Nothing’s Phone 4a and 4a Pro are here, and the new Glyph Bar is a big change
What you need to know
- None introduced the Phone 4a and Phone 4a Pro with a refreshed design, a new Glyph Bar, and improved mid-range specifications.
- The Phone 4a Pro adds a 50MP periscope telephoto camera with 3.5x optical zoom, a first for the Nothing mid-range model.
- Both phones feature AMOLED displays with 1.5K resolution, while the Pro model boasts a refresh rate of up to 144Hz.
- The nothing Phone 4a starts at £349 while the Phone 4a Pro starts at £499, with global sales starting in mid-March.
After weeks of speculation and construction, Nothing finally took the wraps off the Nothing Phone 4a and, for the first time, the Phone 4a Pro at its launch event in London.
Nothing CEO Carl Pei confirmed earlier this year that the company will not launch a flagship phone in 2026. That doesn’t mean the product is sitting outside the market. None has now launched its latest mid-range phones.
The company already teased the design of the Phone 4a at MWC 2026 in Barcelona, but now it has fully unveiled the Phone 4a and its more expensive sibling, the Phone 4a Pro.
Last year’s Nothing Phone 3a Pro took a very different design approach, with cameras arranged differently and Glyph LEDs surrounding the circular camera module. In this case, Nothing seems to have refined the look too much. The company has brought the Glyph Matrix from its previous flagship, the Nothing Phone 3, to the mid-range with the Phone 4a Pro.
Android Central’s take
I’m not entirely sure about the design language Nothing matches the Phone 4a Pro. The company has had a very distinct industrial design style before, but the Phone 4a Pro’s camera platform, in particular, feels very familiar. It reminds me of a design we saw on a certain product… I wonder which one?
It’s also the company’s first phone to adopt a metal unibody design similar to many of the best Android phones, while retaining the signature industrial design that Nothing Devices is known for. The phone features a clean rear panel with a raised camera platform at the top that houses the camera system and the Glyph Matrix.
Nothing about the design of the Phone 4a Pro feels familiar, but it’s not boring
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Durability has also been improved this time, with the Phone 4a Pro moving from an IP64 rating to IP65. The phone is thin and slim, measuring 7.95mm.
The standard Nothing Phone 4a, which we have already seen before, drops the Glyph LEDs around the camera module that was present in the previous generation. Instead, Nothing has introduced a new Glyph Bar to the right of the camera module. The Glyph Bar is a new addition to the Phone 4a and includes seven LED spots that can light up to provide different types of information.
For example, the Glyph Bar can light up while the phone is charging to show the battery percentage. There are also progress-based indicators for calls, messages, charging, timers, and more. The company even claims that the Glyph Bar can help light up scenes when you’re taking photos or recording videos.
Android Central’s take
I’ve never fully understood Nothing’s obsession with Glyph LEDs, but the new Glyph Bar actually seems more usable, at least to me. It feels like a more useful implementation than the previous lighting system.
Needless to say, the Glyph Bar includes 63 mini LED spots that are 40 percent brighter than before, up to 3,500 nits. The company also claims no light leaks, no yellow edges, and smooth light distribution. The Phone 4a retains the same IP64 rating as the previous Phone 3a.
Looking at other specifications, the Nothing Phone 4a Pro has a 6.83-inch AMOLED display with 1.5K resolution and 144Hz refresh rate. The standard Phone 4a has a smaller 6.78-inch display with a 120Hz refresh rate but retains the same 1.5K resolution. Both phones use Corning Gorilla Glass 7i to protect the display.
At the back, both devices feature a triple camera setup. The biggest improvement this time is that the Phone 4a Pro includes a 50MP telephoto periscope lens supported by 3.5x optical zoom.
The Phone 4a also includes a 50MP 3.5x zoom camera, combined with a larger 50MP sensor with OIS and an ultra-wide camera. No one has yet given full details about the wider sensor.
Snapdragon 7 series chips power both Phone 4a models
Under the hood, the Phone 4a Pro is powered by a Snapdragon 7 Gen 4 processor, while the regular Phone 4a runs on the Snapdragon 7s Gen 4. The performance gain of the base model is small, nothing worth about 7% faster CPU performance and about 10% efficiency compared to the previous generation.
Android Central’s take
I like that there’s nothing calling the Snapdragon 7 Gen 4 a “flagship-inspired chipset.” Just call it a mid-range chip, Nothing. We all know it’s nowhere near something like the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5.
The Phone 4a Pro, however, gets a more significant boost with a 27% faster CPU, 30% better graphics performance, and improved AI capabilities.
Talking about the AI features, both phones run Nothing OS 4.1 based on Android 16 out of the box. The latest version brings several improvements, including resizable Quick Settings, a customizable lock screen, improved Live Notifications, and faster app launches.
It goes without saying that the Phone 4a and Phone 4a Pro will receive three major Android updates, and up to six security updates.
For the battery, both devices pack a 5080mAh cell with support for 50W fast charging. There is also nothing to say that its new battery management system helps to keep the battery capacity up to 90% even after 1,200 charging cycles, while most products usually want to maintain about 80% at the same time.
The Nothing Phone 4a will be available in black, white, blue, and pink, with 8GB/128GB variants starting at £349 / ₹31,999 / €349. The Phone 4a Pro starts at £499 / ₹39,999 / $499 / €479 for the base 8GB/128GB model and will be available in black, silver, and pink.
Both the phones are available for pre-order starting today. The Phone 4a will be available first from March 13, while the Phone 4a Pro will go on sale worldwide from March 27.
