Nothing teases cellphone (1) design forward of subsequent month’s launch – TechCrunch

It’s laborious to get a thrill from glimpses of unreleased smartphone {hardware} nowadays, given the baked-in maturity of the cellular market and the final type and performance sameness of the sticky rectangles we people routinely spend hours poking at and peering into every day.

But this rear-view design-teaser (under) of a forthcoming handset made by {hardware} startup Nothing would possibly simply provide you with just a little tingle: Meet the minimally named cellphone (1), in all its pure, deconstructed, ‘analog’ glory — parrot not included, presumably.

As design aesthetics go, it’s roughly akin to if The Ordinary made electronics. Which is to say clear, minimalist, purposeful wanting, even medical, as if to recommend it’s purged of performative frills — besides that first-glance stark distinction is the performative visible thrill this kind of look is taking pictures for as a differentiator so there’s loads of contrivance at work.

In cellphone (1)’s case, by stepping away from the shiny, hermetically sealed look that iPhone maker Apple is so keen on — and scores of Android machine makers have so keenly copied — Nothing is delivering some good, prompt visible differentiation vs. the premium competitors.

On its website, it sums up its strategy with cellphone (1) as: “Designed with intention. Full of warmth. And joy.” Which suggests the parrot is there to symbolize all of the enjoyable stuff you are able to do with the stripped-back little bit of cuttlefish-bone-white cellular equipment it’s having a (staged) beak at.

As we’ve famous earlier than, Nothing is a dab hand at teasers. Albeit, founder Carl Pei’s tweet about this pre-launch reveal claims the startup’s hand was pressured by leakers forward of subsequent month’s official unboxing. (But if you happen to consider that, properly, I’ve a very healthy Norwegian Blue parrot to sell you.)

A previous Nothing teaser of cellphone (1) confirmed what seem like illuminated mild strips on the again of the machine — a strikingly contrasting function to the in any other case utilitarian look being revealed as we speak. So all might not be as purely purposeful because the cellphone’s analog look would possibly indicate on first look, because it appears to sprinkling just a little enjoyable into the design combine too.

Pei has beforehand mentioned Nothing’s debut smartphone will pack a Qualcomm Snapdragon chip, rock wireless charging and run a skinned model of Android (aka NothingOS) — which its advertising suggests will layer one thing “bold” and “warm” atop Google’s hyperfamiliar smartphone platform. So if the consumer interface doesn’t — in some way — function snazzy plumage we’re going to be disillusioned.

The remainder of cellphone (1)’s specs are TBA however Nothing will formally reveal all on July 12.