and a 50-megapixel ultrawide digital camera. There can also be a 50-megapixel selfie digital camera on the entrance.
Samsung has used the very same digital camera setup from the Galaxy S23 (2023) in the Galaxy S25 in 2025. This consists of a 50-megapixel (OIS) main digital camera, a 10-megapixel (OIS) 3X telephoto digital camera, and a 12-megapixel ultrawide digital camera. Selfies are additionally dealt with by a 12-megapixel digital camera, which has PDAF.
Nothing Phone 3 has a 5,500mAh battery for the Indian market (5,150mAh for worldwide mannequin). It’s not of the silicon carbon selection just like the Chinese producers have at present adopted, however a daily Li-ion cell. Thankfully, the Nothing Phone 3 helps 65W wired charging and 15W wi-fi charging.
Samsung’s Galaxy S25 and Galaxy S25+ supply 4,000mAh and 4,900mAh batteries respectively. These could seem a bit too low in phrases of capability, however each telephones are powered by a really environment friendly 3nm processor. The Galaxy S25 limits wired charging speeds to a quite sluggish 25W, whereas the Galaxy S25+ will get a barely higher 45W wired charging. Both S25 fashions supply 15W wired charging.
Indeed, many may have conflicting opinions in regards to the Nothing Phone 3’s polarising design. For all you understand, the design was meant to evoke such reactions and turn out to be a speaking level. But there is not any denying that the Nothing Phone 3 seems very completely different and distinctive in comparison with any smartphone beneath and above this worth level.
Once you get previous that design there’s loads of odd {hardware} selections to take a look at. But because it at present seems, these selections appear ample to ship a premium smartphone expertise, not less than on paper.
Samsung’s Galaxy S25 has been the go-to cellphone for a lot of generations, however little has modified over time (particularly its digital camera {hardware}). And so the Phone 3 certain looks like the proper alternative for Nothing to get in there and make an impression, whether or not or not the cellphone will discover consumers at its quite premium launch worth.
Samsung Galaxy S25 vs Nothing Phone 3 comparability
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Key Specs | ||
Display | 6.20-inch | 6.67-inch |
Processor | Snapdragon 8 Elite | – |
Front Camera | 12-megapixel | 50-megapixel |
Rear Camera | 50-megapixel + 12-megapixel + 10-megapixel | 50-megapixel + 50-megapixel + 50-megapixel |
RAM | 12GB | 12GB, 16GB |
Storage | 256GB, 512GB | 256GB, 512GB |
Battery Capacity | 4000mAh | 5500mAh |
OS | Android 15 | Android 15 |
Resolution | 1080×2340 pixels | 1260×2800 pixels |