91Mobiles cites renowned tipster Mukul Sharma saying that Nothing will release a smartphone within early 2022. This indicates that the manufacturer is already developing this device. There were hints of this development after the recently announced partnership between Nothing and Qualcomm. This came after Qualcomm released AptX Lossless Bluetooth audio tech as part of Snapdragon Sound. However, it seems like the partnership between the two companies could extend to smartphones. Qualcomm is one of the top producers of mobile SoCs, after all. “We look forward to working alongside Qualcomm Technologies and our strategic investors to achieve Nothing’s next phase of growth,” Nothing founder Carl Pei said at the time.

The Nothing smartphone could feature a transparent rear panel

Nothing’s ear (1) earbuds grabbed attention for the minimalistic design and attractive price tag. Perhaps we can expect something similar from this upcoming mystery phone. Considering that there’s no official confirmation of this phone, we’re taking this new revelation with a pinch of salt. Earlier this year, Nothing acquired Android founder Andy Rubin’s Essential brand. This company launched the Essential Phone 1 in 2017, though it couldn’t find much success. 91Mobiles suggests that the Nothing phone could leverage some of Essential’s hardware expertise. Other reports have said that Nothing was more interested in the patent portfolio of Essential. Sharma also claims that Nothing will launch a new power bank known as Nothing Power (1). The tipster adds that this power bank will launch before the rumored Nothing phone. This is pretty much all the information that’s currently available, though we expect to learn more over the coming weeks and months. It is likely that nothing will utilize a transparent rear cover for this new phone in line with the ear (1). Nothing has enjoyed decent success with its earbuds so far. The company reportedly shipped over 100,000 units across the world in just two months after its launch.