Nothing's Phone 1 Is Missing One Important Feature: Waterproofing

Nothing's Phone 1 made a splash with its debut earlier this month. Apart from a solid set of specs for a relatively affordable price, its transparent back literally lights up when you receive a phone call or a notification.  

But there's one important missing feature: waterproofing.  

The Phone 1 has an IP53 rating for water resistance -- a lower rating than the similarly priced iPhone SE 2022 and Google Pixel 6A's IP67 rating and Samsung Galaxy's A53 5G, indicating Nothing's hyped-up smartphone may not be as durable as its peers. Though to be fair, none of those phones have a rear adorned with hundreds of flashing LED lights or wireless charging.

IP, which stands for International Protection (sometimes Ingress Protection), is a set of standards defined by an industry body, the International Electrotechnical Commission. It reflects how effective a particular device is at preventing intrusion of foreign objects such as dust particles or water.

For the Phone 1, the first number -- 5 -- indicates how protected the product is against dust, while the second number -- 3 -- indicates how protected the product is against water. The higher the better. Phone 1's dust rating of 5 means it has partial protection from dust, but it's not completely sealed off from it (that would be a rating of 6). Still, it has enough protection that even if dust particles manage to enter the phone, it wouldn't impede performance in a discernible way. In other words, the Phone 1 should continue to function smoothly even if you end up trapped in a sandstorm, though it will get some dust and sand inside it.

Watch this: Nothing Phone 1 Is a Superb, Affordable Phone

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But the dust rating was never the issue -- the water rating is what we're more concerned with. A water rating of 3 means that the Phone 1 is hardly waterproof. Phone 1 is protected from water spraying at low pressure at any angle up to 60 degrees. This also means Phone 1 can't withstand high water pressure or any sort of water immersion. In other words, you'll be fine if you're caught in a light shower with this phone, but you shouldn't go galavanting in the rain with it. Dropping it in the toilet will all but certainly mean your phone is a goner, and you should definitely avoid keeping it anywhere close to a pool.

By comparison, the IP67 rating of the iPhone SE 2022 and Google's new Pixel 6A means those devices can repel dust and water, including temporary immersion in water. To be more specific, those phones are rated to withstand being soaked under 1 meter of water for 30 minutes.

Still, if you fell in love with the Phone 1's see-through design, but you're worried about water damage, there's a plethora of waterproof cases and waterproof pouches available on Amazon and other retailers that can help fortify Phone 1's defenses against liquids. For more details on how Google's Pixel 6A and Apple's iPhone SE compare with Nothing's Phone 1, scroll down for a look at CNET's specs chart. Note that the Nothing Phone 1 is not currently on sale in the US.