
Apple
Good

Nothing
Good
iPhone 17 Air
At 5.5mm thick, the iPhone 17 Air redefines what a smartphone can look like. The all-aluminum construction is both a design statement and a compromise enabler.
Nothing Phone (3a) Pro
The Nothing Phone (3a) Pro is universally praised for its transparent back with 26-zone Glyph Interface LEDs — nothing else in the mid-range looks like it. Upgraded from the 2a's polycarbonate to glass with a ceramic-coated aluminum frame, it feels genuinely premium. The dedicated Essential Key button adds hardware-level AI access. However, the massive camera island is divisive, the phone is top-heavy at 211g, and IP64 water resistance falls behind IP67/68 competitors.
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iPhone 17 Air
The 6.6-inch OLED display with ProMotion 120Hz is excellent, though peak brightness does not match the Pro models.
Nothing Phone (3a) Pro
The 6.77-inch AMOLED display is a highlight, with 120Hz refresh rate, 3,000 nits peak HDR brightness, and 480Hz touch sampling. A massive upgrade from the Phone 2a's 1,300 nits, it delivers excellent outdoor readability, rich colors, and smooth scrolling. FHD+ resolution is standard for the price class but perfectly adequate.
iPhone 17 Air
A single 48MP main camera delivers good photos but severely limits versatility compared to the dual and triple camera systems on other iPhone 17 models.
Nothing Phone (3a) Pro
The camera system is the Nothing Phone (3a) Pro's biggest selling point. The 50MP main sensor with OIS delivers detailed, vibrant daylight shots, while the 50MP 3x periscope telephoto is virtually unheard of under $500 — producing excellent portraits and zoom shots. The 50MP selfie camera is above average. However, the 8MP ultrawide is a weak link, low-light performance divides opinion, and video is limited to 4K/30fps.
iPhone 17 Air
The A19 (non-Pro) chip handles daily tasks effortlessly but lacks the GPU horsepower and Neural Engine cores of the Pro variant.
Nothing Phone (3a) Pro
The Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 handles everyday tasks — social media, browsing, multitasking — without issue. However, it's the weakest area of the phone. Benchmark scores (~810K AnTuTu) trail competitors like the Poco X7 Pro, and gaming at high settings can stutter. Some reviewers experienced occasional lag, while others found it perfectly smooth for non-gaming use.