So, if you bought the Nothing Phone (2a) 2 years ago, would you still be happy using it today? Because when this phone was first launched, there was a lot of hype, a lot of design flex, and a lot of people saying, “Honestly, this is all the phone you need.”
But fast forward to 2026, phones today are faster, brighter, and louder, at least on paper. So, the real question is, does it feel good to use or does it finally feel like a budget phone that has been aged out?
So by the end of this article, you know whether or not this is a phone worth keeping, buying it used, or completely skipping. So watch first and buy smart.
Design & Build
So the design is still the biggest reason people talk about this phone. The transparent back, the industrial look, and the minimal branding. Even 2 years later, it still doesn’t look like anything else within this price range.
And that is of course the key point because Nothing obviously didn’t design this phone to blend in. They designed it to stand out.
In terms of durability, after 2 years, the plastic frame does not show any signs of wear. Micro scratches are of course common, especially if you don’t use a phone case, which I usually don’t.
But structurally, the phone holds up pretty well. No creaking, no loose buttons, no weird flex, and the Glyph Lights are still working fine, and surprisingly, they haven’t aged poorly.
The LEDs haven’t dimmed and they still function very well for notifications and calls. So, yes, from a design perspective, the Nothing Phone (2a) actually ages better than most budget or mid-range phones.
But one thing that I was really glad didn’t happen on this phone is the battery didn’t go all bloaty. You know, that thing where the phone starts swelling, the back lifts, and suddenly the phone becomes basically unusable. Because let’s be honest, that is something that has been happening for the past few years for other phones. And yes, I’m looking at you Samsung and Xiaomi.
That being said, using this phone after 2 years is not completely perfect. Over time, you start noticing small things like the vibration motor feels weaker compared to newer phones. So, the haptics don’t feel as tight or refined anymore.
Nothing dealbreaking, but these little frictions slowly remind you that this is a mid-range phone that is getting older.
And that being said, in terms of reliability, this phone has been solid. Call quality has been consistent. No random call drops because yes, I did insert my SIM card in the phone.
Then the Wi-Fi and the Bluetooth became stable and so was GPS when I was using Waze or even Google Maps.
So yes, it’s a kind of phone that just works dayto-day and that matters a lot more over long-term use than raw specs.
Display
When it comes to the display, the Nothing Phone (2a) has a 6.7-inch AMOLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate and a Full HD+ resolution. 2 years later, this screen is still very good. Not flagship good, but definitely good enough.
Brightness is quite decent indoors and acceptable outdoors. However, under direct sunlight, you will notice it is a little dimmer and it struggles compared to a newer mid-range phone.
But the bezels on this though, it does show its age because it’s almost as thick as my eyebrows. But of course, the 120Hz refresh rate still makes the phone feel smooth, especially when scrolling through social media, web pages, and of course, the overall system animations.
But of course, the battery efficiency does take a hit compared to newer displays, but that is not a dealbreaker.
So yes, overall it is still a screen that is comfortable to watch things like YouTube, Netflix, and TikTok. But of course, when it comes to using it daily, I had no issues with this screen quality.
Performance
So performance is definitely an area I’m sure most of you want to know the most because this Nothing Phone (2a) runs on the MediaTek Dimensity 7200 Pro chipset. Back in 2024, this particular chipset was positioned as a very efficient mid-range chip. 2 years later, expectations have definitely changed.
For daily use, this phone is still completely usable. App launches are reasonably quick. Multitasking is fine. Scrolling is smooth most of the time, but you will notice the occasional stutters, especially when switching between gaming apps or if the phone has been running for long periods.
And this mostly comes down to the aging hardware limits. Because apps today are heavier, background processes are also more demanding. And as your storage fills up and more apps stay in memory, you can feel the phone working harder to keep up. It’s not exactly broken, per se, but yes, it is showing its age.
Speaking of gaming, or the gaming performance, it is pretty much the same as before. Games like COD Mobile and Honor of Kings run smoothly at the higher settings. Battery drain and heat buildup are also very minimal thanks to the overall efficiency of the chipset and that was a huge positive especially for a phone within this price range and of course the age as well.
But more demanding games like Genshin Impact will require lower graphics and also capped frame rates. So, if you’re buying this phone today mainly for gaming, this might not be the best fit for you. You can still game on it, but just lower your expectations a bit.
But if you’re not using this mainly for gaming, but just using this for everyday use or if you’re a student or if you just need a smooth phone for daily tasks, this still holds up.
Software Experience & Nothing OS
Next, let’s talk about the software because this is one of the biggest reasons the Nothing Phone (2a) still feels very relevant 2 years later. The phone is launched with a clean version of Nothing OS and over time, it has also received the latest Nothing OS 4.0 which was a very meaningful update.
The Nothing Phone (2a) comes with a guaranteed long-term support where you’re getting 3 years of major Android OS updates which means that the official support goes all the way to Android 17. On top of that, Nothing is also committed to 4 years of security patches.
For a phone that has launched in this price segment, it is actually very respectable, especially when many competitors struggle to even promise consistent updates. Because all in all, the Nothing OS 4.0 update really brought a more refined and a mature version of Nothing’s design language.
Animations are smoother, transitions feel better, and the overall UI feels more cohesive compared to the earlier versions. Multitasking is also noticeably better, and Nothing OS 4.0 has also improved the pop-up window handling, making it easier to reply to messages, or keep a small app floating while doing something else. It is not flashy but genuinely improves daily usability.
Then customization also gets a boost where you get more widget size options, cleaner lock screen controls and improved systemwide theming. And all of that still sticks closely to Nothing’s dot-matrix aesthetic.
Then dark mode is also more consistent for the software, which not only looks better on an AMOLED display but also helps with a slightly better battery efficiency during long usage.
On top of that the Glyph interface also has slightly improved as well. Notification timers and system alerts feel more purposeful instead of it being a visual gimmick. You end up checking your phone less because of the fact that you don’t have to always look at your screen. And that is the whole idea that Nothing wants you to do.
If you care for long-term software experience, this phone definitely punches above its weight. But one thing that you won’t find over here is the heavy on-device AI features that 2026 flagships or even mid-range are pushing.
So, if you don’t care about things like AI, photo features, or live translations, you aren’t missing much. But it is something worth noting, especially if you’re someone who really needs such features.
Camera
So, as a recap, the Nothing Phone (2a) has a 50MP f/1.9 main camera and a 50MP f/2.2 ultrawide camera. Yep, two very useful lenses, something that a lot of phones try to mask by having three, four, five cameras with useless lenses. So, it’s nice that N othing has stuck to these very good lenses.
Both lenses have OIS and also EIS on it. So, those are indeed really good specs for a 2-year-old phone and 2 years later, the camera experience is still fine. Not amazingly great, but at the same time, not terrible either, as seen in these sample photos.
In terms of the quality, Nothing, pun intended, has changed much since I reviewed this phone back in 2024 because what matters more over here is consistency because focus is still reliable. The camera app has not crashed, which is great.
The shutter response is also good and is a bit more predictable, which matters more for long-term than chasing aggressive processing. And of course, you won’t be winning any awards with this camera anytime soon, but it’s more than good enough for things like Instagram or TikTok.
However, some users have actually said online that a new Nothing OS 4.0 update has affected the phone’s overall image processing, but to me, I didn’t see a lot of differences or any issues over here. And while some say that the processing has changed, I think that it has become more consistent than before.
If you find that HDR is a bit heavy, remember that you can always toggle the HDR settings in the camera menu to give a more natural look.
Then, video-wise, the Nothing Phone (2a) still shoots pretty decent videos, where it can go up to 4K 30fps, which did look great, especially for social media situations.
But one thing that I’m still never the biggest fan of is the fact that the video selfie can only record up to 1080p. So, this might not be the best choice if you’re thinking about doing a lot of vlogging, especially in the year 2026.
Sound
As for the phone’s sound quality or the speakers, the reason why I’m highlighting it is because as I said before, this phone has some seriously loud speakers. Even today, I can’t help to feel amazed by how much volume that this phone has.
However, when it comes to listening to music, if you’re looking for that nice audio separation when it comes to listening to different types of music, you won’t get that proper depth on it because yes, they are loud, but not so much on a stereo separation or the overall control of the music.
So, yes, if you’re looking for a phone that has a very nice loudspeaker, then yes, this definitely packs an audio punch.
Battery
Then the battery life on this when using it daily was quite surprising though because firstly it comes with 5,000 mAh of battery which at that time was the biggest battery capacity on any Nothing Phone.
But if you look at it, even the Nothing Phone (3a) had 5,000 mAh. So, it is still very impressive for today’s standards. And when they released this phone, they claimed that it could maintain over 90% of the maximum capacity after 3 years of daily charging.
And while I was honestly not using this phone every single day for the past 3 years, the good news is that the screen on time that I got was roughly about 5 and 1/2 hours, which was really good for a phone that is over 2 years old.
And while you are not getting wireless charging on the phone, but at least there’s also 45W of wired charging that can still charge up to 50% in just 20+ minutes.
Is It Still Worth Purchasing in 2026?
So, should you buy the Nothing Phone (2a) in the year 2026? Well, at launch, the Nothing Phone (2a) was priced at RM1,699 (~USD433).
Fast forward to 2026, you can find this phone at around RM900 to RM1,200 (~USD305) and brand new as well. So, don’t bother buying this used when you can find ones online like on Shopee and Lazada.
However, at this particular price point, you’re also competing with newer phones that offer faster performance and newer hardware, but those phones may come with heavier software, ads, or even weaker update promises.
So this really becomes a trade-off between raw specs versus long-term experience. So yes, the good news is that the Nothing Phone (2a) has aged well in design, software, but its performance and the overall limitations when it comes to performance are quite obvious in the year 2026.
But it is still usable and still smooth enough and very much enjoyable because you’re getting a good AMOLED display, a solid battery life, reliable when it comes to daily tasks, and one of the cleanest Android skins out there.
And remember, you’ll also be getting another OS update and also 2 years of security patches. So, if you’re a student or a casual user, or someone who wants a clean Android experience without bloat, or looking for a phone that won’t burn your wallet, this phone is a good buy.
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