When we learned today that Nothing’s launch of the new Nothing Phone (3a) Lite didn’t include the US, it was a bit of a shock. Granted, it’s the budget version of the budget version —the Phone (3a) —of another smartphone, the Phone (3), but we hadn’t heard any rumblings that it wouldn’t come to American shores.
But since you can buy the $379 Nothing Phone (3a) in the US, how much are you really missing out on?
Nothing Phone (3a) (opens in a new window)
Available at Walmart
Buy Now (opens in a new window)
Available at Nothing
Buy Now (opens in a new window)
Available at Amazon
Buy Now (opens in a new window)
comparing nothing to nothing
Right off the bat, let’s talk RAM. RAM is short-term memory, and more of it allows you to run more apps and services at the same time. It also enables you to run more performance-intensive software, such as video games with realistic graphics and serious photo or video editing apps.
The Phone (3a) Lite is only available with 8GB of RAM, while the Phone (3a) comes with 12GB of RAM as standard. The former also packs a Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 5G processor, while the latter has a MediaTek Dimensity 7300 Pro 5G processor, but both have an identical 2.5 GHz clock speed.
The two phones have the same 5,000 mAh batteries, 6.77″ AMOLED screens with 120Hz refresh rate, 50-megapixel main camera, and an eight-megapixel ultra-wide lens. The regular Phone (3a) adds a 50-megapixel zoom lens, though, and the Lite has a 2-megapixel macro in its place. Hand that win, too, to the Phone (3a).
The Phone (3a) Lite’s price tag is £249 / €249 for the variant with 128GB of storage and £279 / €289 for the variant with 256GB of storage.
Conversion rates to US dollars fluctuate a bit from day to day, and they’re different for British pounds and Euros, but that comes out to roughly $290-330 for the 128GB version and $335-370 for the 256GB version, with British customers paying toward the higher end of those ranges and European customers toward the lower end.
Neither is all that much cheaper than the $379 base price of the Nothing Phone (3a) that sits above the Lite version, and which you can buy in the US. If the Lite had come to the US, it wouldn’t necessarily have the exact same prices as its British or European counterparts, but it gives us a rough idea of what the phone would’ve cost.
All that said, it doesn’t seem like we’re missing out on much. The Nothing Phone (3a) is a superior phone, and it’s only a tiny bit pricier than what the Phone (3a) Lite would’ve cost had it arrived here.
Nothing Phone (3a) (opens in a new window)
Available at Walmart
Buy Now (opens in a new window)
Available at Nothing
Buy Now (opens in a new window)
Available at Amazon
Buy Now (opens in a new window)
The post The Nothing Phone (3a) and Phone (3a) Lite Compared. Which One Is Right for You? appeared first on VICE.
