Samsung Galaxy S21 vs Nothing Phone (3a) Lite

65 out 100

VS

69 out 100

Compared 2 smartphones : Samsung Galaxy S21 Manufactured in February, 2021, with display 6.2 with chipsetSamsung Exynos 2100, vs Nothing Phone (3a) Lite, Manufactured in October, 2025with chipsetMediaTek Dimensity 7300 Pro. Below are specs, tests, pros and cons for each device

Key Differences

Device key advantages

Reasons to choose Samsung Galaxy S21

Higher pixel density: 421ppi
Lighter design: 169g vs 199g
Supports newer USB: 3.2 vs 2
Supports Dolby Atmos

Reasons to choose Nothing Phone (3a) Lite

Larger display: 6.77in
Higher battery capacity: 5000mAh vs 4000mAh
Newer Bluetooth version: 5.3 vs 5

Versions

Available versions and configurations

Memory Options

- 8/128 GB
- 8/256 GB

Review

Key Specs Samsung Galaxy S21 and Nothing Phone (3a) Lite

Display

Color accuracy, sharpness & brightness

Samsung Galaxy S21

75

Nothing Phone (3a) Lite

87

Camera

Main & front camera tests

Samsung Galaxy S21

75

Nothing Phone (3a) Lite

74

Performance

App & system performance

Samsung Galaxy S21

53

Nothing Phone (3a) Lite

43

Games

3D gaming performance

Samsung Galaxy S21

44

Nothing Phone (3a) Lite

30

Battery

Battery life, charging speed & type

Samsung Galaxy S21

56

Nothing Phone (3a) Lite

82

Connectivity

Connectivity features

Samsung Galaxy S21

86

Nothing Phone (3a) Lite

77

NanoReview Score

Overall score by NanoReview

Samsung Galaxy S21

65

Nothing Phone (3a) Lite

69

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Function

Importance (Weight)

Display:

Camera:

Performance:

Gaming:

Battery:

Connectivity:

Higher weight means greater impact on NanoReview score.

Display

Display quality comparison

Type	Dynamic AMOLED	AMOLED
Size	6.2 in	6.77 in
Resolution	1080x2400 pixels	1080x2392 pixels
Aspect ratio	20:9	19.9:9
Pixel density	421 ppi	388 ppi
Refresh rate	120 Hz	120 Hz
Adaptive refresh rate	Yes (48-120 Hz)	Yes (60-120 Hz)
Max brightness	800 nits	1300 nits
HDR support	Yes HDR10+	Yes, HDR10+
Screen-to-body ratio	85.9 %	86.9 %
Features	- DCI-P3 - Always-On Display	- DCI-P3 - Always-On Display - DC dimming

Peak brightness (auto)

Samsung Galaxy S21

854 nits

Nothing Phone (3a) Lite

n/a

sRGB gamut	99.5 %	n/a
PWM (Flicker)	240 Hz	n/a
Response time	5 ms	n/a
Contrast	∞ Infinite	n/a

Sources: NotebookCheck [Samsung Galaxy S21]

Design & Build

Design and ergonomics comparison

Height	151.7 mm (5.97 in)	164 mm (6.46 in)
Width	71.2 mm (2.8 in)	78 mm (3.07 in)
Thickness	7.9 mm (0.31 in)	8.3 mm (0.33 in)
Weight	169 g (5.96 oz)	199 g (7.02 oz)
Water resistance	IP68	IP54
Back panel	Plastic	Glass
Frame	Metal	Plastic
Colors	- White - Gray - Pink - Purple	- White - Black
Fingerprint sensor	Yes In-Display	Yes, In-Display

Screen-to-body ratio

Samsung Galaxy S21

85.9 %

Nothing Phone (3a) Lite

86.9 %

Performance

Testing Samsung Galaxy S21 and Nothing Phone (3a) Lite In benchmarks

Chipset	Samsung Exynos 2100	MediaTek Dimensity 7300 Pro
Max Frequency	2900 MHz	2500 MHz
CPU Cores	8 (1 + 3 + 4)	8 (4 + 4)
Architecture	- 4/2.2 (Cortex-A55) - 3/2.81 (Cortex-A78) - 1/2.91 (Cortex-X1)	- 4/2 (Cortex-A55) - 4/2.5 (Cortex-A78)
Process	Samsung	TSMC
Transistor Size	5 nm	4 nm
Neural Processor	Yes	MediaTek APU 655
Graphics	Mali-G78 MP14	Mali-G615 MP2
GPU Cores	896	256
GPU Frequency	854 MHz	1047 MHz
FLOPS	1530.4 GFLOPS	536.1 GFLOPS

Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)

Samsung Galaxy S21

1331

Nothing Phone (3a) Lite

1015

Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)

Samsung Galaxy S21

3593

Nothing Phone (3a) Lite

2922

Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)	1331	1015
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)	3593	2922
Geekbench Compute (GPU)	n/a	2511

Sources: Geekbench v6 [Nothing Phone (3a) Lite]

AnTuTu 10

Samsung Galaxy S21

903780

Nothing Phone (3a) Lite

694652

CPU	253391	209874
GPU	281676	169384
Memory	158352	137390
UX	210361	178004
NanoReview Score	903780	694652

3DMark Wild Life

Samsung Galaxy S21

5715

Nothing Phone (3a) Lite

n/a

Max Surface Temp.	38.9 °C	n/a
Stability	66 %	n/a
Graphics Test	34 fps	n/a
Graphics Score	5715	n/a

Sources: 3DMark [Samsung Galaxy S21]

PCMark 3.0

Samsung Galaxy S21

13123

Nothing Phone (3a) Lite

n/a

Writing score	16101	n/a
Web score	11909	n/a
Video editing	7097	n/a
Data manipulation	10153	n/a
NanoReview Score	13123	n/a

Memory

RAM Size	8 GB	8 GB
Memory Type	LPDDR5	LPDDR4X
Memory Frequency	2750 MHz	2133 MHz
Channels	2	2

Storage Capacity	- 128 GB - 256 GB	128 GB
Storage Type	UFS 3.1	UFS 2.2
Memory Card	No	MicroSD

Software

OS	Android 11 (Upgradeable to Android 14)	Android 15
OS Size	28.1 GB	n/a
UI Skin	One UI 6.0	Nothing OS 3.5

Battery

Volume	4000 mAh	5000 mAh
Max Charging Power	25 W	33 W
Battery Type	Li-ion	Li-Po
Removable	No	No
Wireless Charging	Yes (15 W)	No
Reverse Charging	Yes (Wireless)	Yes
Fast Charging	Yes (55% in 50 min)	Yes (50% in 20 min)
Full Charge Time	1:35 h	n/a

Battery Life

Samsung Galaxy S21

17:54

Nothing Phone (3a) Lite

n/a

Web Browsing	06:01 h	n/a
Video Playback	11:06 h	n/a
Games	04:21 h	n/a
Standby Mode	95 h	n/a

Main camera

Matrix	12 MP	50 MP
Photo resolution	4000x3000 pixels	8192x6144 pixels
Zoom	Optical, 1.1x	Digital
Flash	Dual LED	LED
Stabilization	Optical	Digital
8K Recording	Up to 24FPS	No
4K Recording	Yes (Up to 60 fps)	Yes (Up to 30 fps)
1080p Recording	Yes (Up to 60 fps)	Yes (Up to 60 fps)
Slow Motion	960 fps (720p)	120 fps (720p)
Wide-angle lens	120 °	120 °
Lenses count	Standard: 12 MP Telephoto: 64 MP Ultra-wide: 12 MP	Standard: 50 MP Ultra-wide: 8 MP Macro: 2 MP
Features	- Bokeh effect - Pro mode - RAW support	- Bokeh effect - Pro mode

Matrix	12 MP	50 MP
Aperture	f/1.8	f/1.9
Focal length	26 mm	24 mm
Sensor	Sony IMX555	Samsung ISOCELL GN3
Sensor size	1/1.76	1/1.57
Pixel size	1.8 μm	1 μm
Autofocus	Phase autofocus (Dual Pixel)	Phase autofocus
Stabilization	Optical	Digital

Matrix	64 MP	n/a
Aperture	f/2.0	n/a
Focal length	28 mm	n/a
Sensor	Samsung Bright S5KGW2	n/a
Sensor size	1/1.72	n/a
Pixel size	0.8 μm	n/a
Stabilization	Optical	n/a

Matrix	12 MP	8 MP
Aperture	f/2.2	f/2.2
Focal length	13 mm	15 mm
Sensor	Sony IMX563	Sony IMX355
Sensor size	1/2.55	1/4.0
Pixel size	1.4 μm	1.12 μm
Stabilization	Digital	Digital

Photo quality

Samsung Galaxy S21

129

Nothing Phone (3a) Lite

n/a

Video quality

Samsung Galaxy S21

137

Nothing Phone (3a) Lite

n/a

Overall camera score

Samsung Galaxy S21

133

Nothing Phone (3a) Lite

n/a

Bokeh	70	n/a
Preview	72	n/a
Zoom	126	n/a

Sources: DxOMark [Samsung Galaxy S21]

Front camera

Matrix	10 MP	16 MP
Photo resolution	3872x2592 pixels	n/a
Aperture	f/2.2	f/2.5
Focal length	26 mm	n/a
Sensor	Sony IMX374	n/a
Sensor size	1/3.24	n/a
Pixel size	1.22 μm	n/a
Autofocus	Phase autofocus (Dual Pixel)	No
Stabilization	Digital	Digital
Video resolution	2160p (4K) at 60 fps	1080p (Full HD) at 60 fps
TOF 3D sensor	No	No

Connectivity

Wi-Fi version	Wi-Fi 6 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax)	Wi-Fi 6 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax)
Wi-Fi features	- Dual Band - Wi-Fi MiMO - Wi-Fi Direct - Wi-Fi Hotspot - Wi-Fi Display	- Dual Band - Wi-Fi MiMO - Wi-Fi Direct - Wi-Fi Hotspot - Wi-Fi Display
Bluetooth version	5	5.3
Bluetooth features	LE, A2DP	LE
USB type	USB Type-C	USB Type-C
USB version	3.2	2
USB features	- Charging - USB Storage Mode - USB-Host mode - OTG	- Charging - USB Storage Mode - OTG
DisplayPort	n/a	No
GPS	- GPS - GLONASS - Beidou - Galileo	- GPS - GLONASS - Galileo - QZSS
NFC*	Yes	Yes
Infrared Port	No	No

SIM Count*	2	2
SIM Type	Nano	Nano
SIM Mode	Dual SIM Standby	Dual SIM Standby
eSIM Support *	Yes	Yes
Hybrid Slot	No	No
2G Bands	GSM 850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz	GSM 850/900/1800/1900
3G Bands	WCDMA Band 1, 2, 4, 5, 8	UMTS 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 8, 19
LTE Bands*	LTE (B1/B2/B3/B4/B5/B7/B8/B12/B13/B17/B18/B19/B20/B25/B26/B28/B32/B38/B39/B40/B41/B66)	LTE (B1/B2/B3/B4/B5/B7/B8/B12/B17/B18/B19/B20/B26/B28/B38/B40/B41/B42/B48/B66)
LTE category	24	n/a
5G Support	Yes	Yes

Sound

Speakers	Stereo	n/a
3.5 mm Jack	No	No
FM Radio	No	No
Dolby Atmos	Yes	No

Max Volume

Samsung Galaxy S21

87 dB

Nothing Phone (3a) Lite

n/a

Other

Class	Flagship	Mid-range
Announced	January, 2021 yr	October, 2025 yr
Release Date	February, 2021 yr	October, 2025 yr
Launch Price ($)	800	n/a
MSRP ($)	n/a	249
Sensors	- Hall Sensor - Barometer - Proximity Sensor - Gyroscope - Accelerometer - Ambient Light Sensor - Compass - Fingerprint sensor	- Proximity Sensor - Gyroscope - Accelerometer - Ambient Light Sensor - Compass - Fingerprint sensor
Charger Included	n/a	No

Results

No clear favorite identified yet; updates may follow as new data arrives.

Survey

Which smartphone would you pick?

Samsung Galaxy S21

0 (0%)

Nothing Phone (3a) Lite

0 (0%)

Total Votes: 0

Samsung Galaxy S21 vs Nothing Phone (3a) Lite

Key Differences

Versions

Review

Tests & specs

Display

Design & Build

Performance

Memory

Software

Battery

Main camera

Front camera

Connectivity

Sound

Other

Results

Survey

User comments