The Nothing Phone (1) already checks the right boxes when it comes to design and pricing, but for those who consider software support a determining factor when purchasing a smartphone, will it meet their requirements? Months before the launch of its first smartphone, Nothing provided the public with a glimpse of the software via the release of the Nothing Launcher on the Play Store. The launcher is compatible with all smartphones running Android 11 or later.
Nothing ships the Phone (1) with Android 12 along with a Nothing OS custom skin on top. It's near-stock Android with some degree of customization available to users. According to the information on the Phone (1)'s product page, the device will receive three years of Android updates and four years of security patches, the latter of which will arrive every two months. This means the Phone (1) should be upgraded to Android 13 through to Android 15.
Phone (1) Should Receive Updates Up Until 2026
Although it still trails behind Samsung, Nothing's update policy is impressive. In fact, it is on the same level as Google considering the Pixel-maker also offers three years of OS upgrades. However, Google does also offer five years of security updates to its Pixel smartphones. Either way, it remains to be seen how quickly Nothing can roll out updates to users. Since this is its only smartphone, for now, it is expected that updates will arrive in time. On the other hand, as it is a new company and is operating a small team, there is the possibility that updates may get delayed due to having fewer hands working on the software side of things.
Apart from its own software updates, Nothing will also need the support of the developer community. Lots of people hold on to their phones for years, and with unlocked bootloaders and custom ROMs, users can continue to enjoy their devices beyond the official end of life date. This might also be the case for many of those picking up the Nothing Phone (1).
Otherwise, Nothing fans may already be looking ahead to the release of the company's second smartphone, the Nothing Phone (2). The company has been drumming up hype for the device’s impending release, and officially revealed that Phone (2) will launch on July 11, 2023, almost exactly a year after the release of the Phone (1). And this time, it’ll launch in the U.S. Nothing Phone (2) will run on Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chip, promising significant improvements to performance and battery life over the Nothing Phone (1).