🎧 Happy hump day! I’m delighted to report that as of last night the iconic Lofi Girl is back to streaming lofi hip hop radio beats, 24 hours a day. All is well.

The Nothing Phone 1 is here!

Yesterday the hugely hyped Nothing Phone 1 was officially announced. Although most of it leaked a few hours before the presentation (which you should know if you read the newsletter yesterday), we now have full details about Carl Pei’s latest project.

The nitty-gritty

• Spec-wise, the Nothing Phone 1 is mostly a standard mid-range affair.
• It has a 6.55-inch 120Hz Full HD+ OLED screen, 4,500mAh battery, dual 50MP cameras, and either 8 or 12GB of RAM.
• The phone is powered by 2021’s upper-midrange Snapdragon 778G Plus, which offers enough power for most users.
• However, the processor has apparently been customized by Qualcomm to allow 15W Qi wireless charging and 5W reverse wireless charging (hence the “plus”).
• No charger in the box though, unfortunately.
• Check out the specs and more here.
• The real kicker is the “Glyph” LEDs on the back, which can be programmed to perform a variety of functions.
• For example, it can pulse when you get a notification, flash when you receive calls, show battery percentages while charging, or serve as a key light when using the camera.
• Watch this short video to see just how cool and unique this feature is.

Early impressions

• So does the device actually live up to the hype?
• Although no one has spent enough time with the Phone 1 to publish a full review, several publications have released early impressions, most of which are tentatively positive.
• Android Authority‘s Oliver Cragg was a fan of the design, writing that “the Nothing Phone 1 looks and, crucially, feels like a phone worth twice its asking price,” although it faces tough competition from other, more established mid-range options like the Galaxy A53, Pixel 6a, and iPhone SE.
• Mat Smith at Engadget was also impressed, writing that “Nothing is going hard on the aesthetic angle, and… the phone seems, at least on first impressions, plenty capable.”
• The Verge‘s Allison Johnson didn’t completely buy into the hype, stating that although it doesn’t strike her as “the revolutionary device that the company’s marketing it as… it has a good shot at being an excellent midrange phone for right now.”
• Alex Walker-Todd at Tech Radar praised the level of polish on Nothing’s first phone, writing that “unique features like its transparent back and glyph lighting marry novelty and functionality in a way that’s absent from most other phones.”
• 9to5Google’s Damien Wilde called it the Pixel 5’s “cyberpunk cousin,” comparing the lightweight Nothing OS favorably to Google’s first-party phones. He also wrote that “…once you wipe away the hype, it actually seems fairly solid.”

Pricing and availability

• The Nothing Phone 1 will go on sale on July 21.
• However, it won’t be available in the US. You can get it in the United Kingdom, Europe, Australia, India, and 40 other countries.
• Pricing starts at £399 / €469 (~$475) for the 8GB/128GB version.

Prime Day isn’t over yet!

Amazon’s annual blowout is still underway, and there are some really great tech deals this year. Here are a few of our favorites:

• Samsung’s latest flagships are massively discounted. This includes the entire S22 lineup, plus the Z Fold 3, which is more than $700 off.
• The Google Pixel 6 is also down to just $50 more than the upcoming Pixel 6a, and the Pixel 6 Pro is also $200 off.
• Need a smartwatch? The Galaxy Watch 4, Apple Watch Series 7, and Fitbit range are more than $100 off.
• The whole Galaxy Buds lineup is also on sale, offering up to $80 off the original price tag.

Roundup

📅 Although most of the details have already leaked, the Zenfone 9 is officially set to launch later this month (Android Authority).

📱 Nokia’s latest phone has a neat trick up its sleeve: a slot to store and charge wireless earbuds (Android Authority).

🔋 What’s the smallest acceptable phone battery size for most users? Our readers weighed in, and maybe we need to temper our expectations… (Android Authority).

📺 YouTube TV announced it has 5 million subscribers, making it the largest internet TV company in the US (CNET).

😱 Meanwhile, here’s why Netflix’s loss of licensed titles could spark a content crisis (Variety).

🎮 RIP, sweet prince: Why the Wii U never supported dual GamePads (Gamespot).

🚗 Microtransactions hit the auto industry: BMW starts selling heated seat subscriptions for $18 a month. Thankfully, not in the US (The Verge).

🛰️ Fun fact: your phone probably has more storage than the $10 billion James Webb telescope. Then again, your phone can’t survive deep space (Tom’s Hardware).

🌌 Stellar wallpapers: Here are the James Webb telescope photos scaled down to fit your Android phone (Android Authority).

👻 Spooky: What is normal at 3PM, but terrifying at 3AM? (r/askreddit).

Wednesday weirdness

Time to eat the rich! These billionaire ice cream popsicles by Brooklyn artist collective MSCHF are being sold in select food trucks in New York City and Santa Monica, California. It seems like today is your last chance to get one, although I like to think they’ll live on in the hearts and minds of the people for years to come.

They do cost $10 though, which some Twitter commenters have criticized as “peak capitalism.” Can’t really argue with that.

Until next time,

Nick Fernandez, Editor