Credit: C. Scott Brown / Android Authority
One of the star features of the new Nothing Phone 3a and 3a Pro is the Essential Key. It’s a new hardware button that controls an app called Essential Space. Using AI, Essential Space allows you to combine screenshots (or photos) with voice recordings and automatically turn them into actionable tasks. It’s an interesting idea and, with some more polish, it could become a hit.
The problem, though, is the location of the Essential Key. For some reason, Nothing chose to put it right underneath the power button. During my time with the phones thus far, I’ve accidentally hit the Essential Key instead of the power button numerous times. I’ve also accidentally held down the power button, thinking I was holding down the Essential Key.