CMF Phone 1 arrives - is a modular, cheaper alternative to a Nothing Phone

CMF has announced its first phone, the CMF Phone 1, and it’s a bit of a bargain.

You can snap up a CMF Phone 1 from just £209, although right now you can pick one up for £179.99 as part of its launch sale.

Not heard of CMF? It’s a sister brand of Nothing, the hype machine tech company whose CEO, Carl Pei, was a co-founder of OnePlus.

The CMF Phone 1 gets you a tasty amount of tech for the money. It has a 6.67-inch OLED screen with a smooth 120Hz refresh rate, 50MP rear camera with a depth sensor for portraits and a MediaTek 7300 processor. Plus a 5000mAh battery with 33W fast charging.

As with the main-line Nothing phones, though, it’s the design that sticks out most.

The CMF Phone 1 has a removable back cover, held in place with visible screws. There’s also an “accessory point” on the rear that looks a bit like a volume knob. Those accessories include a stand, a lanyard and a card holder that snaps onto the back.

And, of course, you can simply replace the rear cover if the original gets a bit tatty, or you want to try out a new colour. Shades available at launch include orange, light green and black.

Looks aside, the CMF Phone 1 is a bit like a slightly cut-down Nothing Phone 2a, selling for less cash.

Nothing CEO Carl Pei says phones like this are all about “injecting fun into a boring industry.”

There’s more too. Nothing has also announced the £69 CMF Watch Pro 2 smartwatch and £69 CMF Buds Pro 2.

They aren’t part of brand new likes like the Phone 1. But they also seem good value,

The Watch Pro 2 has a 1.32-inch screen, up to 11-day battery life, 120 exercise tracking modes and a heart rate sensor with stress and blood oxygenation readings.

The Buds Pro 2 have active noise cancellation, dual 11mm plus 6mm drivers, spatial audio plus up to seven hours playback per charge.

This new gear will be available from July 12, or you can pre-order today.