This Nothing Phone 3a User Rebelled Against The Essential Key, And Won!
C. Scott Brown / Android Authority
TL;DR
- A Redditor was able to remap the Essential Key on the Nothing Phone 3a Pro.
- The process is complicated, but it looks like the standalone button for Essential Space can be remapped to any function.
- Nothing considered making the Essential Key remappable, but it stuck to its guns to give Essential Space “a chance to shine.”
If you’ve been following Nothing and its latest products, chances are you’ve already heard about the new Essential Key featured on the Nothing Phone 3a and Phone 3a Pro. This dedicated button, designed to launch Nothing’s AI-powered Essential Space organization app, has stirred up mixed reactions among fans. The controversy? Not everyone appreciates having a dedicated hardware button for an AI feature that isn’t central to their core phone use.
In addition, Essential Space comes with monthly usage limits, which have only added to the frustration of folks who purchased the new Nothing devices. A dedicated button tied to a restricted feature is definitely a questionable design choice.
A straightforward fix would have been to make the Essential Key remappable, but Nothing doesn’t offer that option. Interestingly, company founder Carl Pei has acknowledged that the idea of making the button customizable was considered, but ultimately not pursued. “We need to stick to our guns and give the Essential Space product a chance to shine, especially as we have a very exciting roadmap,” Pei explained in a YouTube video.
Now, one creative Redditor has taken matters into their own hands and done exactly what many Phone 3a and 3a Pro users have been asking for since launch — they’ve managed to remap the Essential Key.
In a video posted online, the user shows how they’ve remapped the button on their Nothing Phone 3a Pro to function as a camera control. How does it work? Well, the method is not so straightforward. It involves disabling the Essential Space apps using ADB (Android Debug Bridge) commands. The process requires some technical knowledge and a bit of tinkering. Luckily, it’s nothing you can’t learn on the internet.
Should Nothing make the Essential Key remappable?
6 votes
Once the app was uninstalled, the Redditor used the Key Mapper app to remap the Essential Key to the function of his choice. So if you’re interested in following in their footsteps, be prepared to do a little digging and experimenting on your own.
While Nothing’s decision to lock the Essential Key to a single feature hasn’t gone down well with every user, the fact that the community has already begun finding workarounds could force the company to rethink its strategy. Whether Nothing will eventually embrace more flexibility remains to be seen, but for now, the Essential Key debate is far from over for Nothing fans.
