Nothing Tech has announced that CMF will run as an independent subsidiary and operate out of India.
At the same time, Nothing has put in place plans to make India the centre of manufacturing for Nothing and CMF products.
Nothing was founded in 2020 and has enjoyed success with its range of design-led smartphones and accessories, offering something a little different in a congested market. In 2023, the CMF sub-brand was launched, focusing at a more affordable end of the market.
The big news now is that the CMF brand will no longer be CMF by Nothing. Instead, it's going to become independent and operate separately and simply as CMF, with the subsidiary based out of India. That's going include all operations, research and development, as well as manufacturing.
It's unlikely that the move will result in a change for the company's vision to bring design-led devices at affordable prices, and we'd expect to see more phones and headphones in the future – with the launch of the CMF Headphone Pro expected on 29 September.
Alongside the move to make CMF an independent subsidiary, Nothing is entering into a manufacturing partnership with Optiemus Infracom (an Indian manufacturer) to make India the production centre for Nothing and CMF products.
CMF's products are most easily recognisable by the distinctive design. Bold use of colours and interesting details have helped CMF mark out its patch. Rather than asking customers to buy generic devices, it offers something where aesthetics play a leading role.
So far, the budget label has launched a couple of phones – the CMF Phone 1 and CMF Phone 2 Pro – accompanied by the CMF Watch, various earbuds and matching accessories.
While the company is planning to expand its headphone range soon, it's not clear how or if the move to India will have any great impact on the company's direction.
It's likely that it will look to garner more fans in the region, while the mission to supply quirky tech that's a little different in the affordable segment will remain the same.
CMF's Headphone Pro look to have a fairly premium design, but not quite to the level that's offered in Nothing's Headphone 1. Moreover, there's a more conventional design to the CMF headphones which could prove to be popular.
Whether they will be packed with the same audio technology or not, remains to be seen.
