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.

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The Essential phone, designed to take on the iPhone and Samsung Galaxy, has gone into full production, according to its creator. Android inventor Andy Rubin took to Twitter to make the announcement, fuelling speculation about when it might be ready for release. New pictures appear to show the assembly lines, where the titanium body of the handset is being milled. An announcement on where and when fans can buy the firm's first model, the PH-1, is expected next week. A new handset designed to take on the iPhone and Samsung Galaxy has gone into full production, according to its creator. Startup firm Essential says it has raised raised over $300 million (£231 million) in new funding and signed up retailers to sell its first device.

In Andy Rubin's past career stops, the former Android co-founder has generally managed to be either ahead of the curve or close to it. At Danger Inc., Rubin helped produce the T-Mobile Sidekick and with Android, he also nurtured the mobile operating system into Apple's biggest competitor in the smartphone marketplace. Essential, the new consumer electronics company from Rubin, doesn't necessarily fit the same mold. At last week's Code Conference, Rubin admitted a smartphone is more "technology evolution" than rocket science. But the upcoming Essential Phone is, at least against the current smartphone market, a similarly aggressive moonshot.

When Android co-founder Andy Rubin left Google in November of 2014, shortly after a major executive shake-up within the search giant, his next move wasn't particularly clear. All we knew back then was that he reportedly wanted to start something on his own, which turned out to be building a high-end phone with a company called Essential Products Inc. And after much speculation and multiple teases by Rubin himself, we now know that device is the Essential Phone, an Android handset with a gorgeous design and top-of-the-line specs. The Essential features a 5.7-inch edge-to-edge display (similar to the one on Samsung's Galaxy S8), the latest Snapdragon 835 processor, 128GB of built-in storage, 4GB RAM and near-vanilla version of Android Nougat. It's basically everything you'd want in an Android handset in 2017.

Based on a first look, it doesn't. We listened to Rubin speak and spent some time with the Essential phone at the Code conference here. We now have a better idea of what issues Rubin's new phone is trying to solve than the ones kind of buried on the new Essential website. Rubin says he wants to "solve consumer problems" with both his new phone, out in June starting at $699, and other products down the line, such as an Amazon Echo-like speaker. For the Essential phone, Rubin and staffers say you won't need to buy the accessory protection because it's not needed.

If Huawei released a phone with the specs of the Essential's hype-driven debut, no one would have paid much attention. It really is a nice phone, but "nice" isn't blowing any minds. As it happens, though, the Essential Phone--the first product from a company started by Android creator Andy Rubin and the gadget line it flagships--is more mission than material. Now, that's not to say the handset is gonna free the masses from the fractured bloatware that plagues handsets from LG, Samsung, and others. Wrapped up in Rubin's penance, however, isn't salvation for the cluttered smartphone landscape, but for the ever-splintering smart home.

During an interview with Walt Mossberg tonight at the Code Conference, Android creator and now Essential Products CEO Andy Rubin showed off his latest creation, the Essential Phone. When it was announced this morning and reservations opened the company didn't say much about when to expect shipments, but in response to a question from Mossberg, Rubin said that he "wouldn't take reservations if it wasn't going to ship in, you know, 30 days or so." He also mentioned that the company's Home assistant would be able to support AI helpers from other companies like Google, Amazon or Apple (if they choose to make them available on its Ambient OS). Essential has its own AI assistant that runs on both the PH-1 phone and Home, but as Rubin put it, "All these people that have ecosystem envy...they have a thing. Like SmartThings as an example which is Samsung's thing...but consumers don't want just Samsung's stuff in their house."

The father of Android, Andy Rubin, has unveiled his Essential Phone and Essential Home devices. A link has been sent to your friend's email address. A link has been posted to your Facebook feed. The father of Android, Andy Rubin, has unveiled his Essential Phone and Essential Home devices.

When Essential Inc., the stealth startup headed by Android co-founder Andy Rubin, teased that May 30th would be a big day, it wasn't lying. We've already taken our first look at the Essential Phone -- a slick, powerful and durable Android-powered handset -- but that isn't the only product the company is showing off today. In its bid to take on Apple, Google and Amazon, Essential has unveiled "Home," a new intelligent assistant that it hopes owners will be proud to show off. The Essential Home sports a circular design, and isn't too dissimilar to Google's intelligent Nest thermostats at first glance. The round auto-display is activated in three ways: by a simple voice commands, a tap of a finger or just by looking at it.