A surprise Nothing phone launch is happening this month

When it comes to Android phone brands, the market has never been more competitive. On the one hand, you've got tried and true brands who are stoically churning out products year on year. You might see a minor change here or there, but these brands trade on status and familiarity.

The other side is full of start-ups and smaller brands. Those looks to disrupt the industry, whether that's with hardware, software or company ethos. Nothing definitely falls into the latter camp.

Led by ex-OnePlus man, Carl Pei, and producing some of the best cheap phones and earbuds on the market, the brand has gone from strength to strength. It is no stranger to a new product launch, either, which makes a surprise one even more impressive.

That's exactly what we've just had from Nothing. They've announced a launch event for a new variant of the Nothing Phone (2a) model, which has been designed in conjunction with the Nothing community.

So, what do we know about the device? Well, actually quite a lot! As the brand's Community Edition webpage details, there are a range of features which have already been approved.

For starters, the back panel hardware is going to be luminous. The winning design – called Phosphorescence – takes an 80s bathroom green back panel and gives it a lick of emergency exit hue when the lights go down.

We can also see a series of different wallpapers designed for the device, alongside the packaging – which showcases that same green hue as the daylight version of the handset – and some snaps from the brand's marketing campaign.

What we don't yet know is if the handset will have any functional difference to the Phone (2a). The subsequent Nothing Phone (2a) Plus, for example, boosted some of its hardware components.

The other anomaly at the moment is the price. The Phone (2a) retails from £349 (approx. $457 / AU$680) while the Phone (2a) Plus retails at £399 ($522 / AU$777). I'd wager somewhere in the middle of those is probably where this handset will end up.

To know for sure, though, you'll need to tune in. The launch event takes place on the 30th of October at 11am GMT, where all will be revealed.