Essential is no longer selling phones, but should we still believe in Andy Rubin's vision?

Apparently Essential doesn't feel like a full product catalogue are all that necessary to a sound business plan. Following a Bloomberg report that claimed the fledgling and flailing phone maker headed by Android creator Andy Rubin has slashed its workforce by 30 percent and was prepping the company for a sale, Essential has now stopped selling its namesake product, the PH-1, a titanium-and-ceramic beauty of a handset that never quite lived up to its own hype. In a statement to 9to5Google, Essential confirmed the phone was indeed sold out on its website, as indicated by a banner where a "Buy now" button should be. However, te spokesperson also added that it "won't be adding any new inventory," a sure sign that the once-hyped handset is officially discontinued. At the time of its launch, Essential Phone was the first handset with an "edge-to-edge" notched design and a complete lack of branding, but was missing premium features such as water resistance, wireless charging, and (at the time) a headphone jack. It was originally priced at $799, but was quickly discounted to $599.