Essential Phone still isn't here but also headed to UK, Europe, and Japan

When we last left Android creator Andy Rubin’s Essential Phone, we were still waiting for word on exactly when pre-orders for the device would begin shipping. Reservations for the device began on May 30th and although details of the phone’s release were never mentioned in any sort of official capacity, the very next day Rubin did go on the record as saying the phone would launch within the next 30 days or so. With June now well behind us, it’s been leaving more than a few people scratching their heads.

Be all that as it may, we now have new details on where the Essential Phone will be launching next, excluding the initial US and Canada launch. It seems Essential execs have been talking with UK carriers like EE to lock down a launch date, while they have their sights firmly locked to western Europe and Japan soon after that.

For now, Sprint holds the exclusive for the Essential Phone launch in the US, but a full unlocked model will still be available directly on Essential’s website. The Essential Phone is priced at $700, with an optional $200 360-degree camera module being sold separately. When bundled with the handset, the price of the camera drops to a more than reasonable $50. A better price on similar hardware can’t be found.

For now, we just to wait, twiddling our thumbs and tapping our fingers until Essential updates us on when they plan on launching their compelling new smartphone. In the time that’s passed, we’ve already seen a handful of great devices launch like the HTC U11 and OnePlus 5, two handsets that offer some pretty serious performance hardware for the money. For more on the Essential Phone, hit up the official listing down below.

Reserve Essential Phone

via Financial Times