To understand what people really think about the Nothing CMF Phone 1, we analyzed 138 verified reviews from actual users. Our method is direct: we identify the key features that owners care about, such as the screen, camera, performance, and battery life.
For each feature, we classify every user mention as positive, negative, or neutral. This allows us to calculate a precise sentiment score, showing the percentage of people who had a positive experience. The result is a straightforward look at the phone’s strengths and weaknesses, based entirely on real-world feedback.
💰 Value for Money: Premium Feel, Hidden Costs
Exceptional Perceived Value
The value proposition of the Nothing CMF Phone 1 is a compelling story of what you get versus what you don’t. At its core, the overwhelmingly positive sentiment is driven by a feeling that the phone punches far above its weight class. An incredible 95% of users express positive satisfaction relative to the phone’s cost, a figure that towers 11 points above the category average.
This isn’t just about being a good deal; it’s about the emotional response to owning a device that feels more premium than its price tag suggests. As one user eloquently put it, the phone “feels like a $700 phone or even a $1000 one from 2 years ago.”
This sentiment is echoed by others who feel that “nothing have put the same care and effort into this one as flagship phones receive in their development,” creating a powerful sense that you’re getting away with a bargain for a “daily driver that don’t poke a hole in your wallet.”
In-Box Frustrations and Hidden Costs
However, this premium perception is undercut by a significant and immediate frustration: what’s missing from the box. User sentiment regarding unexpected costs and missing items plummets to just 15% positive, trailing 6 points behind an already low category average. The primary culprit is the lack of a charging brick, a problem made worse by the included cable.
One user perfectly captured the issue, explaining,
Was not expecting it only has USB-C to USB-C only cable. While I don’t mind it not included charger brick, but my home charger does not have USB-C port.
This forces an unforeseen purchase and adds a sour note to the initial experience. This concern about future costs extends to repairs, with one owner warning others to “consider the lack of parts for fixes before they purchase,” as they discovered that “getting a screen replacement in Australia is almost impossible at this point in time.”
Competitive Landscape
This stark contrast in user experience sharpens when placed next to its rivals. The CMF Phone 1’s exceptional 95% satisfaction-to-cost score easily outshines the Motorola Moto G05 (87%) and Moto E14 (85%), giving it a clear edge in perceived quality and design.
It’s the reason buyers are so enthusiastic, feeling they’ve acquired a device that feels special. Yet, while the frustration of a missing charger is a common issue in the budget market, the CMF Phone 1 offers no better solution, performing significantly worse than the Motorola Moto E14, which managed a much higher 56% positive score in that specific area.
Ultimately, buyers are faced with a clear choice: opt for a competitor that might include more accessories, or choose the CMF for its uniquely premium feel, accepting the initial setup costs as part of the price of admission.
Trade-Off: The CMF Phone 1 delivers an experience that feels far more expensive than its price tag, but this premium perception comes at the tangible cost of essential in-box accessories and concerns over long-term repairability.
📸 Camera: Value vs. Weakness
When evaluating the camera on the Nothing CMF Phone 1, users tell a story of surprising value clashing with clear limitations. While the general image and video quality satisfies 68% of users, this figure conceals a deeper narrative about what you get—and what you give up—for the budget-friendly price tag. For many, the performance feels like a bargain, punching well above its weight class.
One owner was particularly impressed, stating:
Camera honestly feels 1.5x to 2.0x better than a Motorola Edge 30 Fusion that cost several hundred dollars more.
This perception of getting more than you paid for is a consistent theme, with another user calling it “a steal for me,” emphasizing that for everyday moments, the camera is “perfectly sufficient for snapshots, e.g., on vacation.”
Low-Light and Stabilization Issues
However, the camera’s performance falls a significant 10 points short of the 78% satisfaction rate for the category average, and users clearly identify where the compromises were made. The primary frustrations surface when the sun goes down or when a steady hand is required.
Owners report that the camera “quickly weakens in deteriorating light,” a sentiment echoed by another who noted, “Only in the dark do disadvantages compared to more expensive smartphones become visible.” This low-light struggle is compounded by a key missing feature, which one user pinpointed directly:
Slightly disappoint there’s no image stabilisation function.
This omission means that even if the sensor is capable, the lack of stabilization can lead to blurry photos, turning a potentially good shot into a frustrating experience.
Competitive Landscape
In the context of its direct competitors, the CMF Phone 1’s camera performance becomes much clearer. Its 68% positive rating for image quality places it on equal footing with the Motorola Moto G05 (68%) and slightly ahead of the Moto E14 (63%) and Moto G04s (66%).
This data shows that while it doesn’t challenge the broader category, it offers a competitive, if not slightly superior, experience compared to similarly priced alternatives. For buyers cross-shopping in this specific budget tier, the CMF Phone 1 doesn’t just keep up; it proves to be a compelling option for those prioritizing daytime photography value.
Trade-Off: For its price, the Nothing CMF Phone 1’s camera delivers impressive daytime shots that feel like a steal, but this value comes at the cost of weak low-light performance and the lack of crucial features like image stabilization.
📱 Screen: Unanimous Visual Delight
The screen on the Nothing CMF Phone 1 is not just a feature; it is an experience that consistently leaves users astonished by its quality. The foundation of this praise lies in its display quality and vibrancy, which achieves a perfect 100% positive sentiment score among users—a full 17 percentage points above the category average.
This isn’t just a number; it represents a tangible sense of value and surprise, with users feeling they’ve received a premium product for a budget price. One user, who was initially skeptical, articulated this feeling perfectly:
absolutely positively surprised by the display.
This sentiment was even echoed by an iPhone user who found the CMF Phone 1’s screen “more pleasant for me than the iPhone.” The combination of a fluid 120Hz refresh rate and a rich AMOLED panel creates an experience that feels both fast and visually stunning, as one owner noted:
The 120Hz feels super fluid thanks to the also very good NothingOS operating system.
No Weaknesses Found
Remarkably, in our analysis of user feedback, we found no significant complaints or weaknesses related to the phone’s screen. Every discussed factor, from brightness to touch responsiveness, received universal acclaim.
Users consistently describe the display in glowing terms, calling it “awesome” and “magnificent.” Even practical elements are lauded, with one person noting the “fairly good display even under bright sunlight at outdoor” and another appreciating that a “screen protector already [came] installed.”
This absence of negativity is a powerful testament to the screen’s quality, indicating that it meets and exceeds user expectations across the board, leaving no room for frustration.
Dominating the Competition
This universal approval becomes even more significant when placed in its competitive context. The CMF Phone 1’s 100% positive score for display quality and vibrancy utterly eclipses its direct Motorola rivals.
It stands a staggering 20 points ahead of the Motorola Moto G05 (80%), 27 points above the Moto E14 (73%), and an overwhelming 32 points clear of the Moto G04s (68%).
This vast gap illustrates why users feel the CMF Phone 1 is in a different class. For a potential buyer, this isn’t a minor advantage; it’s the difference between a serviceable screen and one that genuinely enhances the daily user experience, a factor reinforced by a user who claimed its features surpassed a premium predecessor like the PIXEL 7.
Clear Win: By delivering a unanimously praised visual experience that dramatically outshines its direct competitors, the Nothing CMF Phone 1’s screen establishes a new benchmark for quality and user satisfaction in the budget category.
✨ Design: Premium Feel, Missing Features
The design of the Nothing CMF Phone 1 presents a fascinating contradiction for buyers. While its physical construction earns high praise for feeling unexpectedly premium, this satisfaction is tempered by frustration over missing features and unfulfilled promises of customization.
Exceptional Build Quality
The most significant driver of positive sentiment is the phone’s exceptional build quality and materials, which achieve an 89% positive rating—a full 13 percentage points above the category average. For a budget device, this is a remarkable achievement that consistently surprises users, making the phone feel far more expensive than it is.
This premium feel is a recurring theme in user reviews. One owner was “absolutely positively surprised by the feel,” while another stated, “Despite being a budget phone, I find this phone to be very premium… I am very impressed.” This quality isn’t just skin-deep; users also report impressive durability, with one noting:
I might’ve dropped it about 2-3 times from pocket height, and there are no scratches, dents, nothing.
Missing Features & Frustrations
However, this high-quality exterior masks significant shortcomings in its design features, a factor that scores a low 35% in positive sentiment, falling below the category average of 40%. The frustration here centers on key omissions and a sense of letdown.
The most frequently cited issue is the lack of NFC for contactless payments, a feature many now consider essential. As one user put it:
The only downside is the missing NFC.
This frustration is compounded by the difficulty in obtaining the modular accessories that were a key part of the phone’s unique marketing. One buyer lamented:
The changeable back covers are NOT available to order separately, you have to buy another phone if you want orange/sage.
Competitive Context
This mixed experience becomes clearer when placed in a competitive context. The CMF Phone 1’s 89% positive score for build quality massively outshines the 56% received by its direct competitor, the Motorola Moto G05. This vast difference demonstrates a tangible advantage in perceived quality and durability that influences buying decisions.
For many, the CMF phone simply feels like a more substantial, higher-value product in the hand, a sentiment captured by a user who called it “the iPhone of Android.” While its aesthetics score of 89% is on par with its Motorola rivals, it’s the superior build that truly sets it apart from at least one key competitor.
Trade-Off: Users get a device that feels far more expensive and durable than its competitors, but they must sacrifice modern conveniences like NFC and the full promise of its modular design.
🚀 Performance: Budget Beast, Minor Heat
Regarding its Performance, the Nothing CMF Phone 1 doesn’t just meet expectations for a budget device; it shatters them, delivering a user experience that feels far more premium than its price tag suggests.
The driving force behind this satisfaction is its raw processing power and speed, which achieves a remarkable 93% positive sentiment—a full 10 percentage points above the category average. This isn’t just a number; it’s the reason users feel they’ve discovered a hidden gem.
One owner explained:
the optimisation of the components is wonderful and gets the most out of what you get for the money,
…adding that the device:
feels like a $700 phone or even a $1000 one from 2 years ago.
For gamers, this translates into a decisive advantage, with one enthusiast calling it a:
KILLER PHONE IN THIS PRICE SEGMENT
This is because it can “UNLOCK 90 FPS” in PUBG, a feat unheard of at this price point.
Thermal Management
However, the experience isn’t entirely flawless. A small but vocal group of users points to thermal management as a weak spot, particularly when the phone is pushed to its limits. While the processor handles most tasks with ease, some have noticed unwelcome heat.
The most common complaints are that for “heavy games like Genshin Impact, it gets a bit hot,” and a more concerning issue where one user reported:
When put on charge, device gets heated.
This suggests that while the phone’s engine is powerful, its cooling system can sometimes struggle to keep up under intense pressure.
Competitive Context
This minor thermal issue becomes almost negligible when the CMF Phone 1’s performance is placed in its competitive context. Its 93% positive score for processing power utterly dominates its rivals.
For instance, the Motorola Moto G05 sits at 87%, while the Moto E14 and Moto G04s lag catastrophically behind with scores of 54% and 46%, respectively. This vast 39 to 47-point performance gap is precisely why buyers feel they are getting an incredible deal.
It’s a tangible difference that transforms the daily experience from sluggish to snappy. One user declared the phone is:
smoother than my Samsung phone
…and another stated it’s simply:
better than a lot of pricier phones.
For buyers in this bracket, the choice is between a phone that feels merely adequate and one that, as a user put it, “performs really snappy.”
Trade-Off: Users gain access to a shockingly fast and responsive experience that obliterates competitors in its price class, but must accept potential heating issues under heavy gaming loads or during charging.
✨ Software & Operating System: Smooth, But Missing Essentials
When evaluating the Nothing CMF Phone 1‘s Software and Operating System, users tell a story of exceptional refinement marred by a few critical omissions. The overwhelming sentiment is one of delight with the user interface, a factor that profoundly shapes the day-to-day experience.
With a 97% positive score for UI smoothness and experience—a full 23 points above the category average of 74%—it’s clear that Nothing has delivered a uniquely fluid and uncluttered environment. Owners repeatedly describe it as “one of the best software experiences,” praising it as an “extremely clean UI experience” that is free from the junk applications that plague its rivals.
One user summed up the premium feeling perfectly:
The OS design, quality, performance and etcetera feels so luxurious.
This clean, fast, and bloatware-free approach is the phone’s single greatest software achievement.
Critical Omissions and Stability
However, this glowing praise is tempered by significant frustrations related to software stability and missing features. This factor scores a low 31% in positive sentiment, and while this score is slightly better than the category average of 27%, it highlights a key area of user pain.
The most consistently cited issue is not a bug, but a deliberate hardware omission with major software consequences: the lack of NFC. For many, this is a glaring flaw in an otherwise modern device. As one owner explained:
the only thing holding the phone back… is the lack of NFC since contactless payments are the norm here.
Others took issue with the definition of “clean,” arguing that the inability to remove core Google services felt like its own form of bloatware. One particularly frustrated user noted:
This CMF Phone is nothing but a Google Phone in disguise… Apps can’t be uninstalled, only disabled.
Competitive Landscape
This trade-off becomes even clearer in the competitive landscape. The CMF Phone 1’s 97% positive rating for UI smoothness dramatically outperforms key competitors like the Motorola Moto G04s, which scored only 84%.
This stark difference is why users perceive the CMF Phone 1 as offering a more premium user experience than other budget options. They are effectively getting a flagship-level software feel at a budget price.
Yet, the story is a give-and-take. While its 31% score on software stability and issues is low, it is still technically better than the Moto G04s’s 18%, suggesting that minor bugs and missing features are a common problem in this category, but Nothing’s focus on a superior UI sets it apart.
Trade-Off: Users get a uniquely clean and fluid software experience that feels far more premium than its price suggests, but they must accept the crucial functional compromise of missing NFC and a core of non-removable Google apps.
🔋 Battery: Marathon Life, Charging Misery
For the Nothing CMF Phone 1, the story of its battery is a tale of exceptional stamina undermined by frustrating limitations. The star of the show is undisputedly its raw battery life, which earns an 81% positive sentiment score—a full 7 points above the category average.
This isn’t just a number; it represents a tangible freedom from battery anxiety for users. Many are astounded by its longevity, with one owner calling it:
without a doubt the best I have seen EVER
This is attributed to an “energy efficient SOC that doesn’t sacrifice performance.” Others find the endurance deeply practical, noting that “it can last for up to two days” with regular use, providing a level of reliability that feels far more expensive than the phone’s price tag suggests.
Charging Frustrations
However, this impressive endurance is contrasted sharply by significant real-world charging frustrations. While the phone’s ability to hold a charge is praised, the process of getting power into it is a source of irritation.
Users report specific and disruptive issues, from the phone overheating during charging to a complete failure to charge in certain situations. As one user frustratingly noted:
When I connect the phone to the car’s charging port, it shows charging, but it doesn’t charge at all, whereas my other phone can charge smoothly.
This suggests an incompatibility that can be a major inconvenience for commuters. Another pointed out that for peak performance, there’s a hidden requirement:
the only problem is it needs the proprietary adapter for optimum charging
Competitive Landscape
This duality of impressive longevity and flawed charging becomes even clearer in the competitive landscape. The CMF Phone 1’s 81% positive score for battery life puts it at the top of its class, matching the Motorola Moto G04s (81%) and easily surpassing the Motorola Moto E14 (66%).
This means buyers are getting best-in-class endurance, a fact not lost on users who make favorable comparisons even to premium competitors like the iPhone.
The long battery life is no comparison to an iPhone.
For many, this exceptional stamina is a primary reason to choose the CMF phone over its rivals, offering them a level of performance they associate with much more expensive devices.
Trade-Off: Users get exceptional, class-leading battery endurance that lasts for days, but they must accept significant and inconvenient inconsistencies in the charging experience.
Bottom Line
- ✅ A stunning visual experience: Boasts a perfect 100% user satisfaction score for its screen, dominating rivals by as much as 32 points.
- ⚠️ A critical design flaw: The lack of NFC is the top user complaint, making modern contactless payments impossible.
- ⚠️ Premium feel, hidden costs: User sentiment on in-box items plummets to just 15% positive due to the missing charger and unobtainable modular backs.
- 🔻 A regression in photography: With a satisfaction score 10 points below the category average, users cite weak low-light performance and no image stabilization.
- 🏁 Obliterates rivals on speed: Its 93% positive performance rating crushes competitors like the Moto G04s, which lags up to 47 points behind.
- 💡 Bottom Line: A device that feels incredibly premium, but only if you sacrifice essentials like NFC for its exceptional speed and screen.