CMF Phone 2 Pro review: There isn't an Android equivalent for value or personality

Hindustan Times

16-05-2025

Mid-range Android phones changed significantly, this trajectory largely being positive, over the last few years. While the first generation CMF Phone 1 was a bolt from the blue the competition landscape hadn't foreseen, there's another chapter being written, one they are woefully unequipped to compete with. The UK-based tech startup Nothing's second phone under the CMF umbrella, the CMF Phone 2 Pro, is pulling the sort of tricks that remain pretty much exclusive to CMF even a year later. That lack of response from Android phone makers that ideally should be rivalling Nothing's creativity, is perplexing. The design is unique, a dash of modularity which brings some extra smarts, and little compromise as far as specs go.
The listed prices for the CMF Phone 2 Pro are ₹18,999 (128GB storage) and ₹20,999 (256GB storage; we would recommend this, for longevity), and the headline specs include a MediaTek Dimensity 7300 Pro chip (this has 8 cores, and up to 10% faster processing than the predecessor), a slightly larger 6.77-inch display, dual 50-megapixel main and telephoto cameras leading the troika, the Essential Space key which invokes a layer of artificial intelligence (AI) into the mix and a large 5,000 mAh battery that does exhibit impressive stamina.
Also Read:Nothing Phone 3(a) series' graceful evolution blends AI with pristine refinement
There are questions to be asked whether a Xiaomi Redmi Note 14 5G, a Samsung Galaxy A34 or the new Moto Edge 60 Stylus have enough beyond the baseline, to match the CMF Phone 2 Pro's energetic personality. That is, within the same price band. The attempt to make an industrial design, the exposed screws (and of course, the tiny screwdriver in the box) being a hint, does have its advantages and disadvantages in equal measure. Personal preferences will define whether you like this sort of a design or not, but you'll need to be careful because these points can catch a fair amount of dust. There's of course the versatility, because these screws bring the flexibility of accessories.
The back panel catches less fingerprints than many other phones. That frosted glass look certainly looks good, and also hides smudges rather effectively. There are four colours to choose from, and in terms of the standout options, we'd believe Orange and Light Green as the colour ways that will get more attention than Black or White. The IP54 rating does take care of some level of dust and water resistance — not the highest spec, but reassuring enough. The biggest takeaway from the CMF Phone 2 Pro, as we used it, was that it feels much slimmer than the 7.8mm measurement would lead one to believe, and also the balance compliments the featherweight 185 gram tip on the scales.
The MediaTek Dimensity 7300 Pro 4-nanometer chip powers the CMF Phone 2 Pro, and this silicon is a variation of what powered the Phone 1 — albeit the CPU is about 10% speedier, and the graphics get a 5% or so improvement. The real-world performance, as indicative as most every day apps and some level of multi-tasking is, remains in the ballpark of the Dimensity 7300 Ultra and the Qualcomm Snapdragon 7s Gen3. Those two chips figure prominently in the CMF Phone 2 Pro's competitive landscape.
Also Read:Xiaomi Redmi A4 formalises 5G in budget phones, and ushers a new chip
For now, Nothing only has the 8GB memory spec on sale in India, and that is understandable because costs need to be kept in check. It makes the RAM Booster feature even more important, with an option to allocate 8GB more, for those times when you've a lot of apps running in parallel. Most of the time, the CMF Phone 2 Pro runs cool, but there are those occasions (extensive camera use or gaming for more than 30-minutes) when some tepidness is more than felt near the middle of the back panel.
The 5000mAh battery takes advantage of the chip-level and software specific improvements towards frugality, and a fully charged CMF Phone 2 Pro gets through an entire day with medium workloads, and still has close to 35% charge remaining. Even with heavier usage, most users will still get through a day without any battery anxiety. There is no wireless charging, but at this price, we mention it more in hope than expectation (after all, Nothing has the habit of springing a surprise, from time to time).
For photographers, the camera troika that dots the CMF Phone 2 Pro's party piece, perhaps holds the biggest value. There is a 50-megapixel main wide camera, a 50-megapixel telescope camera and an 8-megapixel ultra wide. There is no 2-megapixel macro sensor, the sort of tick-off-the-checklist tactic that many a mid-range Android phone tend to follow. There are improvements to be done, on the software and image processing side of things. But as things are, the CMF Phone 2 Pro does click some nicely detailed and vibrant photos.
Also Read:OnePlus Nord 4 hasn't forgotten why it exists, and it's a reason for consistency
The limitation is, the high contrast scenarios tend to throw off the algorithms a bit. Either the brighter areas of a frame with shadows will be overexposed, or the depth in the shadow or lower lit areas, will be unnaturally brighter. The flawless performance otherwise, gives us hope that with robust underlying optical hardware in play, software tweaks will draw the sort of performance you'd expect from 50-megapixel sensors. Going by past trends, Nothing is quite quick with software based fixes, and it is unlikely that'll change now.
Speaking of software, the Nothing OS 3.2 retains parity with the company's more expensive phones, and this, which is much lighter on the pocket. It remains light, and the responsiveness is a testament to its frugal footprint with system resources. There is of course that infusion of artificial intelligence (AI), which is par for course in this era of smartphones. Price not withstanding. The fact that Nothing has kept feature parity for the CMF Phone 2 Pro in comparison with its more expensive siblings, adds value. The Essential Space is an example of that.
This is one company that has a uniquely refreshing take on Android phones, and isn't shy of quick software updates to fix things or improve based on customer feedback. Generationally, hardware too has been improved based on what they must have heard. The 6.77-inch AMOLED display is an example of the point we were making, with 50% more illumination capacity, compared with the CMF Phone 1. Or the new primary 50-megapixel sensor that works with 64% more light, and that's good news for low-light photos.
Also Read:Turf wars: OnePlus Nord CE4 counters Nothing's pitch for new-age ₹25k phones
There is little that can contest a perhaps rightful perception that the CMF Phone 2 pro is delivering the sort of value proposition, that most of its continuity-reliant competition doesn't match to. Each of them have their own advantages, mind you, but this is a decidedly nicer combination to work with, when speedy performance is blended well with intuitive software, consistently long battery life, and a rather unique design. That, in essence, is what the CMF Phone 2 Pro has achieved.