Essential

The Essential Phone is one of the best looking phones on the market today, and now it’s launching three stunning new limited edition color variants.

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This morning, news broke that Andy Rubin, founder of Essential, would be taking a personal leave of absence from the company following a report about misconduct while at Google. Despite this news, Essential went ahead with its bi-weekly Reddit AMA and announced several new updates coming to the Phone and future development…

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Andy Rubin, most notably known for being the co-creator of Android, made headlines back in 2013 when he left the mobile OS project as well as when he left Google entirely in 2014. While most have believed he left to start other ventures such as Essential, according to a report from The Information, Rubin departed from the search giant shortly after an internal investigation found evidence of him maintaining an “inappropriate relationship” with a female employee who worked for him…

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Even though Oreo has barely taken a hold in the latest distribution numbers, that doesn’t mean companies aren’t working hard to upgrade flagships to the newest version of Android. Earlier this month, Samsung announced that users could beta test Oreo on the Galaxy S8 and S8+. Now, Essential is doing the same by providing an early beta build of Oreo for its handset…

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In the world of Google, it was huge news when Andy Rubin, the co-founder of Android, announced that his new startup was going to be releasing a near-stock Android smartphone. While in our review we found its hardware to be fantastic, the poor camera performance really made it hard to recommend the $700 smartphone to most consumers. Essential seems to have heard these complaints and has lowered the Phone’s price tag down to $499 permanently…

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One of Essential’s big bets with the Essential Phone and its upcoming products are modular accessories that work through a new wireless connector. A Silicon Valley company is now alleging (via Reuters) that the Andy Rubin startup stole trade secrets related to the connector without proper compensation.

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While the Essential Phone began shipping to those who pre-ordered directly last month, Andy Rubin’s new device only arrived at Sprint in mid-September. As the exclusive US partner, the Essential Phone has “very prominent” placement at the carrier locations. However, despite this advertising, one research firm estimates that only 5,000 Essential Phones have been sold by Sprint.

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The Essential Phone is all about keeping true to the company’s name by shipping with only the essentials. This means that the version of Android that ships with the handset is more stock than the build that runs on the Google Pixels.

Do you think Essential should have added more features to the Phone?

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Nine times out of ten, new smartphone startups fail, and there’s a reason for that. Making it in this industry is incredibly difficult, especially when you’re aiming for the higher price points. Essential has pulled out all the stops with its very first product, the Essential Phone, and thanks to that it’s playing directly against phones like the Pixel, Galaxy Note 8, LG G6 and V30, as well as the iPhone.

How does it hold up? That’s a mixed bag. There are a lot of good things about the Essential Phone, but also a lot of bad. So, let’s take a closer look.

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Starting a new company from the ground up is anything but easy, and Andy Rubin has quickly been learning that with Essential. A recent customer service error revealed personal customer info to other buyers, Verizon compatibility is still shaky, and the dual-cameras leave a lot to be desired. However, despite these woes, the Essential Phone is now arriving on buyers’ doorsteps.

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[Update] 4:31 pm 8/30: Andy Rubin has posted a blog post to explain that the incident was not a phishing scam but was, in fact, a customer service error. The company has apologized to the customers who were affected and have provided them with a year-long subscription to LifeLock.

If you placed an order for the Essential Phone, you might want to check your email. Someone is currently emailing customers asking for further verification before their order is shipped. If you did receive this email, do not respond and delete it…

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When the initial Essential Phone reviews were published, there was a consensus that the handset’s weakest point was the camera. Once we got our hands on the phone, we had to agree with others were saying, especially with the camera’s low-light performance.

Do you still plan to purchase the Essential Phone despite its poor camera performance?

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We’ve now had the chance to go hands-on with two of this fall’s latest flagship smartphones: the Essential Phone and Samsung Galaxy Note 8. While one comes from a brand new company backed by Andy Rubin, the other is a part of a long-existing line of smartphones that have a loyal audience. Let’s see how the two compare…

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After a couple of months of anticipation, Andy Rubin’s startup Essential is finally opening up orders for its first product, the Essential Phone. The unlocked, bezel-less device is now available from Essential and multiple retailers for $699.

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When Andy Rubin’s Essential finally announced the details surrounding its first smartphone, people got excited. However, the excitement quickly started to fade away as the company missed shipping dates. Finally, we’re hearing when customers will be able to get their hands on the phone, and it’s a lot sooner than we expected.

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It’s not easy for a startup to make it in today’s smartphone market, but Andy Rubin’s Essential might prove that it’s possible. While the company has yet to deliver any products, it has managed to bring its value as a company up in a major way, now being valued at over $1 billion.

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