Nothing Phone (3) vs S25 Ultra Audiophile Review 🤔
Everyone says the Nothing Phone (3) is a “Flagship in name only” because it uses the Snapdragon 8s Gen 4 processor. It actually is a fantastic midrange chip, because even if it’s not able to reach peak levels of processing like the Snapdragon 8 Elite chip of the S25 Ultra, it can maintain performance stability better according to tests published by Android Authority.
But nobody really talks about the audio aspect of the Nothing Phone (3). They may talk about speakers but it’s usually touch and go, and there’s more than just speakers, right? There’s also the sound settings and features, supported audio codecs, and the sound quality differences over Bluetooth and USB-C wired audio.
In this review, I’m not just going to describe the differences, we’re going to listen to the difference with sound samples benchmarked against the S25 Ultra. After that, I’m going to share my overall take after using the Phone (3) for more than a month, so buckle up!
Sound Quality
Whether the audio’s over Bluetooth, Wired, or from the speakers, the Nothing Phone (3) sounds very different from the S25 Ultra. Let’s start with Bluetooth audio. The S25 Ultra will emphasize the mids and highs more, while controlling the bass frequencies so you can hear a bit less muddiness, a bit more texture.
The Nothing has the mids and highs a little more subdued, so vocals can sound more recessed and muted while bass frequencies are more enhanced. In the sound samples linked below, you can also hear that the airyness factor is a little darker on the Nothing.
Some people may think it sounds better, but others, like me, may prefer the S25 Ultra’s cleaner, crisper sound. Here are samples recorded with the Sony WH-1000XM6 over LDAC codec on both phones.
👉 Have a listen to the sound quality samples
And linked below is the difference over USB-C connection using the Cambridge Audio P100 SE. (The difference is even more stark compared to over Bluetooth.)
Listening with the speakers, I have to say, I prefer the Nothing. It’s a little softer in volume, but it sounds a bit less shrill than the S25 Ultra, so even if you’re playing at max volume, it sounds less annoying and not as messy.
👉 Have a listen to the built-in speaker quality samples
Why do I prefer the Nothing Phone (3)?
The main reason why Audiophiles might prefer the Phone 3 is if they want to minimize the drawbacks of wireless audio. The Phone (3) supports a wide range of codecs from LDAC, to LHDC V5. You can even set aptX Adaptive to prioritize low latency or high quality, or to prefer aptX HD over regular aptX. The S25, on the other hand, only supports regular aptX, LDAC and SSC, so if you buy a pair of wireless headphones, and you’re hoping to stream Hi-Res audio, it needs to support one of these if you use the S25 Ultra.
Why audiophiles might prefer the S25 Ultra?
What the Samsung does have is even more custom audio settings than the Nothing. You got Universal EQ presets and a graphic EQ which works for both the speakers and Bluetooth Audio. You also get Dolby Atmos, which takes a more targeted approach to Spatial audio.
So if you play music, it enhances the air in the soundstage, but it’s only when playing videos will the spatial effect kick in, adding reverb to the mids and expanding the soundstage.
On the other hand, the Nothing only has global spatial audio, so even with just music, it will diffuse and reverb the vocals while boosting the bass. Here’s the difference between the Nothing on Spatial mode versus the S25 Ultra’s Dolby Atmos Music setting, as heard over the WH-1000XM6 on LDAC codec.
👉 Have a listen to the spatial audio quality samples
So I think from an audio perspective, I prefer the S25 Ultra’s overall tuning, and the settings I can do. But if there’s one thing the Nothing does better, it’s USB audio. USB audio on the Samsung's is more glitchy. Sometimes the volume gain is only like, half? And you have to max out the volume to get 50% loudness.
I can fix that by turning silent mode off and on again, then messing with the volume, but I haven’t had to do that with the Nothing. Otherwise, I prefer the S25 Ultra’s tuning.
Camera Performance
As for the Nothing Phone (3)’s camera performance, it’s great. In most situations, I like it more than the Samsung’s because pictures look more contrasty, less washed out, and it preserves the details and colour better. It’s great that all camera elements are 50MP, but it’s not just about megapixels, it’s also about processing, and in my opinion, I like the processing more on the Nothing. (Samples above)
It also balances colors better under artificial lighting. (See here) The color shifting is pretty bad on the S25 Ultra. The Samsung does have better digital zoom, though, and can preserve and fill in details better, whereas the Nothing just smooths everything out.
For videos, just as with photos, I prefer the Nothing’s color processing, but I also like the S25 Ultra stabilization. It just looks smoother. And when you’re zoomed in all the way, the S25 Ultra still preserves more detail.
👉 Have a look at the video samples
Why would I buy the Nothing Phone (3)?
Overall, after a month of using the Nothing Phone (3), I’m not blown away by its audio quality or features. But its camera performance is great, and as a non-phone gamer, this having a midrange chip is fine by me. Anyway, Nothing Phones have never been about peak performance, but are meant to be affordable, unique experiences, in this case, through the new Glyph interface.
Apart from the tools and minigames, my favorite Glyph feature has to be the Glyph mirror, which lets you take properly framed selfies with the rear main camera, in case you need the larger sensor size.
What I also appreciate is no bloatware. It’s a very clean experience free from duplicate apps and utilities that we don’t need. Well, there is the Essentials Space app from Nothing, but it’s just one app and it does serve a pretty useful purpose organizing screenshots and transcribing audio recordings.
It is activated with the Essentials button, which is basically a screenshot / voice record shortcut. I feel it can be utilized a bit better, maybe let us also assign other functions to it like camera or torchlight shortcuts.
In short, while it’s not a powerhouse, the Nothing Phone (3) is worth a look due to its unique Glyph features, great camera performance and a wide range of audio codecs. not having to deal with bloatware is also a plus. You can check its latest Amazon price in the links below.
Check Latest Prices:
Nothing Phone (3) - https://amzn.to/3HMEDRD
Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra - https://amzn.to/45MZKvm
Affiliate Links
When you make a purchase through the Affiliate Links here, I earn a small cut for the sale at no cost to you, and this helps the channel out in a big way. Thank you for your support!
