Nothing Phone 3a Pro vs. Phone 2a Plus: More than meets the eye

Smartphone branding in 2025 consists of a bunch of different terms and letters — there's Pro, Plus, and everything in between — but what does it all mean? It might seem hard to compare the Nothing Phone 3a Pro and the Phone 2a Plus, since their names sound quite different. In reality, they're both the higher-tier offerings available in the Phone 3a series and the Phone 2a series, respectively.

That means the Phone 3a Pro and the Phone 2a Plus are perfect for comparison, and you might be choosing between them. The naming tweak tells a bit of the story between these two mid-rangers. The Nothing Phone 3a Pro brings a more well-rounded set of upgrades this year, hence why it has the "Pro" branding. Meanwhile, the Phone 2a Plus was a more minor spec bump, which explains the lesser "Plus" branding.

But which one should you buy? Let's find out and break down how these two Nothing smartphones compare.

Nothing Phone 3a Pro vs. Phone 2a Plus: Design and display

While these two phones are similarly sized and feature the Glyph Interface, that's about where the similarities end. The Nothing Phone 3a Pro measures 163.52 x 77.5 x 8.39mm, while the Phone 2a Plus is slightly smaller at 161.7 x 76.3 x 8.6mm. On the other hand, you'll certainly feel the weight difference between the two devices. The Phone 3a Pro is 21 grams heavier than the Phone 2a Plus, with the latter weighing 190 grams.

The Phone 3a Pro has a striking appearance, with three rear cameras and a flash positioned asymmetrically. The camera bump is also a huge, massive circular extrusion from the back of the device. For perspective, the camera bump itself on the Phone 3a Pro is about the thickness of the thinnest iPod Nano. Meanwhile, the Phone 2a Plus has a more subdued look with a flat back and a smaller, dual-camera housing.

Both phones make a statement with their transparent, raw appearance. They also have LEDs on the back that form the Glyph Interface, and the lights are all rounded to match the curvature of the camera housing on the Phone 3a Pro. Meanwhile, on the Phone 2a Plus, two lights are curved and one is a straight line. These LEDs can be used for notifications, timers, and more.

The Nothing Phone 3a Pro has a slightly larger display measuring 6.77 inches — it's just a tad bit bigger than the 6.7-inch panel on the Phone 2a Plus. While both phones use OLED displays, the Phone 3a Pro has an LTPO panel for smoother refresh rates. Both screens top out at 120Hz, but the Phone 3a Pro's high brightness rating is the same as the Phone 2a Plus' peak brightness rating. It'll be better suited for use outdoors and in tough lighting situations.

In terms of durability, Nothing decided to go with Panda Glass on the Phone 3a Pro. It's hardened glass, but may not resist scratches as well as Gorilla Glass. If you prefer the tried-and-tested option, the Phone 2a Plus has Gorilla Glass 5 on the front. The Nothing Phone 3a Pro has an IP64 rating against dust and water ingress, whereas the Phone 2a Plus is less protected with an IP54 certification.

Nothing Phone 3a Pro vs. Phone 2a Plus: Performance and specs

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The performance of the Nothing Phone 3a Pro and Phone 2a Plus may be more similar than you might think, depending on what you value. The newer model features a Qualcomm Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 processor, ditching the MediaTek chip in its predecessor. While this chip has been optimized for AI tasks and was recently updated, it's still a mid-tier chip. Our testing found that in graphical performance, the Phone 3a series could actually succumb to the Phone 2a series in benchmarks and real-world tests.

That means if you care about gaming, you may want to pick up the MediaTek Dimensity 7350 Pro 5G processor in the Phone 2a Plus. It's paired with 12GB of RAM for increased performance, and that could be very desirable in some situations. Meanwhile, the Phone 3a Pro is offered in multiple configurations with 8GB and 12GB RAM variants.

It's worth noting that despite the Phone 2a series' apparent advantages in graphics, neither of Android Central's testers noticed poor performance from the Phone 3a Pro in daily use.

Both phones feature a 5,000mAh battery and 50W wired charging, so they should last long and charge fast. In terms of connectivity, the Phone 3a Pro has the advantage with Bluetooth 5.4. Both handsets offer Wi-Fi 6 and 5G, but support for U.S. carriers is extremely limited. Neither support CDMA, meaning Verizon basically won't work at all on either device. As such, this device is much better suited for use in regions like Europe and India.

Software support is better on the Phone 3a Pro, with a promise of three OS upgrades and six total years of security patches. Meanwhile, the Phone 2a Plus only gets three OS upgrades and four total years of security patches. Both phones can run Nothing OS 3, based on Android 15, today. However, only the Phone 3a Pro will have Nothing's latest and greatest AI features, including the Essential Space.

Nothing Phone 3a Pro vs. Phone 2a Plus: Cameras

Nothing really went all-out for the camera system on the Phone 3a Pro. It's the best available on a phone of this price point, by a mile. The main sensor is a 50MP, f/1.88 Samsung lens with a 1/1.56-inch sensor size, and that large camera will help you take great photos. The real impressive feat is the inclusion of a 50MP, f/2.55 Sony periscope telephoto lens. It offers 3x true optical zoom, but a massive 1/1.95-inch sensor size allows for sensor crop to provide 6x optical-quality zoom with sensor crop.

It makes for photos captured at distance having great detail, as you can see in the gallery below. These photos were taken at various zoom levels with the Nothing Phone 3a Pro:

Image 1 of 5

The Nothing Phone 2a Plus' camera system is no slouch, either. It has a 50MP, f/1.9 Samsung GN9 main sensor paired with a 50MP, f/2.2 Samsung JN1 wide-angle lens. Both of these cameras are excellent for the price, but neither can deliver the level of optical quality zoom that the Phone 3a Pro can. That's because the Phone 2a Plus only offers a dual-camera system, and it lacks a telephoto lens.

On the front, both phones are completely equal. They're both using a 50MP, f/2.2 Samsung lens with a 1/2.76-inch sensor size.

Nothing Phone 3a Pro vs. Phone 2a Plus: Which should you buy?

The choice between the Nothing Phone 3a Pro and the Phone 2a Plus is pretty cut-and-dry, as long as specs and value proposition are your main priorities. The Phone 3a Pro has the better processor overall, the better camera system, and full-fledged Nothing OS 3. It's one of the best cheap Android phones. However, it does have that chunky camera bump, so I can understand wanting to grab the Phone 2a Plus for a more subdued look.

The good news is that if you have the Phone 2a Plus, there's no need to upgrade. You already have the exact same battery capacity, charging speeds, and front-facing camera as the newer model. Additionally, the Phone 2a Plus is set to get two more Android OS upgrades, meaning it has plenty of life left in it.