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Nothing Phone 1 fares well in durability test but teardown is another story
- Renowned YouTubers have tested the Nothing Phone 1’s durability and repairability.
- The phone holds up surprisingly well for a mid-ranger in the torture test.
- The teardown shows it could be a nightmare to repair.
The Nothing Phone 1 has been through Zack Nelson’s famous JerryRigEverything durability test. Folks over at PBK Reviews also went ahead and tore down the flashy phone to the bone. While the device fared surprisingly well in one of those procedures, watching it go through the other was pretty painful.
Let’s start with the durability test. For a mid-range phone, the Nothing Phone 1 is surprisingly strong. It has a pre-installed plastic screen protector covering the display. The screen underneath starts showing scratches at level six of the Mohs Hardness Scale, which is pretty standard for a Gorilla Glass-covered display.
Besides being decently scratch-resistant, the Phone 1’s display also held well under lighter fire. 40-seconds of heat from the flame created a white mark on the display, but it recovered well and didn’t lose usability.
The recycled aluminum frame of the Nothing Phone 1 holds up pretty well in the bend test. The YouTuber notes that there was some “concerning flex” when the Phone 1 was bent from the front. However, it didn’t suffer any damage. The same was the case when the Nothing Phone 1 was put under pressure from the back. Nelson notes it felt “super solid.” The only hitch he found was some separation along the antenna lines. However, it does lock out and the phone stays in one piece.
Overall, the Nothing Phone 1 looks to have done pretty well in the durability test. Its results were much better than those of the OnePlus 10 Pro, which snapped in half during the bend test.
Nothing Phone 1 repairability
If you’re thinking of repairing the Nothing Phone 1 yourself, we strictly suggest you refrain from it. A teardown of the device by PBK Reviews shows that the phone has numerous tiny screws, covers, and cables to be removed before you can reach the battery or the display. It looks like a DIY nightmare and is easy to mess up, resulting in more damage if not done meticulously.
The channel gave the device a repairability score of three on a scale of 10. A breakdown of the score shows that it takes considerable time to repair the Nothing Phone 1, thanks to its complicated construction. It’s also not easy to find replacement parts for the device, and it’s quite challenging to repair the phone’s display.
If you’re thinking of getting your toolkit out for fixing up your own Nothing Phone 1, we suggest you see the video above before daring to do that.