Head to head
Nothing Phone (4a)vsNothing Phone (3a)
The short answer
Choose the Nothing Phone (4a) for peak brightness and battery life per charge. Choose the Nothing Phone (3a) for more base storage. The Nothing Phone (3a) is £50 cheaper at UK RRP (£329 against £379). The Nothing Phone (4a) gets security updates for longer: until March 2032, against March 2031 for the Nothing Phone (3a).
- Released
- 2026-03-05GSMArena — Nothing Phone (4a) specifications, retrieved 2026-08-21
- Price
- £379Nothing UK store — Phone (4a), retrieved 2026-08-21
- Security updates until
- 2032-03-05Nothing UK — Phone (4a), retrieved 2026-08-21
- 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 (4a)1 win for Nothing Phone (3a)1 gap borderline3 differences you won’t notice£50 apart at RRP
Verdict: Nothing Phone (4a) ahead on 2 rows, Nothing Phone (3a) on 1 row
On the makers’ published figures, the Phone (4a) wins on peak brightness (4,500 nits against 3,000 nits) and battery per charge (51.45 h against 43.93 h); the Phone (3a) wins on storage (base) (256 GB against 128 GB). One gap is borderline, a difference most people would not notice: RAM (12 GB against 8 GB) for the Phone (3a). The differences in weight, display size and battery capacity are below the thresholds you would notice. Both state the same refresh rate, typical brightness, battery lifespan and fast charging. The other 30 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
10 attributes neither phone has a sourced figure for
HDR peak brightness · OS versions supported · Google Mobile Services · Claimed video playback · Wireless charging · Geekbench 6 (CPU, multi-core) · AnTuTu benchmark · 3DMark Wild Life Extreme · 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 (4a) better than the Nothing Phone (3a)?
On the figures, neither is better overall: the Nothing Phone (4a) wins on peak brightness, 4,500 nits against 3,000 nits (both Nothing UK) and battery per charge, 51.45 h against 43.93 h (both EU energy label); the Nothing Phone (3a) wins on storage (base), 256 GB against 128 GB (both Nothing UK). Every other row is borderline, too close to notice, or not ranked.
Which has the better battery?
The Nothing Phone (4a), by a gap you’d notice: battery per charge, 51.45 h against 43.93 h (both EU energy label). The Nothing Phone (4a) is ahead on paper, but not by a gap you’d notice: battery capacity, 5,080 mAh against 5,000 mAh (both Nothing UK).
Which is lighter?
The Nothing Phone (4a) is lighter on paper, but not by a gap you’d notice: weight, 205 g against 208 g (both Nothing UK).
Which has the brighter screen?
The Nothing Phone (4a), 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 (4a) gets security updates for longer: until March 2032, against March 2031 for the Nothing Phone (3a). Sources: dates from Nothing UK.
Which is cheaper?
The Nothing Phone (3a) is £50 cheaper at UK RRP (£329 against £379). Prices from Nothing Phone (4a): 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.