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Nothing Phone (1) isn’t coming to the United States at launch

Carl Pei’s Nothing Phone has built up quite a bit of hype, but if you’re in the US, you shouldn’t get too excited.

Nothing Phone (1) won’t be sold, or even work in the US

The Nothing Phone (1) is pretty much channeling the spirit of the early days of OnePlus, promising to be a contender that shakes up the smartphone market a bit. Yesterday, we got a peek at how that would happen, with a look at the Nothing Phone’s “glyph” lighting tricks that happen on the back of the device.

While there’s still a lot we don’t know about the Nothing Phone at this point, it’s now confirmed the device won’t be coming to the US in any official capacity, at least at launch.

While we’d love to bring phone (1) to the entire community around the world, we’re focusing on home markets, including the UK and Europe, where we have strong partnerships with leading local carriers. It takes a lot to launch a smartphone as you know, from ensuring the handset is supported by the country’s cellular technologies to carrier partnerships and local regulation, and as we’re still a young brand we need to be strategic about it.

This confirmation came just a few hours after Evan Blass had hinted on Twitter that the Nothing Phone would lack US support.

PCMag, which Nothing confirmed the news to, offers the idea that carrier partnerships are the main roadblock that Nothing is facing with entering the US market, something the company seems to confirm in a further statement.

We have big plans to launch a U.S. supported smartphone in the future. For now, a limited number of our private community investors in the U.S. will be able to get their hands on phone (1) through a closed beta program. In the meantime, if readers really want phone (1) to be available in the US as soon as possible, they should call their carrier to let them know about us.

The good news for those looking to buy a Nothing Phone (1) in the US is that a model with US network support is in the works, but there’s no timeline available there.

In the meantime, if you try to buy a Nothing Phone in the States, you’ll have trouble using it. The device should work in a limited capacity on T-Mobile, but will lack VoLTE service on AT&T and won’t function on Verizon at all.

Looking back at Carl Pei’s previous efforts, this move does come as a bit of a surprise. The OnePlus 6 was the company’s first device to be sold through carriers in the US, but every previous model was sold unlocked in the US market for those who wanted the device. It’s rather surprising that, given all of the marketing behind the Nothing Phone so far, the company is leaving the US out for now.

Are you still excited about the Nothing Phone?

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Avatar for Ben Schoon Ben Schoon

Ben is a Senior Editor for 9to5Google.

Find him on Twitter @NexusBen. Send tips to schoon@9to5g.com or encrypted to benschoon@protonmail.com.


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