Verdict on the Nothing Phone (4a)
The Nothing Phone (4a) is a sensible evolution of its successful predecessor, without representing a real revolution. The significantly brighter display, strong everyday performance from the new Snapdragon processor and improved camera setup with periscope zoom stand out in particular, with the latter being a genuine highlight in this price class. Battery life, design and the individually customisable Glyph lighting also leave a good impression.
In everyday use, the smartphone impresses with smooth operation, good build quality and modern features such as 5G, Wi-Fi 6 and NFC. The main and zoom cameras deliver strong results in good lighting conditions, while the ultra-wide-angle camera is rather weak.
The main criticism concerns the update policy: three Android updates now seem somewhat limited. In addition, there is no eSIM support outside Japan, and the speakers and cooling do not reach genuinely top-tier levels. The device can also become quite warm under load.
Pros
Cons
Price and availability
The Nothing Phone (4a) is available directly from Nothing, as well as from retailers such as Amazon and Coolblue.
In Germany, it is offered in four colours and three storage variants, with RRPs of €349 for the 8/128 GB model, €389 for the 8/256 GB version and €429 for the 12/256 GB configuration. Prices, availability and available colour/storage options may vary by region.
- $453.34Nothing Phone (4a) Pro Cell Phone 2026 New, Unlocked Android 16 Smartphone, Triple-Lens Camera, AI Photo Edits, 6.83" 144Hz AMOLED Display, 5080mAh Battery, Dual-SIM Glyph Matrix (Black, 8+128GB)
- $459.08Nothing Phone (4a) Pro Cell Phone 2026 New, Unlocked Android 16 Smartphone, Triple-Lens Camera, AI Photo Edits, 6.83" 144Hz AMOLED Display, 5080mAh Battery, Dual-SIM Glyph Matrix (Sliver, 8+128GB)
- $539.10Nothing Phone (4a) Pro Cell Phone 2026 New, Unlocked Android 16 Smartphone, Triple-Lens Camera, AI Photo Edits, 6.83" 144Hz AMOLED Display, 5080mAh Battery, Dual-SIM Glyph Matrix (Pink, 12+256GB)
Table of Contents
- Verdict on the Nothing Phone (4a)
- Specifications: Nothing Phone (4a)
- Case and features: eSIM support only for Japanese models
- Communication and operation: Nothing Phone (4a) with optical fingerprint sensor
- Software and sustainability: Only three Android updates for the Nothing smartphone
- Cameras: periscope zoom in the Phone (4a)
- Bright display with high-frequency PWM dimming
- Performance, emissions and battery life: modern 4 nm Snapdragon
- Notebookcheck overall rating
- Possible alternatives at a glance
The Nothing Phone (4a) follows on from the Phone (3a), which ultimately became something of a hidden gem in the mid-range segment, not least thanks to its falling price.
With the new model, Nothing has primarily improved the display brightness and storage speed. The battery capacity only increases significantly in the Indian model (5,400 mAh), and a periscope zoom lens has also been included for the first time.
Specifications: Nothing Phone (4a)
Case and features: eSIM support only for Japanese models
The Nothing Phone (4a) comes in four colours: black, white, blue and pink. Its build quality is impressive, with tight and even gaps. It also feels stable when subjected to twisting attempts, although it creaks audibly. The screen-to-body ratio is an attractive 87%.
The feature set has been improved with the new SoC and upgraded camera, but these are not major leaps compared with its predecessor. New on the back is the Glyph Bar, which now has more LEDs than on the Phone (3a) and can be extensively configured. The AI button has also moved to the left-hand side, making it easier to distinguish from the power button.
Communication and operation: Nothing Phone (4a) with optical fingerprint sensor
For its price class, the Nothing Phone (4a) is well equipped in terms of communication modules: fast Wi-Fi 6, 5G Sub-6 and NFC are all on board. For calls, it supports dual nano-SIM, Wi-Fi calling, VoLTE and Vo5G, but unfortunately no eSIM. Call quality is good when the phone is held to the ear, although the ambient noise suppression often reaches its limits in loud traffic noise.
Biometric security is handled by an optical fingerprint scanner integrated into the display, which offers good recognition rates and unlocks the smartphone quickly. Less secure facial recognition via the front-facing camera is also available. The linear vibration motor delivers crisp haptic feedback and can be adjusted in the settings.
| Networking | |
| Nothing Phone (4a) | |
| iperf3 transmit AXE11000 | |
| iperf3 receive AXE11000 | |
| Samsung Galaxy A36 5G | |
| iperf3 transmit AXE11000 | |
| iperf3 receive AXE11000 | |
| Xiaomi Poco M8 Pro 5G | |
| iperf3 transmit AXE11000 | |
| iperf3 receive AXE11000 | |
| iperf3 transmit AXE11000 6GHz | |
| iperf3 receive AXE11000 6GHz | |
| Honor 400 | |
| iperf3 transmit AXE11000 | |
| iperf3 receive AXE11000 | |
| Average 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax | |
| iperf3 transmit AXE11000 | |
| iperf3 receive AXE11000 | |
| iperf3 transmit AXE11000 6GHz | |
| iperf3 receive AXE11000 6GHz | |
| Average of class Smartphone | |
| iperf3 transmit AXE11000 | |
| iperf3 receive AXE11000 | |
| iperf3 transmit AXE11000 6GHz | |
| iperf3 receive AXE11000 6GHz | |
Software and sustainability: Only three Android updates for the Nothing smartphone
When it comes to sustainability, Nothing is comparatively transparent and provides some information about the recycled materials used, as well as the smartphone's CO2e footprint. The packaging is also plastic-free.
The update situation is more mixed: While six years of security patches is perfectly acceptable, there are only three years of Android updates. Android 19 will therefore be the end of the line.
Cameras: periscope zoom in the Phone (4a)
The Nothing Phone (4a)'s front-facing camera produces balanced shots in daylight and supports Full HD video at up to 60 FPS.
The trio on the back is unusually well equipped for this price class, as Nothing even offers a periscope zoom lens with 3.5x optical magnification (80 mm). Optical image stabilisation is also included, and both the main camera and zoom lens deliver attractive photos in good lighting conditions. The ultra-wide-angle camera lags somewhat behind in terms of quality and remains at the usual rather weak mid-range level.
The main and zoom sensors record videos in 4K/30 FPS or 1080p/60 FPS. Those who are content with Full HD at 30 FPS can also use the ultra-wide-angle camera. During video recording, the red Glyph LED flashes continuously to indicate that recording is in progress. The sound is a little tinny.
Image comparison
Choose a scene and navigate within the first image. One click changes the position on touchscreens. One click on the zoomed-in image opens the original in a new window. The first image shows the scaled photograph of the test device.
HauptkameraHauptkameraUltraweitwinkel5-facher ZoomLow-Light
Bright display with high-frequency PWM dimming
The Nothing Phone (4a)’s display has grown slightly to 6.78 inches and is considerably brighter than before. However, in our test, it did not come close to the peak brightness of 4,500 cd/m² advertised by Nothing.
The refresh rate can be dynamically adjusted by the system between 30 and 120 Hz. To reduce eye strain, Nothing uses high-frequency PWM dimming at 2,160 Hz, although we also measured a base flicker of 90 Hz, meaning that discomfort for sensitive users cannot be ruled out.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Brightness Distribution: 97 %
Center on Battery: 1536 cd/m²
Contrast: ∞:1 (Black: 0 cd/m²)
ΔE ColorChecker Calman: 2.6 | ∀{0.5-29.43 Ø4.74}
ΔE Greyscale Calman: 2 | ∀{0.09-98 Ø4.98}
99.9% sRGB (Calman 2D)
Gamma: 2.24
CCT: 6878 K
| Nothing Phone (4a) AMOLED, 2720x1224, 6.8" | Samsung Galaxy A36 5G Super AMOLED, 2340x1080, 6.7" | Xiaomi Poco M8 Pro 5G AMOLED, 2772x1280, 6.8" | Honor 400 OLED, 2736x1264, 6.6" | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Screen | 4% | 28% | 33% | |
| Brightness middle (cd/m²) | 1536 | 1127 -27% | 1791 17% | 1605 4% |
| Brightness (cd/m²) | 1538 | 1137 -26% | 1795 17% | 1607 4% |
| Brightness Distribution (%) | 97 | 98 1% | 99 2% | 96 -1% |
| Black Level * (cd/m²) | ||||
| Colorchecker dE 2000 * | 2.6 | 1.8 31% | 1.5 42% | 0.7 73% |
| Colorchecker dE 2000 max. * | 5.7 | 2.8 51% | 3.4 40% | 1.5 74% |
| Greyscale dE 2000 * | 2 | 2.1 -5% | 1 50% | 1.1 45% |
| Gamma | 2.24 98% | 2.11 104% | 2.23 99% | 2.24 98% |
| CCT | 6878 95% | 6466 101% | 6587 99% | 6422 101% |
* ... smaller is better
| Display / APL18 Peak Brightness | |
| Xiaomi Poco M8 Pro 5G | |
| Samsung Galaxy A36 5G | |
| Honor 400 | |
| Nothing Phone (4a) | |
| Display / HDR Peak Brightness | |
| Honor 400 | |
| Xiaomi Poco M8 Pro 5G | |
| Samsung Galaxy A36 5G | |
| Nothing Phone (4a) | |
Screen Flickering / PWM (Pulse-Width Modulation)
| Screen flickering / PWM detected | 90 Hz Amplitude: 17.49 % Secondary Frequency: 2173 Hz |  | |
The display backlight flickers at 90 Hz (worst case, e.g., utilizing PWM) . The frequency of 90 Hz is very low, so the flickering may cause eyestrain and headaches after extended use. In comparison: 52 % of all tested devices do not use PWM to dim the display. If PWM was detected, an average of 7864 (minimum: 5 - maximum: 343500) Hz was measured. | |||
Measurement series with fixed zoom level and different brightness settings (The amplitude curve at minimum brightness looks flat, but this is due to the scaling. The info box shows the enlarged version of the amplitude at minimum brightness)
Display Response Times
| ↔ Response Time Black to White | ||
|---|---|---|
| 0.99 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined | ↗ 0.497 ms rise |  |
| ↘ 0.49 ms fall | ||
| The screen shows very fast response rates in our tests and should be very well suited for fast-paced gaming. In comparison, all tested devices range from 0.1 (minimum) to 240 (maximum) ms. » 3 % of all devices are better. This means that the measured response time is better than the average of all tested devices (19.9 ms). | ||
| ↔ Response Time 50% Grey to 80% Grey | ||
| 8.18 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined | ↗ 0.3435 ms rise |  |
| ↘ 7.836 ms fall | ||
| The screen shows fast response rates in our tests and should be suited for gaming. In comparison, all tested devices range from 0.165 (minimum) to 636 (maximum) ms. » 21 % of all devices are better. This means that the measured response time is better than the average of all tested devices (31.2 ms). | ||
Performance, emissions and battery life: modern 4 nm Snapdragon
A Snapdragon 7s Gen 4 with an integrated Adreno 810 GPU powers the Nothing Phone (4a). The LPDDR4x memory may not be cutting-edge, but this is likely due to the memory crisis, and this type of RAM remains common in this price class. It has no noticeable impact on everyday performance, as the system runs very smoothly.
Under load, surface temperatures can approach 50 °C in places. While this is still within acceptable limits, it can feel very warm at times. The SoC appears unaffected by this, however, and consistently delivers its full performance.
The speakers deliver decent sound, but are unlikely to generate much enthusiasm. Battery life, on the other hand, is convincing. The Phone (4a) can also be recharged quite quickly via cable at up to 50 watts: A full charge took 65 minutes in our test (50%: 23 min., 80%: 39 min.).
| Jetstream 2 - 2.0 Total | |
| Xiaomi Poco M8 Pro 5G | |
| Average Qualcomm Snapdragon 7s Gen 4 (143.9 - 180.2, n=2) | |
| Average of class Smartphone (59.7 - 423, n=129, last 2 years) | |
| Samsung Galaxy A36 5G | |
| Honor 400 | |
| Nothing Phone (4a) | Samsung Galaxy A36 5G | Xiaomi Poco M8 Pro 5G | Honor 400 | Average 256 GB UFS 3.1 Flash | Average of class Smartphone | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AndroBench 3-5 | -59% | -40% | 14% | -6% | 15% | |
| Sequential Read 256KB (MB/s) | 2003.93 | 968.34 -52% | 1009.1 -50% | 1962.46 -2% | 1768 ? -12% | 2231 ? 11% |
| Sequential Write 256KB (MB/s) | 1596.2 | 166.77 -90% | 993.91 -38% | 1812.5 14% | 1225 ? -23% | 1910 ? 20% |
| Random Read 4KB (MB/s) | 263.22 | 233.98 -11% | 183.57 -30% | 333.34 27% | 289 ? 10% | 306 ? 16% |
| Random Write 4KB (MB/s) | 325.75 | 62.58 -81% | 187.74 -42% | 377.57 16% | 325 ? 0% | 361 ? 11% |
(-) The maximum temperature on the upper side is 49.9 °C / 122 F, compared to the average of 35.3 °C / 96 F, ranging from 21.9 to 247 °C for the class Smartphone.
(-) The bottom heats up to a maximum of 47.5 °C / 118 F, compared to the average of 34 °C / 93 F
(+) In idle usage, the average temperature for the upper side is 31.1 °C / 88 F, compared to the device average of 32.9 °C / 91 F.
3DMark stress tests
| 3DMark | |
| Wild Life Stress Test Stability | |
| Honor 400 | |
| Nothing Phone (4a) | |
| Samsung Galaxy A36 5G | |
| Xiaomi Poco M8 Pro 5G | |
| Wild Life Extreme Stress Test | |
| Nothing Phone (4a) | |
| Xiaomi Poco M8 Pro 5G | |
| Samsung Galaxy A36 5G | |
| Steel Nomad Light Stress Test Stability | |
| Honor 400 | |
| Xiaomi Poco M8 Pro 5G | |
| Nothing Phone (4a) | |
Nothing Phone (4a) audio analysis
(+) | speakers can play relatively loud (89.3 dB)
Bass 100 - 315 Hz
(-) | nearly no bass - on average 21.5% lower than median
(±) | linearity of bass is average (7.7% delta to prev. frequency)
Mids 400 - 2000 Hz
(±) | higher mids - on average 6.1% higher than median
(+) | mids are linear (4.7% delta to prev. frequency)
Highs 2 - 16 kHz
(+) | balanced highs - only 3.6% away from median
(+) | highs are linear (4.1% delta to prev. frequency)
Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz
(±) | linearity of overall sound is average (16% difference to median)
Compared to same class
» 5% of all tested devices in this class were better, 5% similar, 90% worse
» The best had a delta of 11%, average was 34%, worst was 134%
Compared to all devices tested
» 25% of all tested devices were better, 5% similar, 70% worse
» The best had a delta of 4%, average was 24%, worst was 134%
Samsung Galaxy A36 5G audio analysis
(+) | speakers can play relatively loud (90.5 dB)
Bass 100 - 315 Hz
(-) | nearly no bass - on average 26.4% lower than median
(±) | linearity of bass is average (7.3% delta to prev. frequency)
Mids 400 - 2000 Hz
(±) | reduced mids - on average 6.1% lower than median
(+) | mids are linear (4.3% delta to prev. frequency)
Highs 2 - 16 kHz
(+) | balanced highs - only 3% away from median
(+) | highs are linear (1.8% delta to prev. frequency)
Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz
(±) | linearity of overall sound is average (17.9% difference to median)
Compared to same class
» 16% of all tested devices in this class were better, 8% similar, 76% worse
» The best had a delta of 11%, average was 34%, worst was 134%
Compared to all devices tested
» 37% of all tested devices were better, 8% similar, 55% worse
» The best had a delta of 4%, average was 24%, worst was 134%
| Battery runtime - WiFi v1.3 | |
| Nothing Phone (4a) | |
| Samsung Galaxy A36 5G | |
| Xiaomi Poco M8 Pro 5G | |
| Honor 400 | |
Notebookcheck overall rating
The Nothing Phone (4a) impresses as a stylish mid-range smartphone with a strong display, good performance, long battery life and a surprisingly good zoom camera, but falls short when it comes to its update policy.
Nothing Phone (4a)
- 05/12/2026 v8
Daniel Schmidt
Total Sustainability Score: Possible alternatives at a glance
Image | Model / Review | Price | Weight | Drive | Display |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1. 78.6%  | Nothing Phone (4a) Qualcomm Snapdragon 7s Gen 4 ⎘ Qualcomm Adreno 810 ⎘ 12 GB Memory, 256 GB | Amazon: List Price: 429€ | 204.5 g | 256 GB UFS 3.1 Flash | 6.78" 2720x1224 440 PPI AMOLED |
2. 78%  | Samsung Galaxy A36 5G Qualcomm Snapdragon 6 Gen 3 ⎘ Qualcomm Adreno 710 ⎘ 6 GB Memory, 256 GB | Amazon: List Price: 379€ | 195 g | 256 GB UFS 3.1 Flash | 6.70" 2340x1080 385 PPI Super AMOLED |
3. 79.1%  | Xiaomi Poco M8 Pro 5G Qualcomm Snapdragon 7s Gen 4 ⎘ Qualcomm Adreno 810 ⎘ 12 GB Memory, 512 GB UFS 2.1 | Amazon: $380.00 List Price: 400 Euro | 206 g | 512 GB UFS 2.2 Flash | 6.83" 2772x1280 447 PPI AMOLED |
4. 80.5%  | Honor 400 Qualcomm Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 ⎘ Qualcomm Adreno 720 ⎘ 8 GB Memory, 512 GB | Amazon: List Price: 550€ | 184 g | 512 GB UFS 3.1 Flash | 6.55" 2736x1264 460 PPI OLED |
Transparency
The selection of devices to be reviewed is made by our editorial team. The test sample was given to the author by the manufacturer free of charge for the purposes of review. There was no third-party influence on this review, nor did the manufacturer receive a copy of this review before publication. There was no obligation to publish this review. As an independent media company, Notebookcheck is not subjected to the authority of manufacturers, retailers or publishers.
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Every year, Notebookcheck independently reviews hundreds of laptops and smartphones using standardized procedures to ensure that all results are comparable. We have continuously developed our test methods for around 20 years and set industry standards in the process. In our test labs, high-quality measuring equipment is utilized by experienced technicians and editors. These tests involve a multi-stage validation process. Our complex rating system is based on hundreds of well-founded measurements and benchmarks, which maintains objectivity. Further information on our test methods can be found here.
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