Nothing will launch its debut smartphone later this year, its CEO and former OnePlus co-founder Carl Pei announced today during a live stream. It’ll be called the Phone 1, running Android, and be powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon processor.
The Phone 1 will be the company’s second product following the release of its Ear 1 true wireless earbuds last year. A short teaser trailer released today suggests that the phone could have a series of light strips built into its back, while a previous report claimed it could feature transparent design elements like the company’s earbuds.
But Nothing isn’t ready to talk specs or price of Phone 1. Carl Pei was coy about what function these light strips could serve in the final device. Could we be looking at a new take on the notification light, which was once a standard-issue across numerous Blackberry and Android phones, including some from OnePlus?
When it comes to software, Nothing is releasing a series of images of Nothing OS (see featured image), the Android skin it plans to ship on the Phone 1. The images don’t reveal much about what the software might be able to do, but Pei is keen to emphasize its look, which very consciously lines up with the rest of Nothing’s branding. The interface is a sea of black, white, and red that leans heavily on the dotted font that Nothing uses for its logo.
Nothing’s press release says the Phone 1’s Nothing OS will distill Android to “just the essentials, where every byte has a purpose.” Just like Apple, Nothing aims to create products with a singularly focused design language across everything from hardware to software so that there could never be any confusion about them coming from another company.
The company CEO said that his desire is to compete with Apple and the broad ecosystem often referred to as its “walled garden.” Similar to Apple, whose ecosystem mixes first-party devices like phones, laptops, and true wireless earbuds etc. So, Nothing wants its phone to seamlessly control its Nothing-branded earbuds while also being able to control other products like a Tesla car or Apple’s AirPods.
