PALO ALTO, Calif. — Essential, the new smartphone company founded by Android operating system creator Andy Rubin, is planning to ship its first pre-ordered flagship smartphones soon. Essential opened up pre-orders on its website in May when the product was first unveiled.
Essential partnered with Sprint as its exclusive carrier in July and will be available in more than 3,500 Sprint locations once the Phone is released. Essential Phone will also be available on Amazon and Best Buy.
Essential wanted to make a timeless, high-powered phone, according to Rubin. Its bezel-less and logo-less design is reinforced by titanium parts, stronger than the industry standard aluminum parts, and a ceramic exterior. It has no buttons in its front display but has a fingerprint scanner on the back.
The company is also making accessories, like an attachable 360-degree camera, and the Phone will work with products from its competition, such as the Apple Homekit.
“How do you build technology that consumers are willing to invest in?” asked Rubin. “Inter-operability is really, really important. We acknowledge that, and we inter-operate with companies even if they are our competitors.”
While the 5.7-inch phone feels denser than its Apple and Samsung counterparts, it is bereft of bloatware — rarely used default apps that are common in new smartphones. When Rubin announced Essential, he pointed to bloatware as one of his biggest regrets of the current state of Android phones.
An unlocked Phone is priced at $699 on Essential’s website, which is cheaper than an unlocked iPhone 7 Plus or Samsung Galaxy S8 priced at $769 and $749, respectively. Essential currently has a $749 limited-time offer, which includes the 360-degree camera accessory.
On Sprint, the Phone will be also available for an 18-month lease at $14.58 a month.
Essential is also working on a home speaker of its own, aimed at challenging Amazon Echo and Google Home. Its release date remains unclear.
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