- Demo units of the Nothing Phone 3 were found to be passing off stock photos as camera sample images
- Nothing has explained that this was an “unfortunate oversight”
- Actual camera samples from the Nothing Phone 3 are impressive anyway
Nothing has found itself in a surprising situation, as demo units of the Nothing Phone 3 have been displaying stock photos – taken with professional cameras – and listing them as shot by the Phone 3 itself.
A photographer behind one of these images confirmed this to The Verge, but while you could easily jump to the conclusion that this was intentional deceit from Nothing, it seems more likely that it was an accident.
Speaking about the incident on X, Nothing co-founder Akis Evangelidis has said that this situation was an “unfortunate oversight” and that there was “no ill intent”.
Re the Phone (3) live demo units (LDU) in some stores using stock imagery – let me explain. An initial version of the LDU needs to be submitted with placeholders around 4 months before launch, to be implemented and tested as we ramp up towards mass production. Once we enter mass…August 27, 2025
They explained that an initial version of the Nothing Phone 3 demo units needed to be submitted with placeholder images around four months before launch, so that the demo units could be implemented and tested in time.
The intention was then to replace the placeholder images with photo samples once the Nothing Phone 3 entered mass production, but for whatever reason that step didn’t happen with some demo units.
Evangelidis additionally said that the company is “investigating internally to make sure such an issue doesn’t happen again.”
A capable camera
We’re inclined to believe this explanation, not least because the Nothing Phone 3 seems perfectly capable of taking impressive photos.
While we haven’t put it through a full review yet, some samples posted on X certainly look eye-catching. So there should have been no real need to attempt deception, especially with the risk of getting caught.
So hopefully this situation won’t hamper impressions of what looks to be a very interesting phone, with a design unlike any other.
