CMF Phone 1 Goes Official with Swappable Back Panel, Dimensity 7300

New smartphone launches are something we always get excited about, especially when a brand is releasing its first phone ever. After an endless run of leaks in the previous months, Nothing’s sub-brand has finally unveiled the CMF Phone 1, the latest budget-centric entry in Nothing’s growing smartphone lineup.

CMF Phone 1: Specs and Details

With their first-ever smartphone, CMF hasn’t taken a generic route. For firsts, the CMF Phone 1 comes with a modular design that allows you to change the back panels. You can slap a new cover by removing the screws and physical dial, replacing the back panel with another.

The CMF Phone 1 comes with a black back panel out of the box. Speaking of the swappable panels, you can choose between Light Green, Blue (India Only), and Orange panels, with each offering different finishes.

The back is primarily polycarbonate, with a protective metal frame surrounding the camera. The main aspect in terms of design is the addition of what CMF calls the Accessory Point (aka the dial at the bottom right). You can unscrew the Accessory Point to attach accessories like a lanyard cable, a fold-out stand, or a cardholder.

CMF says the interchangeable nature makes repairs easier and preserves the device’s lifespan. This, however, takes a toll on the device’s safety as it has a meager IP52 rating. This indicates that the device is somewhat dustproof, but has a low level of protection against liquids.

Moving on to the front, the CMF Phone 1 includes a 6.67-inch Super AMOLED 120 Hz display, as we expected. For enhanced visuals, it boasts HDR10+ support and peak brightness of up to 2000 nits. There’s an in-screen fingerprint scanner and the display also supports 240 Hz touch sampling rate for better gaming responses.

On the inside, the Phone 1 is powered by the 8-core 4nm Dimensity 7300 chipset that clocks at 2.5 GHz. It’s a newer chipset that performs slower than the Dimensity 7200 Pro that was present on the Nothing Phone (2a). Furthermore, CMF has incorporated a liquid cooling system which along with a heat pipe, cryogenic frame, and graphite elements help keep the device cool.

The smartphone comes with up to 8GB RAM and 128GB storage, along with support for up to 2 TB expandable storage. The CMF Phone 1 houses a 5000 mAh battery that CMF claims can last up to 2 days. You can top up the battery with 33W fast charging support that can deliver 50% of power in just 20 minutes.

In terms of photography, the Phone 1 is equipped with a 50 MP Sony primary camera with a 79-degree field of view (FOV) and a secondary portrait sensor. Besides, the front of the phone has a 16 MP selfie camera. The cameras benefit from Electronic Image Stabilization (EIS) and Nothing’s TrueLens Engine 2.0 algorithms.

To power all of this, the CMF Phone 1 runs on Nothing OS 2.6 built on top of Android 14. The device will receive 2 years of major Android updates and up to 3 years of security updates, which is the norm for a budget device like this. On the connectivity front, the device supports Dual SIM, Dual 5G (supports 9 5G bands), Wi-Fi 6, and Bluetooth 5.3.

CMF Phone 1: Pricing and Availability

The CMF Phone 1 starts at Rs. 15,999 for the base 6GB + 128 GB variant and Rs 17,999 for the 8 GB + 128 GB variant. You can purchase the additional covers for Rs 1,499 each, you can check the full list of CMF Phone 1 accessories here. The first sale will commence at 12:00 PM on July 12 in India, offering a Rs 2,000 exchange bonus and Rs 2,000 off on select banks.

With the basics out of the way, read about our hands-on experience with the brand’s first phone in our dedicated CMF Phone 1 review. We have also explained how to open and change the Phone 1’s back cover. That said, what are your thoughts on the CMF Phone 1? Value for money? Let us know your opinions in the comments below.