Should I buy Nothing Phone (4a) or wait for the Phone (4a) Pro instead?

The Nothing Phone (4a) and Phone (4a) Pro are now official – and the pair are significantly different to their predecessors.

The Phone (4a) will be on sale slightly sooner than the Pro version, so is that the one to go for, or should you wait and spend a little more on the latter?

I've seen both handsets in person at Nothing's London launch event and here's the lowdown on what differs between the two.

Price

The Nothing Phone (4a) is up for pre-order now, with sales commencing 13 March. This model isn't available in the USA.

The Nothing Phone (4a) will open for pre-orders on 13 March, with an on-sale date of 27 March. It will be available in the USA.

I've built a quick-glance table for the entry pricing in three key regions below. Note this is for the 128GB storage and 8GB RAM variants.

I think that 128GB storage is a little too low for many users, however, so Nothing offering a 256GB variant with even more RAM seems the savvy option. Here's how that prices up instead:

Design

• Phone (4a): Plastic frame, glass back
• Phone (4a) Pro: Aluminium unibody
• Phone (4a) Pro only: Glyph Matrix feature
• Phone (4a): Pink, White, Black, Blue
• Phone (4a) Pro: Pink, Black, Silver

While the previous generation had different yet similar design language, the jump between the latest Phone (4a) and Phone (4a) Pro is more considerable.

That's because the former opts for a plastic body, revealing many components within (as is classic Nothing design), while the latter opts for an aluminium unibody design, hiding the interior components.

That gives the two handsets a significantly different look, the Pro looking and feeling far more premium. It also makes the colour options look significantly different, so don't read 'pink' on one as meaning the same on the other.

The Pro is also the only model to get the Glyph Matrix feature, as part of its camera enclosure, which is entirely absent from the base (4a) model.

Cameras

• Both: 50-megapixel 3.5x tele, 50MP main, 8MP wide-angle
• Pro: Slight sensor improvement for main camera
• Both: 32MP front-facing selfie camera
• Pro only: up to 140x digital zoom

While the previous (3a) series was mainly defined by the difference in cameras – the Pro adding a zoom that the base model lacked – in the (4a) series its a very different equation.

That's because both Phone (4a) and (4a) Pro both feature a 50-megapixel 3.5x telephoto zoom, both feature a 50MP main camera, and both a wide-angle too.

There's little to separate them, therefore, except that the Pro's main camera is a marginally better sensor, so ought to produce marginally better images. It also has more processing power, so can offer more digital zoom, as one example.

Display

• Phone (4a): 6.78-inch display
• Phone (4a) Pro: 6.83-inch display

There's a minor difference in the handset's sizing, too, as the Pro model has a marginally bigger screen.

There's barely any different in terms of scale therefore – and pixel density is the very same.

The Pro's panel can go a little brighter, though, setting it apart from the base model.

Performance

• Phone (4a): Qualcomm Snapdragon 7s Gen 4
• Phone (4a) Pro: Snapdragon 7 Gen 4
• Both: 8GB RAM, 12GB option
• Both: 128GB storage base, 256GB option
• Both: 5080mAh battery capacity

Inside both models use a mid-tier Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, but the Pro's is the more powerful – with faster clock speeds.

That will translate to greater ability overall, with features such as increased digital zoom one example of that.

The two otherwise aren't dramatically different, offering the same storage and RAM variations.

The two handsets also offer the same battery capacity (the exception being in India, where the Pro is a 5400mAh increase).

So which has it?

For me, it's the Pro model that takes it. Largely down to its aluminium unibody design, which I think looks far superior.

I could take or leave the Glyph Matrix feature, though, and I don't expect you'll see giant shifts in performance or camera quality – despite marginal differences.

That's really the main reason to buy the Phone (4a) Pro: for its aluminium finish above all else. It gives it a classier look and feel than the base Phone (4a)'s plastic.

Obviously the Pro is pricier and doesn't come in as many colour options. And it might be that a brighter pink or blue really catches your attention – in which case the base (4a) is a winner.