Will Butt Cam be the New Trend? Smartisan Nut 3 Released at $206

On the afternoon of April 9th, Smartisan Technology officially released their new Nut 3, which is positioned at the 1000-yuan ($158.5) market. Nut 3 adopts an almost full-screen design that is bezel-less on three sides with the front facing camera on the bottom (a.k.a butt cam), which is very similar to the look of the newly released Xiaomi Mi MIX 2s.

SEE ALSO: NUTS Pro 2: Full-Screen Phone for 2,000 yuan

Smartisan Nut 3 features a 5.99-inch (almost) full screen with a resolution of 2160 x 1080 pixels and an aspect ratio of 18:9. It is bezel-less on top and the two sides with the receiver hidden on top. Nut 3 adopts both an all-glass and a metal frame structure, which is rare among smartphones of the same price range, achieving a thickness of only 7.16 mm. Nut 3 is available in three colors: black (with red lining), white (with gold lining), and wine red, as well as two special editions of dazzling black, and dazzling red.

The home button with fingerprint identification function is at bottom center and it can save up to ten sets of fingerprints. It unlock in as short as 0.2 seconds and supports fingerprint payment option for WeChat and Alipay.

Of course, facial recognition is also available with the algorithms provided by Face++ Cognitive Services, and it can identify 1024 facial characteristics.

On the bottom left of the phone is a front camera with a 8 megapixel sensor and f/2.2 aperture. Assisted with algorithms from ArcSoft Inc., the camera provides real-time beautifying features and portrait background blur. When the smartphone is locked, simply pick up the phone with the camera on top and it will automatically enter into selfie mode. Nut 3 self-proclaims to be “probably the most convenient selfie solution in history”.

Just as how Smartisan teased everyone with a fake rendering photo when it released the Smartisan Nut Pro, they also played the same trick for Nut 3. In the initial renderings, the dual rear cameras were arranged vertically like the iPhone X, but in reality, the Nut 3 adopts a horizontal arrangement.

Luo Yonghao, founder of Smartisan and quite the influencer himself, explained that Apple’s iPhone X had to arrange the rear cameras vertically because a horizontal arrangement would interfere with the large number of components in the front camera area. Android phone makers just followed suit.

The dual rear cameras have a 13 megapixel colored sensor and a 13 megapixel black and white sensor. The ArcSoft algorithms enable the dual cameras to produce integrated capturing, background blur, professional noise reduction, 0.3 seconds PDAF phase focus, multiple shots selection, and anti-shake features. It also supports 4K video recording and TDK video stabilization.

As for other specifications, Nut 3 is equipped with Snapdragon 625 2.0GHz eight-core processor (Adreno 506), 4GB RAM, 32/64GB storage (up to 128GB maximum), and 4000mAh battery (QC3.0 18W fast charge/3.5 hours of calling after a 5-min charge).

In terms of price, the 4GB + 32GB version is priced at 1299 yuan ($206), and the 4GB + 64GB version is priced at 1599 yuan ($253.5). Nuts 3 is available on Smartisan’s official website, JD.com, China Mobile channels, and 2,485 stores throughout China.

The new Smartisan OS will be unveiled at the Bird’s Nest Stadium in Beijing on May 15 and it is currently undergoing intense research and development. Luo says that “the new system will be so amazing that everyone will pee in their pants,” and he will bringing adult diapers as gifts.