3 days ago
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ZDNET's cardinal takeaways
- The CMF Phone 2 Pro is 1 of the best-value handsets connected the market, with a terms of $279.
- It has a striking design, a applicable diagnostic set, and fantastic artillery life.
- US buyers should enactment the phone's cellular web support, and the deficiency of compatible backmost accessories.
I've tested a wide scope of distinctive budget smartphones this year, from the Moto G Stylus 2025, which features a built-in pen, to the transparent plan of the Nothing Phone 3a. Yet, successful conscionable 3 weeks, the CMF Phone 2 Pro has attracted much curiosity than either of those devices.
Multiple radical person asked maine astir the phone, thing that seldom happens with devices successful this terms range. The CMF Phone 2 Pro is designed to basal out, and it does truthful effortlessly. Here's why.
A plan that stands out
The archetypal happening you announcement astir the CMF Phone 2 Pro is its unsocial design. It's striking, with an concern borderline that sets it isolated from the oversea of generic-looking smartphones. The colour strategy and shimmering prime of the integrative backmost sheet soften the phone's appearance, giving it a consciousness of quality and lightness.
The camera housings are shiny, metallic, and sturdy. Their pleasing concave signifier elevates the premium consciousness portion protecting the solid lenses. Large, shining crews connected the backmost sheet are bold and intolerable to ignore.
From my hands-on experience, the integrative framework does a bully occupation of passing arsenic aluminum, and the instrumentality has a reassuring heft portion inactive feeling light. This telephone looks and feels intentional successful its effort to basal unsocial successful its design. That's a uncommon prime successful the fund segment, wherever astir phones are contented to blend in.
Modularity and the enlargement port
The CMF Phone 2 Pro takes 2 chiseled approaches to modularity, but some travel with caveats. First, there's a removable integrative disc astatine the bottommost country of the rear plate, designed for attachments made by Nothing, similar a lanyard that hangs the telephone astir the neck. It seems similar a insignificant summation compared to what existent modularity could offer.
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The second, and much substantial, modular attack involves those ample screws connected the back. This allows for the attachment of a Universal Cover, which past unlocks entree to interchangeable camera lenses, a wallet, and a basal attachment. It's a clever strategy that promises versatility, astatine slightest successful theory.
Frustratingly, nary of these accessories are presently disposable for acquisition connected the Nothing site, and I've recovered nary authoritative channels to bid them astatine the clip of writing. For a instrumentality that leans heavy connected the unsocial committedness of modularity, this deficiency of options is simply a disappointing velocity bump.
Everyday experience
Modularity quibbles aside, utilizing the CMF Phone 2 Pro arsenic my regular operator has been a mostly affirmative experience. Performance is solid, with the MediaTek Dimensity 7300 Pro 5G processor and 16GB of RAM. I've noticed occasional slowdowns erstwhile launching the camera from a screen-off state, oregon tapping to wage with Google Wallet astatine stores, but overall, show hasn't been a noticeable issue. The telephone handles mundane tasks, browsing, and societal media with ease.
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The fingerprint sensor is positioned debased connected the display, which tin beryllium inconvenient erstwhile holding the telephone with 1 hand. Once I displacement my grip to scope it, the sensor works accelerated and reliably. The azygous onboard talker is disappointing and beauteous weak, with euphony and YouTube videos sounding bladed and hollow. Given the phone's price, this dependable contented is simply a tenable trade-off, and I admit that CMF prioritized different features instead.
The 6.77" AMOLED show is different item of the phone. With azygous bezels, onscreen contented looks sharp, colorful, and rich. I've been blessed with the screen, and it's a large measurement up from what you often get astatine this terms point.
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Battery beingness connected the CMF Phone 2 Pro is excellent, and I easy got a afloat time of usage retired of the 5,000mAh battery. The 33W charging velocity is inactive faster than my overmuch much premium Pixel 9 Pro. Ultimately, I've ne'er had to interest astir moving retired of battery, adjacent connected busier days.
Cameras and software
At this price, it's satisfying to person a triple camera strategy that's decent successful astir each aspects. The main camera takes sharp, vibrant photos successful bully light, and the 2x optical telephoto lens is simply a treat.
The ultrawide camera is decent for wider shots, but it's the weakest of the three. The deficiency of optical representation stabilization passim is simply a downside, particularly successful little airy oregon erstwhile shooting moving subjects. I had to beryllium much mindful astir anchoring my arms for dependable shots, but again, I deliberation this is simply a tenable compromise astatine this price.
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The Nothing marque OS is fresh, reasonably unbloated, and has immoderate other ocular components that adhd existent property to the experience. One happening I admit much and much astir Nothing's phones is that the bundle attack is uniquely aesthetic, but it tin besides beryllium made to consciousness wholly vanilla if you want.
I tested retired the caller AI-sorted Smart Drawer but recovered it didn't rather prevention maine immoderate clip arsenic I perpetually worked to recognize wherever my apps were automatically placed. Ultimately, I reverted to modular alphabetic sorting, and I was blessed arsenic a clam. The committedness of 3 years of bundle and six years of information updates is beauteous tenable for this terms arsenic well.
This telephone besides has the Essential Space fastener and software, which I've loved since I reviewed the Nothing Phone 3a. This fastener is 1 of my favourite AI implementations successful smartphones close now, chiefly due to the fact that it's truthful casual to use. Tap and clasp the fastener to instantly grounds a dependable memo stored successful Essential Space. Reminders successful that abstraction amusement up arsenic requested. This diagnostic is my favourite mode to log fleeting ideas connected the spell with zero roadblocks.
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However, I bash person a large ailment astir Essential Space: You can't copy, share, oregon export substance oregon audio extracurricular the feature. That accusation is locked inside, which is simply a captious plan mistake that I anticipation is addressed successful a aboriginal update.
ZDNET's buying advice
One large information for US buyers is the constricted availability and bearer support. The telephone is lone disposable done Nothing's Beta programme successful the US, and you mightiness brushwood compatibility issues depending connected your carrier. T-Mobile, my bearer of choice, offers the champion connectivity for 3G, 4G, and astir 5G. AT&T lacks 5G, VoLTE, and VoWiFi support, portion Verizon is adjacent much unreliable. LTE whitethorn enactment if your IMEI is whitelisted, but CDMA and 5G are not supported there.
The CMF Phone 2 Pro is simply a coagulated low-midrange smartphone that offers fantabulous worth for its cost. The instrumentality isn't perfect, but its downsides are each beauteous tenable tradeoffs. The deficiency of availability of its playful modular strategy is concerning and could beryllium the 1 large ding connected an different fantabulous fund device.
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