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Nothing Phone (2a) confirmed to launch with Xiaomi Redmi Note 13 Pro Plus 5G rivalling chipset for rumoured €349 as fresh design shown in new leaked renders

The Phone (2a) is slated to arrive for €100 less than the Redmi Note 13 Pro Plus 5G. (Image source: @OnLeaks & SmartPrix)
The Phone (2a) is slated to arrive for €100 less than the Redmi Note 13 Pro Plus 5G. (Image source: @OnLeaks & SmartPrix)
Nothing has now lifted the lid on the chipset that will power the Nothing Phone (2a). Although the company insists otherwise, the Nothing Phone (2a) will feature a tweaked version of the MediaTek Dimensity SoC that powers the Xiaomi Redmi Note 13 Pro Plus. New Nothing Phone (2a) renders have now turned up online, too.
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Nothing has now revealed details about the chipset that will be powering its next smartphone, the Phone (2a). For context, Nothing, CEO Carl Pei, publicly denied that the Phone (2a) would utilise the Dimensity 7200, a modern MediaTek chipset that already powers devices like the Redmi Note 13 Pro Plus 5G (curr. $469 on Amazon). However, it turns out that while the Dimensity 7200 will not underpin the Phone (2a), a version of it will.

Specifically, Nothing has opted for the Dimensity 7200 Pro, which Pei described in the following terms to Digital Trends:

Built on TSMC's latest second-generation 4nm process technology, it effortlessly powers through any task with unparalleled power efficiency and blazing speed. Together, we have brought optimizations such as Smart Clean (+200% UFS read/write speed over prolonged usage) and Adaptive NTFS (+100% file transfer speeds with Windows computers, as our internal research shows this platform is important to our target user base), and have been able to reduce power consumption of specific components by up to 10%.

(Image source: @nothing)
(Image source: @nothing)

The Nothing CEO added that the Phone (2a) is also 18% more powerful and 16% less power-hungry than the Phone (1), over which he again describes as a 'clear upgrade'. Unfortunately, neither Nothing nor MediaTek have confirmed in what areas the Dimensity 7200 Pro surpasses the Dimensity 7200. Nonetheless, the former's latest teaser highlights that the new chipset will be joined by 12 GB of RAM, with '+ 8 GB RAM BOOSTER' merely a marketing term for an 8 GB page file/virtual memory rather than a secondary RAM solution.

Additionally, Nothing's photo appears to show two centrally-mounted rear-facing cameras, which can now be seen in new leaked renders supplied by @OnLeaks and SmartPrix. Mirroring recent hands-on leaks and looking nothing like @OnLeaks' previous render image, the Phone (2a) retains Nothing's Glyph Interface, which surrounds what could be a wireless charging coil. Currently, the Phone (2a) is rumoured to start at €349, with the company having already revealed a March 5 release date.

(Image source: @OnLeaks & SmartPrix)
(Image source: @OnLeaks & SmartPrix)
(Image source: @OnLeaks & SmartPrix)
(Image source: @OnLeaks & SmartPrix)
(Image source: @OnLeaks & SmartPrix)
(Image source: @OnLeaks & SmartPrix)
(Image source: @OnLeaks & SmartPrix)
(Image source: @OnLeaks & SmartPrix)
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> Expert Reviews and News on Laptops, Smartphones and Tech Innovations > News > News Archive > Newsarchive 2024 02 > Nothing Phone (2a) confirmed to launch with Xiaomi Redmi Note 13 Pro Plus 5G rivalling chipset for rumoured €349 as fresh design shown in new leaked renders
Alex Alderson, 2024-02-20 (Update: 2024-02-20)