The Essential Phone has just gotten its release date. The much-awaited smartphone by Android creator Andy Rubin and backed by Amazon. The company’s valuation had recently risen to up to one billion without even having released a single product. Now, there is finally proof that there will be a smartphone available for purchase.
Rubin stated last week that the Essential Phone had gone into “full mass production”
Emails have been sent to those customers who have pre-ordered the phone with a confirmation that the handsets will start shipping in seven days to customers. But there is still a catch. The shipment of the phones will only be available in the black shade that was earlier announced. Those who had ordered for a white shade of the phone will probably have to wait a little later. The phones that will be shipping, will also not feature the 360-degree camera module as promised. After raising over $330 million from Tencent and Amazon recently, the company will still be forced to keep at least half of its customers waiting for their products to arrive.
The white variant of the device will start shipping in a few more weeks. The phone was officially supposed to release back in June, and with only about half of the orders being fulfilled a month later, the delay in the process of shipment may put off more buyers from considering the phone, as the launch of the Note 8, the iPhone 8 and the new Pixels are just weeks away from an official announcement as well. The Essential Phone is said to be available through carriers starting Friday, August 18. Since Amazon is also an investor in the company, it could be possible that the phone may be available on Amazon’s online marketplace as well.
Essential have made it easier for those who have chosen the Pure White option to switch to the Black Moon, so that they receive their phones first as the Pure White variant is still a few weeks away from being shipped. The company is going to give the public a “first look” experience of the Essential phone in New York on August 21 and another one in Los Angeles on August 25. Perhaps it is too little too late for the smartphone maker, but so long as the availability of the phone is confirmed, there may be a chance for Andy Rubin to redeem himself in the community.
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