Andy Rubin's Essential Phone goes official

Android co-founder Andy Rubin's Essential smartphone is now official and as expected, it features top of the line specs, futuristic design like the Mi 6 and modular system.

Design-wise, the Essential Phone sports almost non-existent benzels on the sides and top, but has cut out for the selfie camera. It has ceramic rear panel with titanium frames for enhanced durability. It ditches the 3.5mm audio jack in favor of USB Type-C, and includes a rear-mounted fingerprint scanner. 

In terms of specifications, the Essential Phone features 5.71-inch QHD edge-to-edge display with a layer of Gorilla Glass 5 and offers aspect ratio of 19:10. The performance is handled by Qualcomm's Snapdragon 835 Mobile Platform and features 4GB RAM and 128GB storage.

For photography, it gets dual 13MP f/1.85 rear cameras (RGB + Monochrome) with image fusion technology and hybrid auto-focus comprising contrast, phase detection and IR laser sensor. The main camera is also capable of recording 4K videos. For selfies, there's 8MP camera on the front and can record 4K videos as well.

Connectivity options include 4G LTE, WiFi 802.11ac, NFC, Bluetooth 5.0, GPS and USB Type-C. It runs Android Nougat and is fueled by 3040mAh battery.

For the modular system, it has two magnetic pins at the back called Click cordless connector, which allows you to snap accessories to give the device extra functionality. This is somewhat similar to Moto Z's modular system. The first modular accessories for the Essential Phone is a tiny 360-degree camera and Phone Dock. The 360-degree camera features dual 12MP fisheye sensor that can record 4K 360-degree videos at 30fps. The Phone Dock accessory, which looks like a mat, and is designed for the phone to lie down on. The company plans to launch more accessories in the near future.

The Essential Phone will be available in Black Moon and Pure White color options. The phone has been priced at $699 (Rs. 45,000) and can be reserved on the Essential's website . The 360-degree camera costs $199 (Rs. 13,000) and will be sold seperately. However, customers who order the phone can get the 360-degree camera accessory for just $50 (Rs. 3,230). As of now Essential Phone will be available only in the US.