Essential Phone

The inventor of Android wants to sell you an incredibly ugly, useless phone that nobody in their right mind should buy

October 9th, 2019

Chris Smith

After his rather unceremonious departure from Google, Andy Rubin founded Essential, a hardware company supposed to manufacture high-end smartphones and other hardware. Thus came the Essential Phone, a device that proved to be not that essential to anyone. So few units were sold that nobody would blame you if you forgot this thing actually existed. …

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You can now not buy the Essential Phone in three brand-new colors

February 15th, 2018

Mike Wehner

The Essential Phone was supposed to revolutionize Android handsets. It was supposed to be the ultimate hardware reboot for hardcore Android fans. It was supposed to show companies like Samsung and LG that a pure Android experience is what everyone truly wanted out of their smartphones. Instead, it failed to sell even 100,000 units. It’s …

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Essential practically confirms Andy Rubin’s first phone is a flop

October 23rd, 2017

Chris Smith

Andy Rubin’s Essential Phone has a daring design and it’s an interesting high-end Android device built in part by the inventor of Android. The Essential Phone was positioned as an alternative to the iPhone and every high-end Android handset available right now, and the company convinced plenty of investors that Essential has a bright future. …

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The Essential phone essentially doesn’t exist

August 24th, 2017

Jonathan S. Geller

So, let’s just get this out of the way — I wanted an Essential phone to play around with. The high-end manufacturing and edge-to-edge screen looked like a great combination. But Essential essentially didn’t want us to have one. After repeated attempts to grab a device, I offer you, dear readers, my honest opinion: Andy …

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After months of delays, the Essential phone will finally ship this month

August 16th, 2017

Chris Smith

After launching his first smartphone in late May, former Android guru Andy Rubin said that the Essential Phone would ship within 30 days after preorders. Rubin’s startup that’s valued at more than $1 billion even though it never shipped a product missed that deadline, and it never explained what caused the delay. However, if you …

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This phone copies both the iPhone 8 and the Essential, even though they aren’t out

August 8th, 2017

Chris Smith

Sharp just released a phone that “copies” two phones that don’t even exist, but have been leaking with regularity. One of them is Andy Rubin’s Essential Phone, a high-end Android device that’s been delayed with no apparent explanation. The other one is even more famous, as we see it pop up in rumors and reports …

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I really hope the iPhone 8 doesn’t have this hideous problem

July 31st, 2017

Chris Smith

Remember that Essential Phone that Andy Rubin announced a few weeks ago? It’s supposed to be a high-end Android handset that will deliver a high-end Android experience, unlike anything we’ve seen so far. The phone has an all-screen design that matches this year’s smartphone design trend, but it does have one ugly trait: the front-facing …

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The insanely-hyped Essential Phone is a Sprint exclusive, sort of

June 12th, 2017

Mike Wehner

After months of (unwarranted) teasing, the high-end Android flagship from Andy Rubin’s Essential Products startup — called simply Essential Phone — finally made its long-awaited debut not too long ago. We still don’t know a concrete release date for the device, but today we found out where you’ll actually have to go to buy one, …

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Andy Rubin’s Essential Phone will ship much sooner than expected

May 31st, 2017

Chris Smith

Andy Rubin has his own take on what high-end smartphone should look and feel like, and what features they should offer — they still run Android. That vision is called the Essential Phone that was quietly unveiled earlier this week. Priced at $699, the phone is supposed to offer buyers looking for flagship devices an …