Essential Phone, available now.

When I started Essential, I did so with six core beliefs. Today, as we celebrate the launch of Essential Phone, I want to illustrate how we baked those principles into every facet of the device—and how all the choices we made along the way were done with you in mind.

At Essential, we are up against industry giants that employ tens of thousands of workers to develop and deploy smartphones around the world. There is a significant advantage to that kind of scale, but we also know that when a company gets to a certain size, the desire to create a customer-first experience sometimes takes a back seat to other considerations, like profits and corporate agendas. Our 100-person team is made up of people who believe in putting the best experience for you above all else. That’s why we’re working around the clock to create products designed to fit your life—never the other way around—with the spirit of American innovation and craftsmanship imbued in every part we design.

Devices are your personal property. We won’t force you to have anything you don’t want.

One of the first things you’ll notice about Essential Phone is that there’s no branding. That’s because we want it to be yours, not ours. And once you turn it on, you’ll find that there are a limited number of preloaded apps and no duplicative services.

We will always play well with others. Closed ecosystems are divisive and outdated.

Every year, like clockwork, manufacturers make “design tweaks” and launch new features and products that work well if you choose to stay in their ecosystem. You buy their phone, TV, speaker, and fridge with the promise of simplicity, but more and more often, this is a way to force loyalty. At Essential, it’s our goal to be the bridge between all these different ecosystems so you can pick and choose the products and services that work best for you, no matter who makes them.

We’re just getting started but we will always advocate for solutions that work well across all your devices. For instance, why limit who you can talk to by sticking to Facetime while there are so many alternatives out there -- from WhatsApp to WeChat -- that work across a wide range of mobile and desktop devices.

Premium materials and true craftsmanship shouldn’t just be for the few.

Our phones are with us all the time, and they are susceptible to wear and tear as they get shoved into pockets, tossed in bags, dropped on desks, and exposed to the elements. You deserve a phone that can resist the trials of everyday use. That’s why we made Essential Phone out of titanium and ceramic. These materials are harder, stronger, and more resistant to dents and scratches than the materials that make up most smartphones. And while costs for such finely crafted materials are usually reserved for high-priced, out-of-reach goods, we've tried to make our phone as affordable as possible.

Devices shouldn’t become outdated every year. They should evolve with you.

Technology moves so quickly that companies rush to release a new phone each year, but most times even that isn’t fast enough. This deluge of devices isn’t good for your wallet or for the planet. Essential Phone will get guaranteed Android OS updates for 2 years and will get monthly security updates for 3 years, so your phone will always be secure and have the latest features.

We also plan to release new wireless accessories (like our snap-on 360º Camera) every few months. That schedule ensures that the latest technology will always be in the palm of your hand without having to replace your phone. These accessories will also work with other products like Essential Home.

Technology should assist you so that you can get on with enjoying life.

Our phones are no longer just digital companions; they are the means by which we record and share our lives. Each and every day, we capture images and videos to share with friends, save for family, or post for the world to see. That’s why we put nearly a year’s worth of development into making a camera that integrates into the body of the phone (without the tell tale camera hump) while still taking great pictures. The dual camera system on Essential Phone shoots with both color and monochrome sensors to create a photograph with richer color and clarity, even in low-light situations. Now you can snap a photo and enjoy the moment––without worrying about picture quality.

With the 360º Camera, we’re also making it a lot easier for you to capture the world around you -- from group selfies to immersive sunsets on the beach. If a picture is worth a thousand words, 360º is worth a million.

The most consumer-friendly attribute of all is simplicity. That’s why we made something that works intuitively right out of the box, without complication or clutter. While the technology powering Essential Phone is cutting edge, the exterior and interface hide the complexity underneath; the result is a phone with a minimalist style designed to offer only what you need and nothing more.

At Essential, we believe that phones are at their best when they serve you, not a company. Our phone comes standard with 128GB of storage, because it’s a small cost for us to absorb and unlike most players in the market, we’re not out to charge customers for incremental upgrades. We’ve made a 360º camera because we want to unleash the creativity of our customers. And we’ve built in future-proof technology because we want Essential Phone to evolve with our customers’ needs. This is the phone we always wanted, but we didn’t just make it for ourselves. We designed it around you.

Available today. Compatible with all major networks.

Starting today, Essential Phone is available on Essential.com, Sprint and Best Buy. Essential Phone is compatible with all major carriers.

On Essential.com you can get an unlocked Essential Phone for just $699 and for a limited time you will be able to get Essential Phone and Essential 360 Camera as a bundle for $749.