Update: The Essential Phone will start shipping in a month. You’ll probably going to be able to test it towards the end of June. Oh, and another thing: Andy Rubin’s Phone is said to come with a new digital assistant.
After creating Android, what could you possibly come up with to incite the same excitement? Apparently an ecosystem of innovative devices, starting with a Phone. That’s what Andy Rubin did, from the helm of Essential #mobilemagic
Two months ago, Rubin took to Social Media to announce that he was cooking up a handheld gadget. Yesterday, the veil came off – the Essential Phone emerged. I don’t know what I was expecting but definitely not THAT. A beautiful handset, with an even more impressive 5.71-inch display than the Infinity one Samsung marketed so well. This one is edge-to-edge, eliminating the top bezel and the presence of an annoying logo.
Sure, the bottom bezel is still there but if you loved the Mi MIX design, you’re going to fall for this one. In a unique take on the bezel-less trend, Rubin made the display to wrap around the front-facing camera. On the back, there’s just a fingerprint sensor and a magnetic connector. Why this? Because Rubin intends you to use the Phone with various accessories, including a 360-degree camera.
There is no headphone jack on this phone either, so you’ll have to put your wireless headphones to use or use the dongle Essential plans to send the device with. As for hardware, you’ll be able to count on a Snapdragon 835 processor, 4GB of RAM, and 128GB of storage. The phone comes with dual cameras, a regular 13MP lens with a second, monochrome sensor that should help bring in more light, just as Huawei P10 does. The front camera is an 8MP sensor that captures 4K video, too.
As you can imagine, Andy Rubin’s handset runs pure Android, no customized interface added. Battery is decent too, coming up at 3,040 mAh. For Android fans, who want something none of their friends have and who still believe gadgets can tell stories, the Essential is definitely an option. With a titanium and ceramic body, it can also be a choice for those who’d rather keep their phone alive for as long as possible (no cracks and dents).
As much as this phone is a threat for Android manufacturers, from a spec point of view, it’s still too new and young to tell if it will charm the audience. You can reserve your Phone (unlocked) and the 360 Camera for $749 on the official website.
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