After Carl Pei strongly suggested the wait for a sequel to the Nothing Phone (1) would be a while, it’s now been officially confirmed that the Nothing Phone (2) will launch in 2023, and it will come to the US.
Speaking to Inverse, Nothing’s Carl Pei directly confirmed that the Nothing Phone (2) is coming in 2023. There’s no word on exactly when the device will launch beyond “later this year.” The Nothing Phone (1) launched in mid-July 2022.
Beyond just confirming the phone’s existence, Pei also confirmed that the Nothing Phone (2) will launch in the United States, saying that the country was the “No. 1 priority” and adding:
We couldn’t do it earlier because we were only in our second year and our hands were tied building the team as we were building the products. Now as we’re on a more solid footing, we can take a step forward.
The Nothing Phone (1) launched in countries across Europe and other parts of the globe, but skipped out on a US launch – which our Max Weinbach explained was actually for the best. But recently, Nothing opened up a “beta membership” that offered US customers the chance to buy the Nothing Phone (1) at a reduced price with Android 13 on board, but the same international radios that don’t really work well on US networks.
When the Nothing Phone (2) comes to the US, it will come with carrier certifications as Pei explained, saying that Nothing previously lacked the resources for such an undertaking. Inverse points out that the company’s staff has doubled to 400 since 2021. Pei believes that Nothing can see some success in the US because there’s “not a lot of variety in terms of the smartphone products in the U.S. market.”
What will the Nothing Phone (2) actually bring to the table? When considering Pei formerly worked at OnePlus, a brand that will just release full renders of a device ahead of launch, he kept surprisingly tight-lipped about the device. The only major detail divulged was that the Nothing Phone (2) will be “more premium” than its predecessor, which had excellent build quality but ran on a mid-range chipset.
Pei also teased that Nothing is looking at opening more retail stores, as its first shop in London has been a hit and is already “paying for itself operationally.” A store in the US is under consideration, too.
More on Nothing Phone:
- Nothing Phone (1) is now available in the US with $299 ‘beta membership’
- Nothing Phone (1) gets second Android 13 beta with new wallpapers, custom lockscreen buttons
- Nothing Phone (1) among the first non-Pixels with Google’s Personal Safety app
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