Nothing Phone 3 Meets the Razor: A JerryRigEverything Teardown Odyssey

Zack Nelson, the YouTube craftsman behind JerryRigEverything, has a way of putting smartphones through tests that leave most devices shaking. His latest victim is the Nothing Phone 3, a device generating buzz with its unique design and $799 price tag.

Nelson starts with his classic durability tests, focusing on the Nothing Phone 3’s 6.67-inch AMOLED display, protected by Gorilla Glass 7i. He uses Mohs hardness picks to scratch the screen, and it performs as expected: light marks at level 6, deeper grooves at level 7. Everyday items like keys or coins won’t damage it, but a knife or steel nail might leave a mark. The aluminum frame takes a beating under his razor blade, with scratches and chips, while the camera glass and metal rings are unphased. A burn test with a lighter leaves temporary marks on the display, but it recovers, proving it’s resistant to brief heat.

The bend test is where Nelson’s videos really shine, and the Nothing Phone 3 kills it. Despite antenna lines in potential weak spots, the phone doesn’t bend or crack under pressure. This is impressive for a device with a transparent back and Glyph Matrix—a coin-shaped panel with 489 pixels that lights up for notifications. The aluminum frame and IP68 water resistance rating make it as tough as it is pretty.

Disassembling the Nothing Phone 3 gets interesting. The rear glass, housing the Glyph Matrix and the phone’s semi-transparent design, is hard to remove, and Nelson has to slice through adhesive with a razor blade to get to it. Inside, the design is clever: the camera bump is integrated into the rear glass, and a shield keeps the internals organized, despite the transparent design suggesting otherwise. The Glyph Matrix’s capacitive button, used to cycle lighting modes, requires a cutout in the wireless charging coil, a bold choice over symmetry.

Repairability is a mixed bag. The Nothing Phone 3 gets a C for repairability from the EU, not bad for a flagship. The charging port, loudspeaker and cameras are on separate boards, so replacements are easy. The 5,000mAh battery is relatively simple to remove, but be careful not to crack the glass back. Nelson reassembles the phone and it boots up fine, so kudos to the repair-friendly design. But the adhesive rear panel and USB-C 2.0 port (surprising for a flagship) raises questions about Nothing’s priorities.