Nothing Phone 3a vs iPhone 16 Pro Max: Nothing admits ’mistake’ in camera footage after social media backlash

It is not uncommon for smartphone makers to compare their phones’ camera during launch with the likes of Google, Samsung and especially Apple. However, Carl Pei led Nothing took things a bit further by releasing a video of comparison between iPhone 16 Pro Max and the unreleased Nothing Phone 3a’s camera shots. 

In the video released on Nothing’s YouTube channel, two Nothing staff members take out the Phone 3a and iPhone 16 Pro Max outdoors to test out their camera systems in different surrounding and modes including low light conditions, macro shots, telephoto shots and 4K video recording. 

Thankfully, Nothing didn’t make any outlandish claims about its sub ₹30,000 smartphone having better cameras than the iPhone 16 Pro Max but the company officials could be heard comparing the shots from both phones and saying they look equally good. 

iPhone 16 Pro Max vs Nothing Phone 3a: Did Nothing fake the camera comparison?

In its comparison video, Nothing showed the 4k 30fps output from both the iPhone 16 Pro Max and Nothing Phone 3a, where the footage from the Nothing device looked better than the iPhone and offered better stabilization. However, soon afterwards some users on social media started pointing out that the iPhone 16 Pro Max footage looked like it was shot from the ultra-wide angle lens while the Nothing video seemed to be from the primary lens. 

After the complains from users, Nothing has admitted its ‘mistake’ of using the ultra-wide angle lens footage instead of the standard lens. The company claims that there was no ‘intent to mislead’ and it will be more accountable in the future.

Pinning a comment on the YouTube video, Nothing team wrote, “Hey everyone, we shot across all lenses throughout the day (sometimes cycling one-handed on a bumpy road), and in editing, a clip shot using the iPhone 16 Pro Max’s ultrawide lens was mistakenly used in the video stabilisation comparison instead of one shot using its standard lens. There was no intent to mislead, and we’ll be more careful to ensure even greater scrutiny in future comparisons. Appreciate you all keeping us accountable!”