With the Nothing OS 4.0 update based on Android 16 in October, Nothing introduced a new feature called Lock Glimpse, which is essentially a system for displaying ads on the lock screen, but under a more attractive name.
Since then, this feature has appeared on Nothing Phone (3a), Nothing Phone (3a) Pro, and Nothing Phone (3a) Lite, sparking a wide wave of controversy among users.
Although it is technically possible to turn off ad serving, many users noted that the feature continued to consume a significant amount of battery, which added to the criticism. Today, Nothing has finally decided to step back from that experiment, but not completely.
The company announced the removal of the Lock Glimpse feature from the Nothing Phone (3a) and Nothing Phone (3a) Pro, while the feature will remain activated on the Nothing Phone (3a) Lite, in addition to the upcoming CMF phones in the future.
Explaining this decision, a Nothing representative explained that “the context is different” for the Lite version, noting that offering strong value at a lower price requires some compromises.
However, the company has confirmed that the Lock Glimpse feature will be disabled by default, and will remain easy to remove, as part of its continuous endeavor to improve the overall experience.
