Head to head
Xiaomi REDMI Note 15 Pro+ 5GvsNothing Phone (3a)
The short answer
Choose the REDMI Note 15 Pro+ 5G for battery capacity, battery life per charge and faster charging. Choose the Nothing Phone (3a) for battery lifespan. The Nothing Phone (3a) is £100 cheaper at UK RRP (£329 against £429). The REDMI Note 15 Pro+ 5G gets security updates for longer: until December 2031, against March 2031 for the Nothing Phone (3a).
- Released
- 2025-12-25GSMArena — Xiaomi Redmi Note 15 Pro+ specifications, retrieved 2026-08-20
- Price
- £429Xiaomi UK store — REDMI Note 15 Pro+ 5G (list / original price, 8 GB + 256 GB), retrieved 2026-09-12
- Security updates until
- 2031-12-25Xiaomi UK — REDMI Note 15 Pro+ 5G, 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
3 wins for REDMI Note 15 Pro+ 5G1 win for Nothing Phone (3a)2 gaps borderline2 differences you won’t notice£100 apart at RRP
Verdict: REDMI Note 15 Pro+ 5G ahead on 3 rows, Nothing Phone (3a) on 1 row
On the makers’ published figures, the REDMI Note 15 Pro+ 5G wins on battery capacity (6,500 mAh against 5,000 mAh), battery per charge (60.78 h against 43.93 h) and fast charging (100 W against 50 W); the Phone (3a) wins on battery lifespan (1,400 cycles against 1,000 cycles). 2 gaps are borderline, differences most people would not notice: peak brightness (3,200 nits against 3,000 nits) for the REDMI Note 15 Pro+ 5G and RAM (12 GB against 8 GB) for the Phone (3a). The differences in weight and display size are below the thresholds you would notice. Both state the same refresh rate and storage (base). The other 33 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
Xiaomi UK — REDMI Note 15 Pro+ 5G specs claims Xiaomi HyperOS 2 · GSMArena — Xiaomi Redmi Note 15 Pro+ specifications reports Android 15, HyperOS 2
Xiaomi UK — REDMI Note 15 Pro+ 5G specs claims Octa-core, up to 2.7GHz · GSMArena — Xiaomi Redmi Note 15 Pro+ specifications reports Octa-core (1x2.7 GHz Cortex-A720 & 3x2.4 GHz Cortex-A720 & 4x1.8 GHz Cortex-A520)
Memory
Camera
Battery
Connectivity
Benchmarks
8 attributes neither phone has a sourced figure for
HDR peak brightness · OS versions supported · Google Mobile Services · Wireless charging · Geekbench 6 (CPU, multi-core) · 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 REDMI Note 15 Pro+ 5G better than the Nothing Phone (3a)?
On the figures, neither is better overall: the REDMI Note 15 Pro+ 5G wins on battery capacity, 6,500 mAh (Xiaomi UK) against 5,000 mAh (Nothing UK), battery per charge, 60.78 h against 43.93 h (both EU energy label) and fast charging, 100 W (Xiaomi UK) against 50 W (Nothing UK); the Nothing Phone (3a) wins on battery lifespan, 1,400 cycles against 1,000 cycles (both EU energy label). Every other row is borderline, too close to notice, or not ranked.
Which has the better battery?
The REDMI Note 15 Pro+ 5G, by a gap you’d notice: battery per charge, 60.78 h against 43.93 h (both EU energy label). The REDMI Note 15 Pro+ 5G, by a gap you’d notice: battery capacity, 6,500 mAh (Xiaomi UK) against 5,000 mAh (Nothing UK).
Which is lighter?
The REDMI Note 15 Pro+ 5G is lighter on paper, but not by a gap you’d notice: weight, 207.1 g (Xiaomi UK) against 208 g (Nothing UK).
Which has the brighter screen?
The REDMI Note 15 Pro+ 5G is brighter, narrowly: peak brightness, 3,200 nits (Xiaomi UK) against 3,000 nits (Nothing UK), a borderline gap most people would not notice.
Which gets updates for longer?
The REDMI Note 15 Pro+ 5G gets security updates for longer: until December 2031, against March 2031 for the Nothing Phone (3a). Sources: dates from Xiaomi UK and Nothing UK.
Which is cheaper?
The Nothing Phone (3a) is £100 cheaper at UK RRP (£329 against £429). Prices from REDMI Note 15 Pro+ 5G: Xiaomi 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.