Not anything did issues otherwise with its 3rd era of telephones. First got here the midrange Not anything Telephone 3a (and 3a Professional), which mixed trendy {hardware} with a aggressive value. Now, the corporate has introduced the Not anything Telephone 3, which it is calling its first “true flagship.” At $799, it is Not anything’s most costly telephone but, that includes a larger display screen, 4 50-megapixel cameras and a significant redesign of the corporate’s signature Glyph interface, which has advanced into the extra compact Glyph Matrix.
Not anything’s {hardware} design is what in reality units its telephones excluding the established avid gamers, and the 2025 type is extra elaborate and sophisticated than ever. At this value, alternatively, it faces stiff pageant from entry-level flagships just like the Galaxy S25 and iPhone 16. Past the inventions and low gimmicks, has Not anything nailed the basics sufficient to compete?
Not anything / Engadget
The Not anything Telephone 3 may well be the corporate’s first “true flagship,” however a number of specifications don’t fit that flagship moniker. The larger display screen, battery and new Glyph Matrix make it a significant step up from Telephone 2, however digicam efficiency is erratic and also you’d be expecting a extra tough processor at this value.
- Giant, vivid show
- Distinctive {hardware} and device design
- Giant silicon-carbon battery
- Digital camera efficiency is erratic
- Middling processor
{Hardware} and design
As soon as once more, Not anything has made a telephone that instructions consideration like no different. All over I’m going, persons are curious after they see me the use of the Telephone 3, and the Glyph Matrix turns out to each confuse and enjoyment them.
In contrast to the sticking out digicam unit at the Not anything Telephone 3a Professional, the Telephone 3’s 3 cameras are one by one lodged within the again and jut out a fragment of a millimeter. The see-through external returns, exhibiting screws and {hardware} modules arranged into 3 vertical rows. This time, it’s extra obvious that it is a design flourish somewhat than a real glimpse into the telephone’s parts. As an example, a curious semi-circle of frosted glass underneath the flash does not appear to have a function (past a classy one).
In other places, a purple sq. subsequent to the ultrawide digicam now acts as a recording gentle. It is some other captivating contact that may be disabled within the settings for those who to find it distracting. The off-center telephoto digicam lens may also irk symmetry enthusiasts, however it is a selection that I do not in particular thoughts. The Telephone 3 is eighteen % thinner than the Telephone 2 and, with out the digicam bump of the 3a Professional, it seems and feels a step above its predecessors.
The principle enchantment is the Glyph Matrix: a round dot-matrix show product of 489 LEDs that displays easy notifications, the time and battery point. Whilst some dependable enthusiasts may omit the daring gentle display of earlier fashions, this iteration is way more helpful. As an alternative of a barrage of flashing lighting fixtures, the Matrix can inform you who is asking via distinctive patterns and, with long run updates, customized artwork assigned on your contacts.
Not anything continues to lean into its unfashionable tech design inspiration, and I’m going to admit I am a sucker for it. The dot-matrix textual content and numbers align completely with Not anything’s Android pores and skin, making all of the tool really feel cohesive. A capacitive haptic Glyph button underneath the Matrix permits you to cycle via notifications and gear. Interactions are easy: a brief press to modify modes or a protracted press to start out gear just like the stopwatch.
Thankfully, you’ll be able to use the Telephone 3’s settings menu to assign Glyph Matrix gear and “toys.” Maximum of them are playful and frivolous, like Spin The Bottle and Magic 8 Ball, and Not anything is tapping into its group to create new Matrix widgets. Optimistically, capability will enlarge as extra customers get entangled. Some gear are much less helpful regardless that, like a degree that makes use of the telephone’s accelerometer for a pixelated readout. It simply turns out a bit of obscure; how a lot accuracy are you able to derive from lower than 500 pixels? Others are fairly slick, like a pixelated digicam readout for framing selfies.
With Very important Notifications, you’ll be able to assign particular app notifications or contacts to a novel trend or a pixelated photograph. On the other hand, it is difficult to create anything else that does not seem like a blurry mess. The similar settings menu lets you alter the Matrix’s brightness and the way lengthy the notifications persist.
The entrance of the Telephone 3 is all show, with a 6.67-inch display screen and a decision of two,800 x 1,260. When you want a big display screen, that is more than likely its greatest merit over the iPhone 16 and Galaxy S25. It’s additionally Not anything’s brightest telephone but, attaining as much as 4,500 nits for HDR content material — noticeably brighter than the Not anything Telephone 3a. It helps HDR 10+ and a 120Hz refresh fee, all secure through Gorilla Glass 7.
Cameras
Not anything has the basics coated with the Telephone 3’s cameras. The triple-camera gadget features a 50-megapixel f/1.7 major sensor with optical symbol stabilization, a 50MP ultrawide and a brand new 50MP telephoto digicam with 3x optical zoom.
As we famous in our Not anything Telephone 3a evaluation, telephoto cameras are uncommon on extra reasonably priced smartphones. At the Telephone 3, there’s a periscope zoom, protecting the digicam unit svelte and infrequently sticking out from the tool. It’s additionally spectacular to peer a 3x zoom paired with a high-resolution 50-megapixel sensor, which lets you crop into pictures whilst holding constancy. Not anything even added a 6x zoom button within the digicam app that plants the picture additional. The app additionally makes use of pixel-binning for extra correct colour and higher low-light photos through default, which leads to them being stored as 12-megapixel pictures.
Total, the digicam gadget is usually a little inconsistent. Right through a holiday in Amsterdam, the Telephone 3 captured crisp pictures of natural world and structure. Its Motion mode used to be in particular spectacular, without difficulty including movement blur to photographs whilst protecting the topic sharp. On the other hand, at different instances, what must had been colourful cityscape photographs and side road artwork got here out muted and grainy. As an example, psychedelic cat paintings that used to be extremely colourful in particular person seemed flat within the footage. The metadata printed the telephone had cranked up the ISO, a surroundings I have not needed to manually alter on a smartphone in years.Whilst some colour variation between the 3 lenses is predicted, pictures frequently seemed as though they had been taken on other telephones, one thing that used to be particularly glaring in scenes with blue skies.
The telephoto digicam is the standout function at the Telephone 3. I like the facility to play with zoom, and the 3x optical zoom (plus the extra crop) makes this a extra helpful digicam than the ones at the iPhone 16 or Pixel 9, which best out at 2x zoom. It’s additionally a very good macro digicam, the use of the zoom to stop the telephone from casting a shadow at the matter.
Instrument
Not anything as soon as once more outfits its telephone with its personal unique Android pores and skin. The classy is all monochrome, serif fonts and dot-matrix touches. I in an instant selected this pores and skin when putting in the telephone for the primary time, regardless that discovering some app icons will also be tougher with out their unique colours.
Very important Area, with its devoted {hardware} button, stays Not anything’s maximum fascinating device addition. Since launching at the Not anything Telephone 3a, it may now upload occasions on your Google Calendar, remind you of duties and summarize audio recordings. My greatest factor, alternatively, is by accident hitting the ability button as a substitute of the Very important Key, or vice versa. The keys wish to be a distinct dimension or no less than have a extra distinct really feel.
Efficiency and battery existence
With a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8s Gen 4 processor, the Telephone 3 plays solidly, nevertheless it’s no longer as snappy as a tool with true flagship silicon, just like the Snapdragon 8 Elite or Apple A18. Some may argue that the Telephone 3 is not a “true flagship” as a result of its processor will also be present in sub-$400 units, however the chip remains to be tough sufficient for many duties and video games, and may even ship ray-traced graphics.
Not anything opted for a 5,150mAh silicon-carbon battery, making it some of the first telephones we’ve examined with this new era. It could actually retailer extra lithium ions than conventional lithium-ion batteries, which Not anything claims provides a ten % spice up in power density in comparison to its predecessor. I didn’t really feel any notable distinction of the Telephone 3 operating cooler, alternatively. In our battery rundown check, the Telephone 3 used to be ready to play a video record for simply over 23 hours. That falls somewhat shy of the Telephone 2, however that has a smaller display screen.
The Telephone 3 additionally will get flagship-level charging speeds, supporting 65W stressed charging that will get the tool from empty to complete in underneath an hour (with a suitable charger). It additionally helps 15W wi-fi charging and opposite wi-fi charging for earbuds. On the other hand, the loss of Qi2 make stronger turns out like an oversight for a “true flagship.”
Wrap-up
How does Not anything’s flagship telephone stack up towards in a similar fashion priced smartphones? The Telephone 3 provides a large 6.67-inch display screen, a big battery with rapid charging and 256GB of garage — double the quantity discovered within the base Pixel 9 and Galaxy S25.
On the other hand, a less-than-flagship chipset and inconsistent digicam efficiency detract from the enchantment of an another way intriguing telephone with slick device and a novel design. The Glyph Matrix is a lot more helpful than the flashing lighting fixtures of the Telephone 3’s predecessors, although the design isn’t fairly as daring. I simply hope the corporate continues to adapt the gear to be had on it.
The Telephone 3 is a a lot better telephone than the two-year-old Not anything Telephone 2, however it is also $200 costlier, making any shortcomings extra obvious. Whilst I would like Not anything to proceed experimenting with its telephones, it must more than likely prioritize shoring up the digicam efficiency first.
