The Most Exciting Budget Phone of the Year Might Be CMF Nothing’s Phone 2 Pro

When all smartphones are huge slabs that look like iPhones, tech companies really need to go hard with eye-catching designs. Carl Pei’s Nothing has been turning heads with its transparent phones and wireless earbuds since 2021, and last year the company’s sub-brand, CMF, surprised everyone with its unapologetically plastic and modular Phone 1.

The fact that I can’t remember a damn thing about the Phone 1’s tech specs but vividly recall how fun it was to unscrew the back plate to install a card case, kickstand, and neck lanyard should tell you what CMF prioritized for the budget phone.

Nearly a year later, CMF is back with the Phone 2 Pro. I’ve only had the device for a weekend, so not enough time for a full review, but you can expect it on Gizmodo in the coming days. CMF beefed up the specs—a slightly faster processor, higher-resolution cameras including telephoto and ultra-wide lenses, more battery life— and even added the physical Essential button for accessing what’s basically an AI memory that was introduced on the Nothing Phone (3a) and Phone (3a) Pro. But I feel like the Phone 2 Pro has lost some of the modular charm that made the Phone 1 so memorable.

The first thing I did after unboxing the Phone 2 Pro was see which of CMF’s official Phone 1 accessories worked. Both the kickstand and the neck lanyard screwed into the Phone 2 Pro’s round wheel without issue. However, the card case wallet, which requires attaching a special magnetic plate that also secures into the round wheel, didn’t. And because the Phone 2 Pro’s back is sealed and no longer removable, any Phone 1 back plate “cases” aren’t compatible, either.

If you own extra Phone 1 back plates or the card case wallet, you’re shit out of luck. It’s not completely bad news… if you own a 3D printer. Thanks to CMF retaining the four easily removable screws, you can still design and 3D print your own accessories or buy them from makers off marketplaces like Etsy. I wouldn’t be surprised if the flourishing DIY community is why CMF is breaking compatibility with some Phone 1 accessories so soon.

The Phone 2 Pro is a decent-looking phone that feels solid—refreshingly lightweight (185g) and thin (7.8mm) compared to other phones with a similar-sized display. The screen is more than bright enough, and Nothing OS 3.2 (Android 15) is responsive thanks to the 120Hz refresh rate.

Nothing sent me the light green that you see in these photos. It has a satin-like sheen when viewed at different angles. But the phone also comes in white, black, and orange. The latter has a two-tone design that looks the best of the lot, in my opinion.

As I mentioned earlier, the Phone 2 Pro is more powerful under the hood—it’s just all very incremental. The display is a slightly larger 6.77-inch AMOLED versus the Phone 1’s 6.6-inch screen, the MediaTek Dimensity 7300 Pro 5G chip is 10% more powerful, and even though the battery capacity is the same 5,000mAh, CMF says it should last an extra hour.

The most noteworthy upgrade is the rear cameras. Whereas the Phone 1 had a single 50-megapixel main camera (and a controversial and mostly useless 2-megapixel “depth camera”), the Phone 2 Pro has a proper no-bullshit triple-lens camera system consisting of a 50-megapixel f/1.88 main lens, a 50-megapixel f/1.85 telephoto lens, and an 8-megapixel ultra-wide lens. Photo and video quality will have to wait until I can snap enough photos to make an evaluation, but at the very least, you can get more zoom reach and a wider field of view in your shots.

I admit I wasn’t expecting to find the Essential key below the right-side power button. I thought Nothing would gatekeep it for its more expensive phones, but perhaps I shouldn’t have been surprised, since Nothing plans to charge a subscription to use the AI feature in the near future. Gotta get the button onto as many phones as possible if you wanna turn it into a subscription business!

Currently, the button works exactly like it does on the mid-range Nothing Phone (3a) and (3a) Pro devices. Press it once to take a screenshot, to which you can then add a text note or attach a voice recording for additional context. Press and hold the Essential key, and you’re taken to the Essential Space, where all your screenshots live, but also where generative AI organizes and helps make sense of all those captures. The AI might offer a summary of text or describe photos, create calendar events or reminders, transcribe voice memos, or make task suggestions. It’s a nifty idea for a “second brain” or “memory recall” function where you can just dump everything into the Essential Space and let AI sort it all out, but its usefulness is pretty limited right now. There isn’t even a way to search your screenshots (yet).

For a budget phone, the CMF Phone 2 Pro packs in a lot while still keeping some modularity. Nothing’s primarily targeting India and Europe with this phone: £219 in the UK, €249 in Europe, and ₹18,999 for 8GB of RAM + 128GB of storage. A Phone 2 Pro with the same RAM and twice the storage (256GB) will go for £249 in the UK, €279 in Europe, and ₹20,999 in India. Like always, U.S. consumers can get the 8GB RAM + 256GB storage model—the only variant shipping to America—through Nothing’s Beta program for $279.

CMF is also selling several official Phone 2 Pro accessories, and for some reason, exclusively and in limited quantities in the UK and Europe. There’s a “universal cover” for attaching other accessories (£25 / €25), interchangeable fisheye and macro lenses (£35 / €35), and a wallet/stand ( £35 / €35). There will also be two bundles: one with a cover and choice of wallet/stand or lenses for £45 / €45, and another with a cover and both the wallet/stand and lenses for £65 / €65. You’ll have to convert the currency yourself if you plan to import them, since they won’t be available in the U.S. or India. I’ve not tried any of these accessories, so your guess is as good as mine as to how good they are. Pre-orders start today, April 28, and official sales directly from Nothing and select retailers on May 6.