CMF Phone One: Unique Design and Software Innovations

CMF Phone One by Nothing offers unique design and software at a $200 price point, distinguishing it from other budget phones.

### CMF Phone One: The $200 Phone with Unique Design and Software
* 🎨  The CMF Phone One is a **$200 Android phone** that stands out with its **unique design and software**, being part of Nothing's budget sub-brand CMF.
* 🔧  The plastic back of the phone is completely **removable and replaceable in different colors**, and it comes with a **knob at the bottom corner for attaching accessories**.
* 👍  The knob accessories include a **kickstand, card holder wallet, and lanyard**, providing **additional functionality and customization options**.
* 📱  In terms of usability, the phone runs **Nothing OS 2.6** and offers a smooth experience with a decent **AMOLED display** and **MediaTek Dimensity 7300 5G chip**.
* 📦  Trade-offs for the **$200 price point** include **no wireless charging**, a **cheap vibration motor**, and an **IP52 water resistance rating**.
* 📷  The 50-megapixel primary camera takes serviceable photos, but lacks **OIS** and the secondary sensor is only used for **2x portrait mode**.
* 🎯  The CMF Phone One is targeted mainly towards the Indian market, offering a **compelling set of features and trade-offs** for its price point.

[Music] [Music] All right, so CMF Phone One by Nothing is kind of a confusing name, but what this phone's trying to do, not confusing at all. Love it or hate it, this is one of the most interesting new phones in the world at the moment because Nothing came along a few years ago and said, Hey, what if we tried to make an average budget phone but with a focus on software and design? And it kind of worked. Those phones are pretty good. And so now, CMF is the budget sub-brand of Nothing. And they've come along and said, Hey, well, what if we did the same thing but even more so? That's how you end up with this. This is a $200 Android phone that on paper doesn't really stand out specs-wise in the sea of other $200 Android phones that can get, but it absolutely does stand out with its software and design. And I just want to start with the design first because that's the most interesting thing about this phone by a mile. So this is the CMF phone in black.

and on the surface, it's nothing too crazy, right? It's got flat sides, pretty average bezels all the way around this big AMOLED display, and dual cameras up in the corner on the back. But then you realize two things. First, there's a knob like a dial down here at the bottom corner corner of the phone. And second, there's also a bunch of these metal screws all the way around the outside. And that's because this plastic back is completely removable and replaceable in a couple different colors. There's black, there's also orange, there's a blue, and there is a light blue, which also kind of has a little green hue to it depending on who you ask. So right off the bat, this idea is pretty unique, like for any phone, especially at this price. I remember back in the Moto Maker days a while ago, you could sort of customize your phone, but that was also much more permanent. And it's been many years since we had removable backs on phones. And even though nothing else comes off and the

battery isn't removable, and the back still feels super cheap and flexible because it is, but once it's on the phone, it feels pretty rigid and sturdy, and it's still cool to see the ability to change the color. It's a convenient little upsell for the company that's selling the phone itself for so cheap. So then, in the Box for the cover, you also get this little orange combo Sim ejector tool and flathead screwdriver, since you'll need this tool to remove the SIM card tray and all of the screws to get the back off. And then, it comes with a matching SIM card tray and dial to pop on the back so that everything matches up. But you can also totally mix and match if you want. It kind of makes the phone maybe feel a little bit more like your own. So the color-changing back is one thing, but then there's also this knob I keep pointing at down here in the corner, and this is a separate feature. So I remember when they first started started teasing

this on Twitter. We were trying to figure out, like on the waveform podcast, like what is this going to be. Is this a volume knob? Is this going to be just like a fidget toy? Or is it a mappable thing with the software? Like what's the knob? Uh, and it turns out it's a mounting attaching point for some accessories. So it's not like something that spins freely. It's kind of just a fancy thumb screw with a colorful cap. And if you take it off, you can replace it with one of three accessories that they've made. So far, there is a kickstand, which lets you prop up your phone on like a flat table or a surface. There's also a card holder wallet, which lets me put up to four cards in the back and then slap it on the back with magnets and carry it around with me. And there's a lanyard. Not sure how many people are going to put their phone on a lanyard, but you now at least have the option to. You can securely attach it to the corner.

of the phone. So is this a gimmick? I'm going to vote no. I think that kickstand is the one thing that I would actually want to have on my phone, or at least the option to have on my phone whenever I want. It's kind of nice that that's available for it, but in general, it's just the main point of it is one more useful thing to separate it from other phones at 200 bucks. In the design department, I was going to say it feels kind of like an ultra-budget version of MagSafe, where instead of having magnets, you literally have to screw the thing onto your phone. But then I realized, wait, this magnet accessory, which is the plate that you screw onto the back of your phone for the wallet, connects with this suspiciously familiar-looking ring of magnets in the middle. So just for kicks, I slapped a MagSafe mount on there, and it's stuck like really well. So I actually think if you want to buy, like, a car mount or some accessory to

attach to this phone. I actually think you could buy a MAG safe one. This is the moment mag safe Puck and it will hold the phone from the back. So the more you know now. It obviously takes a bit of work. Several screws, the SIM card ejector tool, and the twisting and all that to take these accessories off the back of the phone and then put a new one on. So this isn't something you'd probably do every day or multiple times per day or anything like that, but it works. You have the ability to. And then when there's nothing on the back of the phone, this dial actually kind of protrudes the exact same amount as the camera bump in the opposite corner. So it prevents it from rocking back and forth at all. Well played CMF, well played. So they've got lots of neat little hardware customizations, but the other important thing about a phone is what it's actually like to use. So I've been using the CMF Phone One for the better part of about a week now. And to be honest, it

feels just like I'm using a nothing phone, which is a compliment. Matter of fact, it's literally running nothing OS 2.6. And aside from the light-up glyph interface, it's not missing a single feature that the more premium nothing phones actually have. It's got the cloned apps feature where you can have more than one instance of a single app installed. It's got game mode. It's got the clever little one-handed pull-down gesture where you can pull down the notifications without reaching. And of course, all the aesthetics, you know, the icon pack, the home screen widgets, the dots font, all that fun stuff. You still have that spot where you can view all of your notification history, underrated feature, you know. It behaves exactly like a nothing phone. And using this phone, I can honestly say that there were stretches of time where I'd forget I was using an ultra-cheap phone. Like, it's a fairly bright, responsive display. It's typically 5 to 700 nits, but it's an AMOLED that peaks at 2,000 nits. And it's

adaptive between 60 and 120 Hz, with a 240 Hz touch sample rate, so it's decently smooth and quick. So, you know, just flipping around through the daily inconsequential stuff like scrolling through social media, or reading emails, or light web browsing. For that stuff, of course, this phone is totally fine, super smooth. The chip powering everything here is the MediaTek Dimensity 7300 5G. It's about on par with the Snapdragon 7 Gen 1 as far as benchmarks, and they pair it with either 6 or 8 gigs of RAM depending on what spec you get. It's really decently well-equipped for 200 bucks, but you can definitely get this phone to show its price though. Like, it's not perfect. These aren't complaints; these are just facts about the trade-offs you obviously have to make to get a phone to be this cheap. So, like, this phone has a 5,000 mAh battery and a really solid battery life, but there's no wireless charging and of

course, there's no charger included in the box. If you're wondering, though, it supports up to 33 WS. But then, this phone also has no NFC. It has a really crappy cheap vibration motor. It has a single mono speaker down here at the bottom that's surprisingly easy to just block with one finger. The IAL underscreen fingerprint sensor. I actually think that's pretty impressive for this price range, but it's also been noticeably on the slower side for me and sometimes asked for multiple reads before unlocking. And then, these plastic backs, you know, like I said, they feel fine when they're attached to the frame of the phone, but like a car bumper when they're not attached to the frame. You can really feel how flimsy they are. These are plastic. The buttons in here, they feel like they're literally held on by elastic that I feel like I could snap at any moment. I mean, they haven't yet, but they just look like they could. And of course, with removable backs, the whole phone can't be super water-resistant.

it's just IP52 rated, basically just good for a splash, and we all know budget phone cameras have never been anything special. This phone is rocking a Sony sensor, it's a 50-megapixel primary sensor for the camera, and it takes, I would say, serviceable photos. They're not terrible, I would say, you know, it's an IMX 882. So it's actually the same sensor that's in the Poco F6 and the Realme 12 Pro and some other pretty budget phones, and also the Moto Edge, for some reason. But anyway, there's also no OIS, so when the light starts going away, it gets rough pretty quick. And then that second sensor up at the top, well, that's not a camera at all. That actually, it almost never really does anything. Turns out it's just a depth sensor for specifically shooting 2x portrait mode photos to get a bit of a cleaner, more accurate bokeh cutout. But it didn't complain much at all when I took photos with it covered or anytime while

shooting, actually. So, hey, budget phones make sacrifices. That's not a new concept here, but I like the set of trade-offs that they made with this one. I mean, squinting back at it, it doesn't look bad for a $200 phone, and I think the set of trade-offs that they made in the name of really good design and software, I like it. Now, this phone is mainly targeted towards India, that's the market that it's supposed to be most competitive in, and in that market, yeah, there's other cheap phones. They're a little more expensive than this, but they will also have like the two years of software updates and three years of security updates. They will also have, you know, big screens and relatively thin bezels and MediaTek chips. They're usually not AMEDs though, so that's good about this one, and a lot of them will also have Micro SD card expansion, which this phone also has. Probably the only notable missing thing is NFC, but just the sheer amount of time I was able to enjoy using this phone and not

thinking about its price because of how smooth it is all the software features it has. That's pretty sick. It's the $200 phone engineered to look cool, basically. And CMF has also just introduced a bunch of other stuff as well. There's a new smartwatch, $69. Nice. Also a new set of earbuds, $59. So to give you an idea of what they're working on. But let me know what you think. That's my review of the CMF phone one. Thanks for watching. Catch you guys in the next one. Peace.

CMF Phone 1: Fun Modular Budget Phone!

Marques Brownlee

Nothing's CMF Phone One offers a unique take on budget phones with a focus on software and design, standing out from other devices in its price range.

The phone features a removable and replaceable plastic back in different colors, along with a knob at the bottom corner, allowing for customization and a personal touch.

The inclusion of a tool for removing the back and a matching SIM card tray adds to the phone's customizable features, making it stand out in the budget phone market.

The CMF Phone One's Multi-Functional Knob and Accessories

The knob on the CMF Phone One is not just a fidget toy, but a mounting attaching point for three accessories: a kickstand, a card holder wallet, and a lanyard.

Despite the unconventional way of attaching accessories, it is compatible with MagSafe mounts, adding to its functionality.

The phone's knob also serves the purpose of stabilizing the phone when no accessories are attached, preventing it from rocking.

The Features of the Nothing Phone with Nothing OS 2.

The budget-friendly Nothing phone runs on Nothing OS 2.

6 and offers a wide range of features found in premium phones, such as cloned apps, game mode, and a one-handed pull-down gesture.

It is equipped with a MediaTek Dimensity 7300 5G chip, 6-8 gigs of RAM, and a 5,000 mAh battery, providing smooth performance and solid battery life for its price.

However, it lacks wireless charging and some premium amenities, reflecting the trade-offs of its affordability.

The phone lacks a charger and NFC, with a poor vibration motor and mono speaker.

Its underscreen fingerprint sensor is slow, and the plastic backs feel flimsy.

The camera, while using a 50-megapixel Sony sensor, struggles in low light and has a secondary sensor that serves little purpose.

The CMF Phone One: A $200 Budget Phone with Surprising Features

The CMF Phone One offers a good design, smooth software, and AMEDs at a budget-friendly price, mainly targeted towards the competitive Indian market.

Despite the lack of NFC, it provides a seamless user experience and includes features like Micro SD card expansion.

Additionally, CMF has introduced a new smartwatch and earbuds as part of their product lineup.