Was The Nothing App’s Rollout A Nothing-Burger? The Jury Is Still Out.

There’s plenty that can divide Android and iPhone users, but perhaps nothing fuels more bitter disputes than the act of sending messages from one operating system to the other.

That’s where Nothing intended to fill in a clear gap in the smartphone industry. The upstart company has released its own phone and recently unveiled a new messaging app that promised to bridge the gap between users by allowing people to use Apple’s iMessaging services on the Android hardware.

Not what it’s cracked up to be?

On the surface, this might sound like an answer to the prayers of people who either prefer Android’s system or simply don’t want to drop the big bucks that a new iPhone costs. The way it (theoretically) works is by using a separate service called Sunbird … but the recent rollout of the service did little to inspire confidence in the platform.

Here are a few reasons why:

• There are concerns about security — specifically how data is stored and what access Nothing/Sunbird has to personal information.
• Apple’s response to the use of its iMessage platform remains up in the air.
• Plenty of other bugs and uncertainties still need to be worked out before it’s ready for primetime.

How much actually works?

Despite some significant hiccups along the way, it’s not like there’s no market for a product like Nothing … assuming it ends up working as intended. A few of the most notable features that seemed to show some promise after its intro were single/group messaging, voice notes, and typing indicators.

Read receipts and click-and-hold “Tapback” reactions are on the list to be rolled out in the near future.

If you’re struggling to send Android messages in an iPhone world, Nothing might not be perfect … but it’s better than, well, nothing.

Chris Agee November 21st, 2023

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