Nothing has been caught in a familiar marketing trap. The company was found using professional stock photos to promote the camera capabilities of its new Phone (3) on in-store demo units, a move that has sparked widespread criticism from the tech community.
The Discovery and The Facts
In-store demo units in New Zealand displayed a series of five photos under the heading, “Judge for yourself. Here’s what our community has captured with Phone (3).” The clear implication was that these photos were taken with the Phone (3). However, it was quickly discovered that the images were not genuine.
A photographer, Roman Fox, confirmed that his photo of a car headlight, used in the promotion, was taken with a professional Fujifilm XH2s camera in 2023, well before the Phone (3) was released. The other photos were also identified as licensed stock photos from a marketplace.
Nothing’s Response: An “Unfortunate Oversight”
Re the Phone (3) live demo units (LDU) in some stores using stock imagery – let me explain. An initial version of the LDU needs to be submitted with placeholders around 4 months before launch, to be implemented and tested as we ramp up towards mass production. Once we enter mass…
— Akis Evangelidis 🦞 (@AkisEvangelidis) August 27, 2025
Nothing co-founder Akis Evangelidis addressed the situation on X, calling the incident an “unfortunate oversight.” He explained that the stock images were meant to be placeholders for the initial demo units submitted four months before the phone’s launch. Evangelidis stressed that there was “no ill intent” and the company was working to fix the issue.
Why It Matters for the Brand
This is not the first time a company has used misleading camera samples, but for Nothing, it’s a hit to its core brand identity. The company has always positioned itself as the antithesis of the tech world’s marketing spin. This misstep threatens to erode the very authenticity it has worked so hard to build, raising questions about whether the brand can live up to its promise of transparency.
Nothing called the use of stock photos an “unfortunate oversight.” Do you believe their explanation?
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