Nothing Phone (1) to have a 120Hz screen, but not the fanciest one
Building up to the Nothing Phone (1) announcement, which has been scheduled for July 12, Carl Pei's new phone company is seemingly keen on spilling the beans on all there is to the device up front. Not that we're complaining, though it will surely hurt the hype surrounding the device, but these little bits and pieces are helping us paint a rather complete picture of the upcoming device.
Now, the company has confirmed that a 120Hz screen will be found at the front of the phone. Have in mind that this happened through a TikTok video, which is certainly one of the better ways to get in touch with the younger generation. The video has already been viewed more than 1.3 million times, which is some great engagement no matter the platform! It also gives us a first look at some of the custom ringtones that uses will be able to set on their Nothing devices.
One of the things that becomes evident in the video is the fact that you won't be able to manually select the refresh rate: you're only presented with a toggle that switches to 120Hz in select scenarios. This possibly means that the display isn't of the LTPO (low-temperature polycrystalline oxide) type but of the LTPS (low-temperature polycrystalline silicon) type, which doesn't support dynamic transition between refresh rates. With LTPS, the screen is either set at 60Hz, 90Hz, or 120Hz, with no in-between; whereas modern LTPO displays (like the one on the Galaxy S22 Ultra and others) can go as low as 1Hz and dynamically scale up to 120Hz.
Still, this makes sense given the upper mid-range nature of the Nothing Phone (1).
We've kind of expected a 120Hz display to be making the rounds on the Nothing Phone (1), but this official confirmation definitely comes off as reassuring nonetheless. Some of the rest of the specs of the device have been slightly polarizing, as most people erroneously assumed that the first phone Carl Pei's Nothing releases will be a decked-out flagship device with the latest and greatest Snapdragon chipset.
On the contrary, the Nothing Phone (1) will be an upper mid-range affair with a Snapdragon 778G+ chipset, a 6.6-inch 1080p display panel, 50MP main and a 16MP ultra-wide camera, and available in two versions, one with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage, and another one with 12GB of RAM and 256GB of storage.
Leaked Amazon listings also gave us even better idea what to expect from the phone price-wise: the entry level 8GB/128GB version could start at €469.99, or about $490 with the Nothing Ear 1 buds in tow, while the top-tier version with 12GB/256GB version could start at €549.99, or roughly $575, with the earbuds included. As per the leaked listings, the Nothing Phone could be available sometime in October 2022, which isn't that far off anyway and could put it directly against the Google Pixel 6a.
Sadly, the phone will skip the US altogether and only launch in handful of markets around the globe, namely the EU, the UK, and India. Surely, the Nothing Phone (1) is just the first step for Carl Pei's new company, and it's more than logical to assume that any future devices of the company could enjoy a much wider rollout. After all, don't forget the roots of OnePlus, the company Carl Pei developed from the ground up - it used an invite system in the beginning, but once it got enough traction, you can already find it in a store near you, even in the US.
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