Create designer electronic products and create buzz. Since his beginnings in the sector, this has always been the recipe of Carl Pei, who two years ago created the Nothing brand in London, with which he launched wireless headsets in the summer of 2021. In a previous life, he made a name for himself by co-founding Chinese smartphone brand OnePlus. Little known to the general public, she has won over many fans. At the release of each new product, impressive crowds gathered at dawn in front of select boutiques, such as Colette in Paris, to be the first to be able to get their hands on it.
A scene that is reminiscent of the idolatry that Apple knows how to generate. The comparison is not to displease Carl Pei. Like Steve Jobs, when he introduced the first iPhones, the young leader (32 years old) dreams of“breathing new air into a dormant market”, he explains to World. Considered a technology guru by his most loyal admirers, he managed to raise 1.5 million dollars (approximately 1.39 million euros) from the general public in barely fifty-four seconds before the launch of his Headsets.
No visual, no specifications, no price, no date…
Suffice to say that the boss was expected, Wednesday, March 23, for the latest announcements from Nothing. But many aficionados remained unsatisfied. As rumor had it, the company announced that it was going to release its first smartphone in the summer. But what did she reveal? Nothing, nothing, wow… No visual, no technical specifications, no price, no precise date. Just the promise of a smoother user experience, a sleek design, and technological cooperation with Qualcom. The most enthusiastic will take Carl Pei’s word for it. The others will have to cling to a quick assessment of what Nothing has become in two years to measure its chances on the ultra-competitive smartphone market.
The launch of its headsets, which sold nearly half a million units in less than a year, was a success for such a young company. The product entered the top 10 in its category in the last quarter of 2021. But the headset segment is less technically complex than that of phones. Above all, it is easier to find a place there, knowing that it is experiencing tremendous growth. According to the firm Counterpoint, it experienced a growth of 25% in 2021, while that of smartphones is down 6%.
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