Head to head
Nothing Phone (3)vsNothing Phone (3a)
The short answer
Choose the Nothing Phone (3) for peak brightness and battery life per charge. The Nothing Phone (3a) wins no row by a gap you’d notice. The Nothing Phone (3a) is £370 cheaper at UK RRP (£329 against £699). The Nothing Phone (3) gets security updates for longer: until July 2032, against March 2031 for the Nothing Phone (3a).
- Released
- 2025-07-15GSMArena — Nothing Phone (3) specifications, retrieved 2026-08-20
- Price
- £699Nothing UK store — Phone (3), retrieved 2026-08-20
- Security updates until
- 2032-07-15Nothing UK — Phone (3), retrieved 2026-08-20
- Released
- 2025-03-11GSMArena — Nothing Phone (3a) specifications, retrieved 2026-08-20
- Price
- £329Nothing UK store — Phone (3a), retrieved 2026-08-20
- Security updates until
- 2031-03-11Nothing UK — Phone (3a), retrieved 2026-08-20
2 wins for Nothing Phone (3)0 wins for Nothing Phone (3a)1 gap borderline3 differences you won’t notice£370 apart at RRP
Verdict: Nothing Phone (3) ahead on 2 rows, Nothing Phone (3a) on none
On the makers’ published figures, the Phone (3) wins on peak brightness (4,500 nits against 3,000 nits) and battery per charge (56.38 h against 43.93 h). One gap is borderline, a difference most people would not notice: fast charging (65 W against 50 W) for the Phone (3). The differences in weight, display size and battery capacity are below the thresholds you would notice. Both state the same refresh rate, typical brightness, storage (base), RAM and battery lifespan. The other 32 rows have no threshold or no direction to judge by, so nobody wins them.
True to scale
Outlines from each maker’s published dimensions, drawn to scale. Corner rounding is our drawing convention, not a measurement.
Specifications
A win is marked only where the figures can be ranked and the gap is one you could notice. A row the site has no threshold for says whether the two differ, and that it is not ranking them. = marks the same figure on both, ≠ not ranked a difference with no ranking. Every figure carries its source.
Body
Nothing UK — Phone (3a) claims 208 g · GSMArena — Nothing Phone (3a) specifications reports 201 g
You won’t notice this difference.
Display
Platform
Memory
Camera
Battery
Connectivity
Benchmarks
8 attributes neither phone has a sourced figure for
HDR peak brightness · OS versions supported · Google Mobile Services · Claimed video playback · Geekbench 6 (CPU, multi-core) · AnTuTu benchmark · DXOMARK camera score · SAR (EU, head). Rows appear as sources are cited — a gap in our data, not a statement about either phone.
Questions
Is the Nothing Phone (3) better than the Nothing Phone (3a)?
On the figures, the Nothing Phone (3) is ahead wherever there is a gap you’d notice: peak brightness, 4,500 nits against 3,000 nits (both Nothing UK) and battery per charge, 56.38 h against 43.93 h (both EU energy label). The Nothing Phone (3a) wins no row by such a gap. That is a count of rows, not an overall score.
Which has the better battery?
The Nothing Phone (3), by a gap you’d notice: battery per charge, 56.38 h against 43.93 h (both EU energy label). The Nothing Phone (3) is ahead on paper, but not by a gap you’d notice: battery capacity, 5,150 mAh against 5,000 mAh (both Nothing UK).
Which is lighter?
The Nothing Phone (3a) is lighter on paper, but not by a gap you’d notice: weight, 208 g against 218 g (both Nothing UK).
Which has the brighter screen?
The Nothing Phone (3), by a gap you’d notice: peak brightness, 4,500 nits against 3,000 nits (both Nothing UK). Both state 800 nits for typical brightness (Nothing UK).
Which gets updates for longer?
The Nothing Phone (3) gets security updates for longer: until July 2032, against March 2031 for the Nothing Phone (3a). Sources: dates from Nothing UK.
Which is cheaper?
The Nothing Phone (3a) is £370 cheaper at UK RRP (£329 against £699). Prices from Nothing Phone (3): Nothing UK store; Nothing Phone (3a): Nothing UK store.
Other comparisons
The pairs a buyer of either phone would also weigh. Any two phones in the catalogue can be compared from the chooser.