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Essential Phone is available in more countries, including UK and Japan
Essential announced today that it will open up its online store to more countries. Now along with US residents, those living in Canada, France, Japan, the UK and Germany can buy Essential's products through its online shop. The Financial Times reported last July that Essential was in talks with British carriers and that the UK would be getting access to its first phone before the end of the year, but it didn't happen. Canada's Telus carrier has offered the Essential phone for a little while now, but only in limited color options, while Amazon started selling it in Canada earlier this month.
Android Oreo 8.1 is finally available for Essential Phones
Andy Rubin's Essential Phone appeared midway through last year, poised to take on the Samsung-Apple hegemony with a sleek, rugged design. The company skipped updating its phones to Android's Oreo 8.0 release, and rather opted to wait for Oreo 8.1. Today is that day, then, with the company announcing the update is available for Essential phones immediately.
Engadget giveaway: Win a limited edition Essential PH-1 smartphone!
Andy Rubin's company Essential has steered around the rat race of Android handset manufacturers, instead focusing on smaller runs with a more handcrafted approach. This latest batch of Essential PH-1 smartphones is emblematic of those goals. This trio of new limited edition colors was sourced from a single experienced Japanese vendor with an eye on quality control and consistency. The Ocean Depths, Copper Black and Stellar Gray exteriors offer beautiful design touches to parallel the edge-to-edge QHD display. In addition to looks, you get a clean version of Android, 128GB of storage, a 13-megapixel rear camera and plenty of other high-end features. All this comes at an approachable price of just $499 ($599 for limited edition colors while they last). This week, three lucky winners will each get a PH-1 in one of the three new colorways. All you need to do is head to the Rafflecopter widget below for up to three chances at winning one of these special edition Essential PH-1 smartphones. Winners: Congratulations to Scott E. of Owasso, OK; Howard Y. of Mountain View, CA and Danial A. of Kanata ON, Canada!
Essential’s Amazon-exclusive phone comes with Alexa onboard
Oh, you thought Essential was out of new color options to show off? Not quite. The company announced today that a new, so-called Halo Gray model is now available to purchase exclusively from Amazon. Unlike the other, limited-edition versions of the PH-1, this new model goes for $449 rather than $599 and it ships with Amazon's Alexa app pre-installed.
Essential's PH-1 phone is getting new limited edition colors
Essential's first smartphone wasn't exactly perfect, but it was beautifully designed. Its existing black and white models aren't striking enough for everyone, though, which is why the Andy Rubin-helmed startup will soon start pushing out a handful of limited edition color options. And thankfully, the first one to be released is the blue-and-copper Ocean Depths finish the company teased from the very beginning.
IDC: Essential shipped less than 90,000 phones in 2017
Andy Rubin's Essential Phone found its way into our best-of lists this holiday season and had a couple of great price drops, including a $399 Cyber Monday deal. Still, the phone doesn't seem to be doing very well. According to a tweet from IDC research director Francisco Jeronimo, the phone sold less than 90,000 units in the first six months after it launched.
Android P might support 'notched' displays
It sounds like Google is taking inspiration from the iPhone X display's notch for the next version of Android. The idea is for Android Pistachio Ice Cream (the software version's internal name, according to Bloomberg) is to win potential iPhone customers over by offering a similar look to its OS. While some like Samsung have outright mocked the cut-out, other manufacturers like Essential (above) have embraced it. This move makes it sound like Google expects more of the latter than the former, which means you can likely expect to find more phones with all manner of sensors tucked into the space in the future. Chinese OEM Huawei is rumored to join the notched-display party as well.
Essential is working to fix its sluggish touchscreens
The Essential Phone launched last August, but five months later, there are still some issues with the phone that remain unfixed. One of those is the lagging touch latency. If you have a PH-1, though, know that Essential hasn't forgotten about the problem and it's not just brushing it aside. As 9to5Google reports, during a recent Reddit AMA, Essential engineers said that they have dedicated resources specifically aimed at improving touch latency. "There are trade offs we are testing internally and our goal is to provide something in the 8.1 release we just need to make sure by fixing the jitter issue that we are not creating another problem," they said. "Sorry this is taking so long, we just want to get it right given how vocal our audience is."
Andy Rubin returns to Essential amid questions over his past
Android mastermind Andy Rubin is back at the helm of Essential after his surprise personal leave... although you could argue that he never really left. Recode has learned that Rubin is back "less than two weeks" after the company announced that he'd taken a break. Neither Essential nor Rubin was willing to comment, but insiders claimed that he technically didn't have to leave the building -- he continued to work with his venture capital company Playground Global, which shares the same office spaces.
Essential Phone sends 360-degree live video to Facebook and YouTube
Essential has been racing to improve the (frankly lackluster) camera software on its phone ever since launch, and now those upgrades are showering affection on the handset's signature 360 Camera attachment. Andy Rubin's outfit is delivering an update that adds streaming live 360-degree video to both Facebook Live and YouTube Live. In other words, that add-on just became much more useful -- you can broadcast your adventures in a VR-friendly format just by clipping a camera to your phone.
Essential Phone joins the portrait mode photo party
The Essential Phone's camera was one of its bigger weak spots at launch. A few months (and a handful of updates) later and things have gotten better. The latest patch adds a portrait mode along with an exposure compensation control. As Android Police notes, the patch also includes a tweak to the device's JPEG compression algorithm that'll hopefully boost image quality, along with the usual stability fixes.
Andy Rubin reportedly left Google after ‘inappropriate’ relationship
Android co-founder Andy Rubin left Google in 2014 on his own accord -- at least that's what the former Google exec said upon his departure. But, a new report claims that there was more to the exit than we were led to believe. Specifically, Rubin left after an internal investigation determined he'd carried on an inappropriate relationship with a subordinate, according to three sources that spoke to The Information.
Essential Phone drops to $399 for Cyber Monday
Another month, another Essential discount. In October, the company — spearheaded by Android creator Andy Rubin — slashed the price of its first phone to $499, and today it's been dropped to an even more tempting $399. That price-tag also nets you a 360-degree camera module — an accessory that normally adds another $180 to your bill. As The Verge notes, the deal is available exclusively on Amazon and is no doubt a Cyber Monday special. The usual drawbacks apply -- in short, the camera is a bit rubbish and there's no headphone jack -- but for the price you would be hard pushed to find a device that looks as good. The OnePlus 5T, for instance, costs $499 and the Google LG-made Pixel 2 starts at $649.
The best phones under $500
Phone makers are trying to outdo one another by racing to add new, advanced features to their flagships, but these tools are not equally useful. Who really needs Face ID, Animoji or eye-sensing authentication? Some of us just want a good, no-frills phone. Plus, not everyone can or wants to spend almost a thousand dollars on something we'll trade in after two years. For these people, there's a range of options from truly basic sub-$250 phones to more powerful mid-range devices that can be had for less than $500. The latter group is better described as aggressively priced flagships that can serve you almost as well as their costlier counterparts -- and there's now a decent selection to consider.
Essential makes Android's Oreo beta update available to all
Android smartphone maker Essential has opened Android 8.0 Oreo beta access for its flagship handset, the Essential phone. The software was released for Pixel phones in August and hit the Galaxy S8 and S8+ earlier this month, so Essential is one of the first brands to get the update. Oreo comes with a bunch of significant changes, such as refreshed menus, badge notifications and improvements to speed and battery life.
Essential cuts the price of its phone to $499
It's no secret that the Essential Phone isn't a hot seller. Whether or not you believe the sales estimates, it's difficult to move large volumes of a $699 phone with limited carrier deals (in the US, only Sprint) and no brand recognition outside of smartphone enthusiasts. And Essential knows it -- Andy Rubin's outfit has dropped the price of the phone to $499 several weeks after its late August launch. If you're an early adopter who already has an Essential Phone, you'll get a $200 "friends and family" code that you can use at the official store to buy a 360-degree camera or get credit toward another phone.
Lawsuit claims Essential stole modular accessory tech
Andy Rubin's Essential Products is facing more legal troubles. The ex-Android chief's company previously found itself in hot water with smartphone accessory maker Spigen over its use of the "Essential" name. Now -- less than two months since the release of the Essential Phone -- it's getting sued for allegedly stealing trade secrets relating to its modular connector, reports Reuters. Keyssa, the company behind the lawsuit, is best known for developing a wireless standard that lets you make gigabit-sized transfers in seconds. Its backers include Nest co-founder Tony Fadell, Samsung, and Playground Global (the venture fund Rubin heads).
The Essential Phone’s camera may be getting a lot faster
When Andy Rubin's Essential Phone came out in September, our review called out its poorly-performing camera while also noting that there were two new updates to improve things in the week we had the device. Now, Essential users are getting another upgrade for the phone and Camera app that brings impressive performance to the device, including a speed boost of 40 percent in regular or low light.
Now Essential's Android phone will work on Verizon too
Despite being a retail exclusive at Sprint, the Essential PH-1 has arrived as an unlocked device. However, as mobile fans are unfortunately familiar with, certification with one particular network is always tricky. Tonight Essential announced that its flagship phone is compatible with the Verizon network, just a day after it went on sale in Sprint stores, so owners can drop a SIM in and go on all of the major US carriers. According to Andy Rubin, devices may need to reboot first, but that's it.
Essential Phone goes on sale in Sprint stores September 14th
Sprint stores opened up preorders for the Essential PH-1 last month. Given it's the exclusive carrier for the smartphone, Sprint is the only choice for those opting for contract deals instead of paying full price for an unlocked device. If you didn't buy early, don't worry: You can purchase the PH-1 from the carrier at its stores, online or by phone tomorrow.
