Amazon.com: Customer reviews: Essential Phone in Pure White – 128 GB Unlocked Titanium and Ceramic phone with Edge-to-Edge Display

Reviewed in the United States on April 23, 2018

Style: Only PhoneColor: Halo GrayVerified Purchase

I purchased this phone to replace my problematic iPhone 6s. I've owned nothing but apple so this device is a first for me. I've been using it for a few weeks and I have to say I haven't seen much in the way of technical problems. I'm just an average guy, looking for a good deal on a phone I could surf the web, take photos and buy stuff with. I'll lay it out the best I can. I think the tech reviews were a little harsh on this one.

The ph1 is new to the market. What drew me in is the companies goal of basic, yet useful. That's what this phone is. It's not waterproof, can't scan your face, and it's not quite as smooth as iOS. It is however $500 less than the nearest big name and at least for me, made this an attractive prospect.

Build quality:
I have to say, without a doubt it's the nicest looking phone I've ever seen. You just have to hold one. In a time where everything is plastic and aluminum it feels what I can best describe as " timeless" it feels like a high end watch does. It's design is both minimalistic but overall a breath of fresh air. I looked at every phone available as of today's date and I can't quite describe how " different" it feels.

Value
I purchased 2 of these phones for less than the cost of one competitor but don't feel I have been cheated out of anything. I remember thinking there has to be something wrong at this price point so I did research. This is essential first build and while it's not a rounded perfect device, if you consider what you need, actually need in a phone, it's perfect. You won't be able to say " hey man look what my phone can do" but if you let someone hold it the typical reaction is " whoa". For the price people just aren't expecting the reality. For any design team anywhere, this is a very difficult thing to do and essential nailed it. In the first try. The phone debuted at $700. Personally even though I like it I wouldn't pay that much. Now that they have dropped the price however, it kind of makes the other guys stand out like a sore thumb.

Performance
I'm new to Android. Ios is so beautifully simple to use, yet the cost associated with the new models priced me out of the game. That's just the reality. The ph1 uses a basic version of Android. It makes sense since the phones creator invented Android os himself. The device seems smooth and fast. Compared to iOS, it's not quite as polished. As far as speed, it's snappier than my 6s, just not quite as refined. Again, for the price I have been happy to forgo my comfortabilty with iOS in favor of a 50% reduction in cost.

Apps
It comes loaded with the basics. If you want more you can add them. If not, leave it alone. For an Android purist this may be an issue.

Camera
The camera is a bit more bare bones than some of the others i have tried. But not nearly as horrible as some of the high brow critics would lead you to believe. But then again, how horrified would you be if your photographer showed up at your wedding with a cell phone to take all of the pictures. Think about that for a second. High end photos come from high end cameras. Phones are getting there but if you are buying a phone to capture your life's most precious moments, you may be asking for trouble no matter what you use. The ph1 does a perfectly adequate job of capturing what it needs to and I believe it will only get better with time.

Cell reception
I use straight talk. The phone works great. I haven't had any issues with call clarity or dropped calls that have been any better or worse than any other phone I have used. As a bonus, I got visual voicemail back, something that for some reason wasn't supported by apple.

Battery
I get a full day out if moderate use. It's nice forgetting the charger at home for a change.

In closing if you are a tech person, someone who has a vested illusion of your place in society as defined by your cell phone, or are not willing to learn a few new things this may not be the device for you. The essential phone is what it is, a machine that serves it's designated purpose to keep you in touch with those you love, the rest of the world and impulse purchases whilst on the toilet. It will do what you ask of it, and look good doing it. It's a great first attempt that given time will only become more polished and useful. And at the current price point gives a common person the chance to experience a good product at a fair price. You just have to ask yourself..will a $1000 device do more than that?

Helpful

Arthur K. Heisenmenn

Straighttalk Verizon Users - Read

Reviewed in the United States on April 19, 2018

Style: Only PhoneColor: Pure WhiteVerified Purchase

**UPDATE 2*** MAY 7
After having the phone for a while , I really like it. Looks awesome but it's SUPER slick so buy a case or it will look like every sorority girls busted ass iPhone. The only downside is that the camera isn't as good as the Pixels (which my girlfriend has & I did a side by side comparison both front and back camera) and it isn't waterproof, but it is 2-300$ cheaper depending where you buy it so it is almost an unfair comparison. Updates come quick, phone is super snappy and responsive and feels good in your hand. Fingerprint scanner is snappy and opens my phone instantly and is perfectly placed. If the camera was SLIGHTLY better, and the phone was waterproof, no phone out right now would beat it. I've added some portrait photos of my dogs and an other photo I've taken with the phone just so you can see.

*** UPDATE *** 4/21/18
Two days after receiving the phone and struggling to get the phone to work with straighttalk verizon, I figured out that if I turn the wifi off and restart the phone, my LTE capabilities are enabled and the APN in the phone is updated. Not sure why it couldn't update when it was connected to WiFi. For some reason,the phone wasn't updating the APN correctly and in the new oreo update you can't add or edit APNs unless you root the phone (which voids the warranty), but I did it anyway and even editing the APN didn't work. I also had to go get a new SIM card because according to straighttalk, only one SIM can be registered to one IMEI. I didn't know that, but I am still able to put the NEW SIM back into my old S7 and it works fine.. not sure about that one. It may also be worth mentioning that I tried to take the phone to Verizon yesterday (4/20) and they were unable to add the phone to their prepaid network using its IMEI. He tried it three times but said their system was being weird that day so maybe I was just having a stroke of bad luck. Maybe straighttalk changed the way the operate over the past year or two, not sure because I have had the S7 since it came out and that's the last SIM I had to buy. Just be prepared to have this problem if you are trying to swap the sims and expecting it to work. Enjoying the phone like I should be now, just had some minor hiccups with the service provider.

As promised, I took some low light pictures in the bar and of my dogs in my dark bedroom. The camera is not the best in low light situations, but I rarely take photos at night so this isn't really a problem for me as I have a photography camera that is much more well suited for things of that nature. The phone is 250$ cheaper than the Pixel 2 as of right now so you can expect somewhat of a quality difference between cameras, but this phone looks sharper and feels really solid. I don't take a lot of bar pictures because I'm usually drunk and forget, so again that really isn't a problem for me.

I read some reviews about the fingerprint scanner being bad, but mine unlocks faster than my mom's iPhone 8 and my old S7, it's almost instant. If my finger is on the scanner and I hit the power button, it unlocks immediately.

The only complaint I have is the phone isn't waterproof. I've never needed it on any other phone, but it's nice to not have to worry about accidental splashes.

*ORIGINAL REVIEW* 4/18/18
Love the phone, super snappy, looks awesome and feels like a quality device. The only thing that originally stopped me from getting the phone sooner was all the reviews of the camera, which in my experience is awesome. Front facing camera looks amazing, as well as the rear camera. Photos in well lit areas look good, don't think the camera is as sharp in low light as the Pixel 2 though. I'm coming from a galaxy S7 and this takes better pictures than my girlfriends iPhone 7 and my moms iPhone 8, can't compare it to the X though because I don't know anyone with it so I just youtubed comparison videos and they are all on par with each other. If the camera reviews are stopping you from buying, don't worry, it looks great. Haven't had the chance to take low light bar selfies due to finals but I plan to this weekend so I will update the original review with my opinion.

The phone is also super slick, so you will definitely want to get a case. I got the Poetic Guardian case with the plastic front screen protector and it covers the entire phone well. Couldn't find a glass screen protector so I had to go with the all-in-one combo.

Display looks awesome outside in sunlight even though it isn't OLED. No problems seeing it inside a plastic screen case with sunlight directly on it.

There is a major issue with the phone though. My service works completely fine (straighttalk - verizon sim) on my unlocked galaxy S7, which I have actually switched back to because of service problems. I have factory reset, updated, factory reset, and updated again, and I still can't get straighttalk to work on this phone. Putting the sim card back in my S7 gives me instant service, I can browse fine, and there are no problems. I'm not an idiot, and actually really want to like this phone, but I can't because it isn't a phone, its a 400$ camera/paperweight. I even changed the APN multiple times on the device, disabled enhanced LTE per instruction of a reddit thread to no avail. It gets onto wifi fine and downloads updates, but it will not connect to my mobile service for web-browsing, I can however make calls. This device needs far more work, it could have been a really great device but I feel it's rushed. I will most likely be sending this back to Amazon and purchasing a Pixel 2 or Pixel 2 XL. For now, I'm using my broke screen galaxy S7 because at least it works lol

5 people found this helpful

Helpful

Ownby

Absolutely beautiful phone for the price

Reviewed in the United States on August 6, 2018

Style: Only PhoneColor: Halo GrayVerified Purchase

Initial review:
Allow me to start from my user perspective: Moderate power user who also writes software, generally in an urban/suburban area. I use a Windows laptop, not a Mac.
Given this perspective, I have all but never been an iPhone user. For the most part, I've been an Android user (Motorola (Atrix 4g: Froyo/GrahamCracker) & HTC (One X+: Ice Cream Sandwich/Jelly Bean)) with a period as a Windows Phone user (Nokia w/ Win10 Mobile). With most of these phones, I held onto them long past their prime - largely due to their build quality/capabilities. Despite some of the reviews I have read about the Essential PH-1, I was willing to try it based on their design mindset and the build quality/software layout that comes from that. Additionally, I have a negative perspective on "renting" a phone from my provider (AT&T,) so I tend to purchase my phone outright. The recent price reduction (~$330) on the Essential PH-1 made it properly appealing, though I could still kick myself for missing out when it was priced at $250 during Prime Day.
Suffice it to say that I will update this review as I learn its pros, its cons, and where the compromises are.
[Update]:
I have been able to provide some selective updates in the categories below, as I have had this now almost a week. I expect to have more updates in the near future, when\where warranted.
Initial Unboxing:
It is one of the nicer unboxing experiences I've had with a phone, though I am poorly equipped to compare it to the current competition. The last new phone I purchased was the HTC One X+ but I don't recall the same level of attention as was paid to the PH-1.
Contents:
In addition to the phone, which was properly, protectively wrapped on both sides, there was the upscale USB-C cable, type II (both ends), the charger block, the headset USB-C adapter, the SIM tray "prod" and license leaflet.
First critique: I'm sure the average Mac user doesn't mind that the cable was USB-C for both ends, but most(?) Windows users (like myself) doesn't readily have a USB-C port handy on their systems. So the cable is automatically relegated to charge-only duties, in my case. So my next purchase is likely to be a USB-C to USB-A cable so I can sync to my laptop/desktop.
Regardless of this critique, the charger is good and fast - when the connections are good (including seating the charging block fully into a socket.) I did notice a slight tendency for the phone to not recognize when it should be fast-charging over slow-charging when the charging block was not completely seated in the power socket.
Phone fit & finish:
While I recognize that some have complained about the fit and finish of the phones they received, mine has been all but perfect.
Second critique: The SIM tray was a little difficult to deal with, both in extraction and re-insertion. Be careful that you use the prod in the right place, as the mic hole is located next to the tray opening. Even when the prod is in the correct hole, I had difficulty engaging the release correctly to extract the tray. Re-insert of the tray also seems particular. Be sure that you are not forcing the tray back into place. It should slide easily into its home. If you feel you are forcing it, double check yourself.
Besides this critique, the rest of finish is impressive. The titanium frame provides just enough heft to know the quality involved. The ceramic back on the Halo Gray model is smooth but not slick. The face picks up smudges but no more than any other touchscreen out there.
Display:
Again, not having used an (AM)OLED screen before, I don't know what I am missing from the Essential's display. I'll have to get it into more scenarios where brightness is a factor. My Nokia was horrible in full daylight, so I know what "bad" can be but, in regards to my HTC One X+, I also know what "decent" can be.
Sound:
Again, I am aware of what "bad" can be in this category (Atrix 4g / Nokia 9500 series) but I've seen "decent" (again, the HTC One X+). Given the hardware, I think I can expect relatively close to "decent". But this being said, on a wired headset (Bose) with the headset adapter, the volume was very good. Call quality without the headset is also good. I'll need a larger sample size to better determine overall quality, though.
[Update: Sound with headset]:
So far, I have been impressed with the volume and fidelity of the sound via the headset adapter. After the latest OS update (see below), I did get notified of an adapter update when I plugged the adapter in, which I applied. I don't know the ins/outs involved with this update yet but I have noticed that I've needed to turn down the volume more than before when I switched to the adapter. Also, the headset control sort of works now (it can play\pause, though the volume still doesn't work) where I noticed that it didn't work at all before the update. I didn't see it initially as a downside, as the controls never worked on my Nokia either and I had largely forgotten they were even there.
Network:
This area is my jam. All of my previous phones had to do this part well to warrant the long shelf-life. I am withholding overall evaluation of this category but so far, I have had almost no issue with provider network connectivity (though I have already seen zero bars on a number of occasions but still able to make and receive calls without issue (quality was fine).) Being aware of some of the reviews where call quality was a concern, I thought that the titanium case might have been acting like a Faraday cage somehow but that has not been my experience.
Wifi is great. Bluetooth is fine. I will be pushing these two features a bit more, as I have devices that take advantage of these features better but haven't had a phone that could reciprocate yet (BT 4.0.)
[Update: Bluetooth]
I have seen some peculiar behavior when syncing my phone with my car. Not sure yet if it has something to do with Google Auto (the app) or if something else is causing it. Occasionally, when I first start up, I can hear my music/podcast starting to play through the car speakers and then the sound cuts out. I check the phone and can see it is still playing. I check the car BT management screen and can see that the phone is connected, but I still cannot hear sound. If I then make a call, the call will go through and I can conduct the call normally, no issues there. If I go back to the music/podcast app and start playing again, I will get the sound back. This might be something with the OS, or the phone, or an odd compatibility issue between my phone and the car, or something else entirely. I'll keep testing and checking this.
Camera:
I am no expert in this area but I am a dad, so I take pictures regularly. The pictures I take are obviously important to me but this is not an area I have stressed about previously with other phones. But I have dealt with slow picture\video woes (the Nokia) and poor stabilization (the HTC & Atrix 4G), so I will be watching for these issues and compare them accordingly.
Battery life:
So far, battery drain has seemed to average about the same as my Nokia & HTC did (which is to say that they could manage most of a day without the need to constantly recharge.) The Nokia tended to be the worst, partially due to the Win apps being not necessarily written to optimize on power consumption. This is another area where I will be paying close attention in my evaluation.
When it comes to charging, though, I will miss the Qi-enabled feature of my Nokia.
[Battery Update]:
So far, the battery life has been really good. I went over 24-hours without charging at one point and wound up with 45%. It would have long been dead if it had been my Nokia. This was after the latest OS update (again, see below), so this might have been a factor in the longevity.
Performance:
I have absolutely no complaints here so far. There's no bloatware and the Oreo update took about an hour, overall (including the download.) I know there were several complaints about OS behavior, et al, pertaining to what was initially released on the phone. As I waited until all the updates were done before doing anything on the phone, I probably saved myself from a number of disappointments. At this point, the phone is fast and responsive, both within applications and switching between multiple applications. More evaluation will be required here but I'm satisfied so far. Of course, this is after coming from my Nokia, which was often painfully slow with Win10 Mobile.
[General Update]:
When I first got the phone, I immediately applied all relevant updates, including the OS update to Oreo 8.1. This went really well, no issues. On Day Two of having the phone, the Essential team released v9.0 (Pie) and I got the notification to update within hours of Essential posting the news on their blog. This also went very smoothly and I later found out that Essential was the first phone to get the update, even beating out the Google Pixel. That was impressive, as any other vendor will probably spend the next 3-4 months retooling the update before release. Some might view this negatively but I believe it is worthy of some kudos. One of the updates in the new version is an improved adaptive battery manager and that alone seems to be doing fairly well.
Overall:
As I have mentioned repeatedly here, these are my initial thoughts and observations of the PH-1. While I have a certain amount of optimism about this product, I don't believe I am going at this evaluation doe-eyed.
So far, I am reasonable pleased and relieved. I've read the horror story reviews about cracked faces at the bezel, constantly dropped calls/network connectivity, poorly charging blocks, etc., so I'm happy that I am not seeing any of this initially. I am also painfully aware that I need to ferret out any specific issues quickly while I am inside the two month return window.
With this in mind, I also have the perspective that few <$400 smartphones will meet every expectation that I have and that's what I have here. A phone that, while listed for $499, I picked up for ~$330. Some would argue that it's silly to compare this to a phone that costs 2-3 times as much (though, TBH, I not comparing to what I could have had, just to what I have had.) My rebuttal to that, though, is that it would be silly to spend 2-3 times as much for the capabilities you need, especially when you have this level of fit & finish. Of course, my rebuttal only works if the capabilities do, too.

12 people found this helpful

Helpful

Amazon Customer

This phone is amazing

Reviewed in the United States on November 15, 2017

Style: Only PhoneColor: BlackVerified Purchase

tl;dr
1. This phone is amazing in many ways
2. Most reviews from pre-November were based on at least 3 software updates behind the current version and much has improved.
3. When you get this phone and it asks you to install one update, you are not done: you must go to to settings->about phone->system update and check for another one. You must repeat this process until it tells you that "Your system is up to date". If you don't do this then you are likely still on old, buggier versions of the software. I'm guessing that some of the recent reviewers here have not done this.

My moto x pure had been a great phone, but I needed to replace it for two reasons: the battery was never great and getting worse as it aged, and I was getting tired of carrying this giant thing in my pocket. If not for those things I would have hung on to it. What I wanted in a new phone: everything that was great about the moto x pure: runs Android; great looking, large, and very bright screen; great audio from the front facing stereo speakers; great camera; no bloatware; a quick way to launch the camera which was the same whether locked or unlocked; fast and smooth; durable and scratch-resistant; a headphone jack. To that list I added some things that the moto was not good at or never had: long battery life, being small enough to use one-handed and not be bursting out of my pocket, and a fast, accurate fingerprint reader.

I looked at and rejected lots of phones, none of them had everything I wanted. Does the essential phone have everything I wanted? No way, but it's better than the rest for me for the following reasons.

Pros
------
* Screen: A large, beautiful, responsive screen in the smallest size. When you pull this phone out of your pocket, hold it in your hand, reach across the screen with one hand, and look at the great screen, you'll probably get what I'm saying.

* Speed: Very fast and smooth operation. No stuttering or other slowdowns. Runs the fastest Android processor currently available, same as on the S8 and others costing much more.

* Camera launch: Can launch the camera quickly and easily, the same way, regardless of whether it's locked, screen off, or I'm using it.

* Speaker: Very loud and clear

*Battery: amazing battery life, looks like it will allow for 2-3x the screen on time of the moto x which ranged from 2 to 3 hours.

* Bloatware: Android on the Essential is even more pure than that of my moto x pure edition

* Fingerprint sensor: this one is very fast and accurate, it's great to have one finally. The one small problem is that it's not recessed very far into the body, so it can be slightly tricky to find sometimes. But it's so fast and accurate that usually getting in the vicinity of the center works for me.

* Ambient light sensor: works perfectly, always at a good level for me no matter where I am.

* GPS: perfect

* Updates: Supported by a small, hungry startup which cares so much about the success of their product that they will push out multiple updates in a month. The larger companies and the carriers don't seem to care that much. Oreo should be coming soon, and unlike with other companies, I believe it.

* Security: 3 years promised monthly security updates (My moto x pure went for almost a year without a security update, and I don't think that's unusual).

* Storage: Huge amount of storage, 128GB

* Price: And, perhaps best of all, the price. I was lucky enough to get this phone at what was probably the lowest price it will ever see, less than half the price of a similarly equipped pixel 2 XL or Galaxy S8 plus. The price has already gone up a bit, I recommend that you get it before it goes higher.

OK
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* Speaker: I was hoping to get front facing speakers like I had in the moto, but those days are over, I think, and it's well worth losing that for the small size. Despite the lack of front facing speakers, the single downward facing speaker on this phone is louder than the moto and seems just as clear. But you can cover it somewhat easily with your hand, as in any other phone with this type of speaker.

* Camera: You've probably heard many complaints about the camera. Some of them have likely been addressed by recent updates, but there are still some issues. I haven't tested it extensively yet, but so far it seems to be not quite as good as the moto x pure. The pure camera has been fantastic for me, so a small downgrade is not a big deal for me. And I'm hoping it will get better with updates. I have not yet tried the ripped Google camera apk that others have had success with.

* USB-C: had to happen sooner or later, but I'm not happy about having to buy more cables and chargers, and not being able to use the same on the other devices in my house

Cons
-------
* Headphone jack: I'm just gonna have to get used to not having one. Not ideal, but it was getting to be a pain to plug in every time I got in the car; I bought a bluetooth car receiver along with the phone.

* Water resistance: I was looking forward to having a phone that I could use without fear in the water, but this phone is not it.

* Flashlight: I really liked the chop gesture to turn on the moto flashlight. I used that all the time when I needed quick light and didn't want to have to unlock my phone, pull down the notifications, and tap on the flashlight. Every phone should have something like this.

112 people found this helpful

Helpful

Anurag

[update 2] Save your money! [update] This is a phone I *want* to love!! [Original] Too long; don't worry: there is a conclusion!

Reviewed in the United States on April 23, 2018

Style: Only PhoneColor: Halo GrayVerified Purchase

[update 04/30/2018] Ordered a replacement piece. This one didn't have scratches coming out of the box but man does it get hot!! Am I the only one getting back-to-back problem pieces?? Also, I don't know if it's the heat dissipation problem or something else, but whenever I play games like PubG mobile, the top part of the screen (near the notch) flickers and it's very distracting. The super-powered Snapdragon 835 (yes I know its old, but it was a standard across the 2017 flagships) and the stock android experience don't help much, my Nexus 6p performed slightly better.

PS: The phone also isn't bright *AT ALL* even in the distorted (evening) sunlight (setting sun). Not at all happy with this! This phone is going back and I'm going back to using my old Nexus 6P!

[update 04/25/2018] So today I was in a hurry and put my spare phone in the same pocket as my wallet. What happened after I removed the phone out of my pocket actually cost this phone 2 stars on my review. The so called Ceramic back had 2 scratches, now I'm not sure if that happened with my soft leather wallet touching against it or whether it came with 2 scratches that I hadn't noticed earlier. Essential touts that a case isn't needed but the pristine Ceramic back suddenly had 2 scratches. I later tried to scratch it intentionally with my car key but there was no scratch whatsoever, so either the phone came with said defect or the ceramic matte finish is slowly wearing out on it's own. Mind you, its a *spare* phone so I hardly use it, it's just a companion to my daily driver. I may return the phone if such problems persist.

[update 04/24/2018] I complained to Amazon about the loose adhesive and they instantly gave me 10% off since the price of the phone shot up by $100 since I purchased it.

04/23/2018:
Intro : Got my new Essential Phone just yesterday (got mine in the Amazon exclusive Halo Gray color). Right out of the box it looks fantastic! I was a wee bit disappointed that the adhesive between the screen and the body was jutting out *very slightly* right out of the box. Maybe I'm persnickety..

Check out the conclusion section if you don't want to read through! :D
So getting on with the review, I'll start with things people are talking about a lot :
Camera: The camera quality is *very* blah, my friend used it today and he said it was a *major* deal-breaker for him. The phone has two 13 MP snappers in the back, one of which is a dedicated monochrome sensor. The mono pictures are amazing, the regular colored pictures not so much. I won't even dare compare it with the iPhone X as it would be a huge injustice to the little guy, but comparing it with my 2/3 year old Nexus 6P, I can say the Nexus with a single 12mp snapper is considerably better at photos. I bought this one as a spare phone because I loved the build quality and love the company vision in general. Being a former entrepreneur, I wanted to root for the little guy! The camera isn't such a deal breaker for me personally, but everything in this phone screams power and I got it for the sale price of $399.99 so its a really good deal at the moment.

Build quality and strength: The titanium sides and ceramic back SCREAMS a very rugged build quality blending seamlessly with elegance and finesse. Yes, I definitely agree it's way more sturdier than my daily driver, ze iPhone X and possibly just as beautiful. The Halo Gray color has a gorgeous Matte finish, which didn't get any oily fingerprints smudges or anything. I was actually hogging on a very oily pizza, when I handled the phone last night, and it hardly produced the amount of smudges I made on my iPhone X (glass back). The few that appeared were easily wiped off. The matte also adds a 'grippier' sort of feel to it, I used the full black version (“very black”?) in the best buy store nearby and it kept slipping out of my hand. The phone looks almost identical to my iPhone 4 with the broken antenna lines going around the phone which is very nostalgic as I used (and still use) that phone for 6+ years. The build quality speaks volumes and you can check out the different drop test, scratch test etc. videos on YouTube to see that isn't an easy phone to break. Essential claims (or previously claimed) on their website that you don't need a case for your phone as it is built very solid. I can agree on that for the most part, the screen however...

Screen: The phone has a very beautiful LCD display which is very crisp and clear, it can rival my iPhone X in some lighting situations. No it doesn't stand out great in sunlight because the brightness is not great (maybe 500 nits, I watched a lot of YouTube videos before buying it. I could be wrong) but I guess it's got more to do with not being an LCD display? I'm not sure, maybe an expert here can correct me on this. The letters are crisp and clear.
The screen is a Gorilla Glass 5 variant, and is possibly the weakest link. It is understandable as the phone is *now* offered for a low price and a simple screen protector (which you can buy for as little as $7) is a good investment.

Software: Almost everyone who got the phone at launch or before the Oreo (Android 8.1.0) update has complained about issues of laggy/buggy software and I wanted to test out these claims. They're actually true, *HOWEVER*, right out of the box, the phone gives you the option (one that you must take) to update to Android 8.1.0 and it gets buttery smooth with the update. Set it aside if you're planning on updating it as it was a whopping 1 GB (1013 MB I think was what it showed) in size. The software is now *really* good! It's as fluid as my Nexus 6P also running on Oreo. I will further test out the software quirks by running a bunch of different apps/games and update this review soon! The OS itself is very clean, a bit too clean even for me, who prefers stock Android to the more gimmicky bloatware hogwash that most other companies absolutely love to add to their phone and slow it down! You’ll need to add a lot of apps (plenty available on the PlayStore) to customize it. I like it the way it is, but even I had to download a bunch of stuff. You don’t need to however… I’m going to try my Beats Solo2 Wireless headphones and see how the Bluetooth connectivity holds up.

Whats under the hood: The Essential Ph-1 (Ph-one, that took me a while to understand :P) packs a very powerful Snapdragon 835 (which adorned the flagships of 2017), with a slightly disappointing 4 GB of Ram but a very impressive 128 GB of storage. It's not expandable, however, but again 128 Gb of storage is pretty decent, unless you download everything instead of streaming stuff. I download songs and use it sort of a backup for my iPhone X so 128 GB is a lot and I'm quite happy. I have yet to test out the software-hardware integration but so far it has been really smooth and powerful. It's a couple of steps higher than my Nexus 6p that sports the Snapdragon 8.10 V2.1 on paper, but actual performance is yet to be seen. I'm also going to compare it with my Google Pixel (2016) and update this review soon.

Ports, Openings, Speaker: Essential has opted to go the Apple, Google way of eliminating the headphone jack and they have included a USB-C to 3.5mm jack adapter. There is the USB-C charging port (which charges very fast). I compared it this morning when my iPhone X (regular charging speed) and Nexus (fast charging) were charging beside it, the Essential definitely charges faster. It reached 96% battery, much faster than my iPhone X, which was at 80% and Nexus was around 86%. All 3 started charging at 43% battery.
Battery is 3040 mAh I think, (correct me if I’m wrong), bigger than my iPhone but still charged faster! There is a mono/single speaker grille which is easy to block with a finger if you’re holding it one way and the sound almost completely vanishes. The sound itself, coming from a point source, sounds sort of tinny and borderline annoying so that’s a minus for me!

Whats in the box : A very powerful charging brick. The finish of which is fantastic. The wires look like they’re of excellent quality because they are made of that familiar protective rope type material which you can see on some aftermarket robust chargers. Note, it does *not* come with a pair of headphones, earphones, buds, etc. of any sort so you have to buy them extra. A bit disappointed since a smart phone these days generally means that you call people, listen to music and watch videos at the very least. But for $400 and that fantastic build quality, it’s a fine line between okay and a solid deal-breaker for me. I guess time will tell. I have a lot many headphones both at work and at home and in my car so I don’t think it’s a problem. The integrity of the USB-C to 3.5mm jack needs to be seen and I’ll update it here accordingly. I’ll upload photos, hopefully tonight, when I get off work.

Conclusion :
Pros
1. Very solid build, you may not need a case if you’re a bit careful. Get a screen protector however!
2. Oreo Update has made the phone REALLY fast
3. Powerful specs on paper, need to see how it works in real life.
4. Excellent quality of wires and peripherals
5. Beautiful LCD display
6. Get it for the low low price of $400 and it’s a steal!
7. Fast charging. Didn’t need to mention it here but its faster than some handsets!
8. Notch is not all that distracting as compared to the iPhone X. The update allows you to allow the screen to wrap around the notch! (Google it, it's in the developer options!)
9. Regular updates (very regular) as quoted by many reviewers which is good considering this company is actually listening to us customers!
Cons
1. Camera Quality is still bad post update. Deal breaker for many!
2. No Headphone Jack, there is a wire included for connectivity
3. No headphones, earbuds, earphones included
4. Screen is still susceptible to damage in spite of company’s claims. Will test it out with screen protector on since I’m not a paid reviewer or anything!
5. Very bare Android OS. But hey it’s android, you can play around and customize! It is actually a positive for me because I'm very picky about what is in my phone.
6. No expandable storage.
7. Single mono noisy speaker, easily blocked by the finger. Maybe it’s just me!
8. Only 4 GB of Ram, quite low for a flagship in 2017 but maybe the software integration is better? Yet to be seen. As a comparison, even the Galaxy S9 has 4GB of Ram but Samsung’s hardware- software integration is already well known.
9. No wireless charging on a $700 phone (launch price) in 2017. Get it now however for $400 and you can live with it 😊

So, five stars for now. Will have to see how this phone holds up. Any comments appreciated, just trying to help out fellow customers :D! More pros and cons coming as and when I see them.

6 people found this helpful

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Greg P

Amazing phone at a very good price.

Reviewed in the United States on November 11, 2017

Style: Only PhoneColor: Pure WhiteVerified Purchase

Beautiful phone (actually stunning) at a great price. Great for my needs. It's a work of art and I'm a guy who thinks of phones as utilitarian and often disposable tools. Too bad the 360 camera bundle was out of stock when I bought this or would have added it on for 50 bucks. Had trouble deciding between buying the Pixel 2 XL and this phone to replace my venerable Nexus 6P. Last year's Pixels didn't impress me. My decision making process may be different from yours.

My check boxes: Need an option other than Oreo for now since a couple of my must-have apps don't work on Oreo. Big high res screen for my older eyes and big fingers. No headphone jack is not a deal-breaker. Smaller pocket size phone is better as long as the screen is big enough. Good battery life. Hate bloatware. Biggish storage. Camera needs to be decently good for reliable use in social settings. I only need photos at a quality/resolution consistent with unlimited Google photo storage. If I need a Nikon, will bring it instead.

I have owned all the iphones up to 8, all the Nexus phones, and Samsungs through the 6 model year. I've played with the latest iOS offerings.

This thing is very pretty and appears durable with its ceramic back, titanium sides, and gorilla front - but I bought a case anyway. The white does not show fingerprints on the ceramic like the black does. It just feels right. It's the same feeling I got with the iphone 4 at the time - if you can remember that far back. That was so much different than the other stuff on the market. I don't mourn the lack of a SD card because it comes with 128 GB standard. Doesn't feel gimmicky or bloated. Solid is the best way to describe the feel.

I can't believe that the 6P and this thing have about the same size screen and this phone's body is so much smaller due to the tiny bezels. The camera notch at the top of the screen doesn't cause any trouble with the apps I use. No back camera hump. I think the non-amoled screen is stunning (at 1312 x 2560).

No bloat. Only non-stock app is the camera app. Multiple camera software updates after it got initial poor camera reviews on first release. The updates make the camera much better. You can also load a patched version of the Google pixel camera app. I'm used to that so mostly using the Google port now. You can read about it on xda-developers.com. I've found both are more than fine for taking photos that I would enjoy by looking at them on a screen instead of in print. I think it takes better pics than my old 6P or old iphone 6 Plus when I compare. I think the new iphone and the new pixel do a bit better - but from my perspective, not $400-$600 bucks better. If you make your living with cell phone pics then spend double.

NFC reader is on the bottom where the only real bezel is. Speaker is good. Hole for mic is very near the hole for the sim so put your pin in the correct one when installing sim. I ran it on the T-mobile and Verizon network without problem. There is a new T-mobile phone comparability app and it lists this phone as compatible with all their advanced features.

No lags or crashes or app problems in a week of use. It did three updates since I had it including the latest security patches. This is my new daily driver. No pocket problems - did I mention big screen in a physically small phone. Battery duration is quite good. Don't miss the headphone jack yet. Might just go buy another one when the 360 camera comes back into stock. Hope this company keeps building nice things.

38 people found this helpful

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Amazon User

Fast, sleek phone but terrible camera and don't use with T-Mobile

Reviewed in the United States on October 26, 2019

Style: Only PhoneColor: Halo GrayVerified Purchase

Decent phone but some had some dealbreakers for me.

First the good:
- Super fast device. No lag whatsoever.
- Receives timely OS updates. If you want the latest version of Android and the latest security updates, Essential has you covered. Wish every phone manufacturer was this good with their updates.
- Sleek design. Even though this device was released a few years ago, its design is still quite modern. Doesn't look like an outdated phone at all despite being a few years old.
- Superb build quality. Device is built quite solidly That's not to say the screen won't crack if you drop it, but for anyone that likes a weightier device, this phone doesn't disappoint.

And now the not so great:
- Both cameras are mediocre at best. You can improve image quality somewhat by downloading the Pixel's camera app from XDADevelopers or a similar site, but it's still only a moderate improvement. If high photo quality is important to you, avoid this phone.
- The screen digitizer seems like a bottom of the barrel unit. For anyone not familiar, the digitizer is what allows the screen to register your finger touching the display so you can interact with your phone. So ya, its a pretty crucial component. And Essential seems to have cut some corners here. The screen routinely misses my finger pressing on the screen. I would say about 1 out of ever 20-25 touches of the screen simply don't register (for instance, tapping on the screen to launch an app, click on a link, etc). So I have to touch the screen again in order to get it to do what I want. You get use to it and it only takes half a second to touch the screen again, but still, not the greatest experience.
- If you use T-Mobile, avoid at all costs. Because of a flawed design with how Essential integrated the antenna, the phone will routinely swing between 0-4 bars if using with T-Mobile while just sitting still. I live in the DC area where there is perfect coverage for every carrier and despite T-Mobile's great coverage all over the area, because of the phone's antenna design, it cannot hold a steady signal, even if you are right next to the cell phone tower standing still. As a result, voice calls will constantly drop. No software or firmware update will fix this issue. It is a hardware design issue. Avoid this phone at all costs if you plan to use T-Mobile or any of the MVNOs that use their network.
- No wireless charging. I knew this prior to purchasing, but for someone that charged their previous phone almost exclusively wirelessly, this was a bigger adjustment than I thought it would be.

If you can get this phone for under two fifty like I did and don't plan to use with T-Mobile, then I think it's probably an ok deal. However, paying the current asking price with all these known flaws seems like a terrible idea. There are much newer, faster phones out there that have none of these issues that cost the same or less than the current Amazon price of over six hundred. For that kind of money, get yourself an unlocked Samsung S9/S10 or a Pixel 3.

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Roaming Duck

An amazing deal if you can get it under $350

Reviewed in the United States on October 10, 2018

Style: Only PhoneColor: Halo GrayVerified Purchase

There are a lot of great phones that are coming in under the $500 mark in the last year or so. This phone was originally released in August 2017 for $699. It had several software bugs and the camera was only subpar, and it also did not have an IP certification. So, at that price, the Essential Phone was not a good deal. However, I picked up one for myself at $270 and one for my mom at $320. The Halo Gray goes on sale often, and if you can get it for under $350, you getting a bargain!

This phone looks and feels amazing in the hand. It has a premium build quality and the display is great for an LCD panel. It comes equipped with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 and 4 GB of RAM. This was last year's flagship specs, and in late 2018, you will still be very hard-pressed to find a $350 phone with such specs. If you look at it side-by-side with a Galaxy S8 or S9, you will notice the quality is not as good as the AMOLED panels. However, the LCD panel looks absolutely stunning at $350 or less, and it helps preserve battery life. The notch is minimal on this phone and your home screen experience is very roomy for apps and widgets. Unfortunately, most apps are not optimized to use the notch space on this phone, so it functions primarily as your notification indicator in apps. I did not have any issue with this, and felt like I could consume plenty of content in apps. I wanted a phone that I could use one-handed, and this phone maximizes screen real estate while remaining reasonably-sized.

When I got this phone, I switched service to Cricket Wireless. Unfortunately, there are many places that I do not get service, such as deep within big box stores and anything resembling a basement. Of course, with a MVPN, I am subject to depriotritization when the network becomes congested. Other times I do not have any issue with service, and since Cricket removed their speed caps, I have reached around 15 mgb/second download speeds in some areas. At this time, I can't really say for sure if it is the phone or the cellular service that is responsible for the lousy connection I have in some places. I'm leaning toward the phone however, so that is something to keep in mind. It has not affected my experience too much, since I typically have access to WiFi. I've traveled three times (once by plane and twice by car) with this phone and have had no issues streaming podcasts and looking up map directions.

The software support has been great. This device is one of the few running Android 9.0 (Pie), and has been receiving both software and security updates regularly. It is a much smoother experience than it was when this device first launched. It is running stock android, which makes it a joy to use. Essential recently added Bluetooth 5.0 with a software release, which is also great!

Some people have complained of a touch lag issue with the device. There may be the slightest bit of lag when scrolling through the home pages, but it has not bothered me at all. I really can't tell in day-to-day use. I have no issue scrolling through feeds or playing games.

Battery life on this device has been outstanding. I switched from a Galaxy S8 which I had used pretty intensely for one year. The S8 would not get me through a full day near the end of that cycle, and would regularly overheat. This device almost always gets me through to the end of the day with around 35% battery life left. For context, I stream podcasts/music for about 1.5 hours during commutes, stream video for another 40 minutes or so at the gym, and keep the Bluetooth on all the time since this device is paired to my fitness tracker and Bluetooth headphones (both of which have better connections with this phone than to my Galaxy S8, btw).

The only cons that come to mind are the lack of a headphone jack and the lack of water-resistance. The photos you can take with this phone are not bad, per se, but often require manual focusing unlike flagship phones such as the iPhone X or Galaxy S9. The camera definitely does not preform as well in low-light situations. Keep in mind, however, that this phone is retailing now for $350 or less! Also, I am still uncertain about the reception issues I've experienced with Cricket. I do plan to try out MetroPCS at some point, which utilizes T-Mobile towers. I will update the review if and when this happens as to how that goes.

Tl;DR: If you can get this phone for $350 or below, there is no better phone on the market in late 2018!

2 people found this helpful

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Eric Drummond

Essential Phone PH-1 Full Written Review

Reviewed in the United States on June 19, 2018

Style: Only PhoneColor: BlackVerified Purchase

Okay today what I have for everyone is my full written review on the essential phone ph1. I divided this review into categories that I think are important to consider before your making purchase. That being said I hope everyone finds this helpful and let's begin.

1. Build Quality and Design- talking about the build quality and design. I have to say essential did a great job there's no rattling or creaking of any kind all the buttons give me a nice tactile and clicky feedback when pressed. The combination of glass and ceramic building materials feel very good in hand and overall the device has a nice solid weight to it. The biggest downside to the overall build quality and designesign is however that those build material choices make the device very very slippery. So a case is almost a must with this purchase luckily there are many choices to choose from in that regard. Other than that the overall build quality and design is top-notch.
2. Screen and Display- talking about the display on this device we have a 5.7 inch IPS LCD display with a resolution of 2560 by 1312 and an overall screen density of 504 pixels per inch. Okay sorry I Geeked out for a minute there. What does all that technical stuff mean? Well it just means you have a really really good display which gets really really bright Outdoors and my experience taking a device outdoors I really ever had to raise the brightness on the display up to more than 50% and also using the device indoors I found that it worked perfectly fine at no more than 10%. Using the device in terms of daily performance it was really really good and I had no issues. So overall the display on this device is one of the best and I'm really really pleased with it.
3. Hardware and Software- Now give me a second if you would to run over some more technical aspects and then I'm going to talk to you guys about the software and the daily performance of that software.
So in terms of hardware the essential phone is packing 4 gigs of RAM and 128 gigs of internal storage with no micro SD card expansion so that means you cannot add more storage if you're about to run out. Other Hardware internals include we have a Snapdragon 835 octa-core processor in it or a really powerful chipset and an Adreno 540 GPU what does that mean gaming and day-to-day performance should be a breeze. Moving on we have a 3040 milliamp hour battery in this guys. So getting through a day of light to moderate use should be extremely easy but if you're heavy user you will have to charge sometime during the day. Which should be really easy because we have a USB type-c port and it supports fast charging. We have one down-firing speaker on the bottom of the device which gets really really loud and stays very clear throughout not too much bass in this guy but for the location and what it is is pretty good. on the rear of the device up top we have laser auto focus do LED flash and two 13 megapixel cameras 1 primary camera and 1 monochrome camera. Which gives the phone the ability to just about do anything a modern Flagship should be able to do aside from super slow motion videos you guys and gals should really enjoy the cameras on this device I know I did. Jumping to the front of the device up top dead center in the notch yes this phone has enough. We have an 8 megapixel front-facing sensor again capable of 2K video recording or 4K video recording my mistake just like the rear of the device. The front facing camera is really good but it lacks some of the features that the rear facing camera includes those features being portrait mode, 120 frames per second slow motion, monochrome video and monochrome photo, as well as we don't have a front-facing flash on this device. It was to be expected and overall I'm very happy to say that the cameras on this device are really good whether you need to take photos or videos as long as you have the proper lighting you should be good to go. Jumping back on the hardware all we have left up front again is that 5.7 inch display nothing else is on the front and I can really appreciate the fact that essential decided not to include any company branding whatsoever so you have a super clean device which really turns heads when out in public. That does it for the hardware now let's move on to the software. In terms of software we're running a stock version of Google's Android OS in particular will running the latest stock version of the OS in 8.1.0 Oreo LOL I don't know why Google likes to name their OS versions after dessert I don't think those programmers get out too much. But let's move on in terms of the software we really only have a few key features like we have ambient display which lights up the display on your device when you get a notification so there's no need to be constantly checking your device to see if you got any new notifications essential also included a multi-color LED also which will help assist you when knowing if notifications are available. There's also raise to wake so you can wake up the display just by raising the device. They also included a fingerprint sensor gesture because we do have a built-in fingerprint sensor fast and it's capacitive so you don't have to press any buttons you just have to place your finger on the sensor and it should work sorry if I forgot that in the hardware. With that they gave you the ability in the software to swipe down on the fingerprint sensor to control the notification shade so you won't have to worry about swapping from the top of the device to pull down your notification shade you can just swipe down on the fingerprint sensor and you should be good to go. Other than that I have to say in terms of the software it's a pretty much barebones at stock experience which means at least for me I really enjoyed setting up to device exactly the way I like it with no bloat apps to get in my way. Now talking about the software in terms of daily performance. I would have to say that it is really really good opening and closing apps and navigating through the OS it's extremely fluid and fast. And I had no issues with the software no issues whatsoever. Aside from the occasional app slow down when I had a bunch of apps open in the background AKA if you have more than 14 apps open in the background you will get occasional app slow down and app refreshes but that's standard on Flagship Android devices. Aside from that I didn't have any issues with the software and they today performance was top-notch. I was also very happy to see that aside from a Google pixel device essential is right up there when it comes to releasing timely software updates and security patches. So good stuff good stuff indeed moving on.
4. Wi-Fi-in terms of Wi-Fi this device isn't quite packing the latest and greatest but it's pretty close. This device has Wi-Fi 802.11bgnac Wi-Fi all that means is that you have access to your 2.4 gigahertz band on your router or your 5 gigahertz band on your router as long as you have a router that supports one of or both of these bands you should be good to go. The overall Wi-Fi performance on this device is top-notch and I had no issues whatsoever so good stuff in terms of Wi-Fi.
5. LTE and GSM bands-now I just want to take a second to let everyone know that in terms of LTE bands and carrier support will there be a GSM WCDMA CDMA or otherwise you should be good to go. This device is a globally unlocked device. So what does that mean that means that she out you guys have carrier support for pretty much every carrier in the United States and every GSM carrier abroad and it's a very seamless plug-and-play experience all you have to do is drop your sim card in and you should be good to go. No need to program APNs or do any other type of smartphone trickery or magic so to speak to get your device to work on your carrier. I'm really glad essential decided to make their device globally unlocked in my opinion I feel like we need to have more globally unlocked devices because these devices are a lot of money so why not give your customers the choice to run on any carrier they want. So good job essential. That being said if you think it's too good to be true I encourage you to take a trip over to GSMArena and look up the overall band support for the essential phone for yourself it's always good to know the bands that devices support this way if you plan on Switching carriers or picking up new devices you know whether or not that they have the band supported by your carrier also I recommend you look up the bands that you're so you're not surprised when you pick up said new device. All right let's keep it moving y'all.
6. Bluetooth- alright so now I'm very happy to report that the essential phone has the latest version of Bluetooth in it Bluetooth 5.0 so what does that mean that means you'll get more reliable file-sharing when you're sharing files over Bluetooth or you get a more reliable Bluetooth connection when you're using things like Bluetooth speakers or Bluetooth headphones or you connecting to your car via Bluetooth if you have a car that has that built-in functionality. That being said I got to tell you guys in terms of my experience with the Bluetooth it was a joy and I had no issues. That's saying a lot because I have a ton of bluetooth enabled devices Bluetooth speakers Bluetooth headphones. I'm trying to live that hashtag cableless lifestyle y'all. When you're trying to do that having a device that extremely reliable Bluetooth is a must and I'm very happy to report that the Bluetooth on the essential phone is extremely reliable.
7. GPS-now let's talk about the GPS in this device and for those of you who don't know. I'm one of those people that is very GPS dependent some would even say I couldn't find my way out of a cardboard box without my GPS. They might be right but I'll never tell them in person. That being said LOL I got to tell you guys the overall GPS performance on this device really really good. Regardless of what I was doing that took advantage of the GPS it worked without issue Weatherby turn-by-turn navigation or geo-tagging I had no issues no issues whatsoever when it comes to the GPS. That being said I'm also happy to report that it locked on within seconds as well so really good stuff in that regard.
8. Call Quality and Speakers-alright so now let's talk about the call Quality and the speaker call Quality because this is a cell phone after all or a phone so it needs to be able to cover the important bits. And I'm very happy to report in terms of call Quality who the built-in receiver it was very loud crisp and clear and I had no issues hearing the callers on the other end and they had no issues hearing me. In terms of the speaker calls they were very loud but they lacked a little bit of clarity in my experience but overall I would say they're good. That being said when we talked about the overall quality on this device I have to say overall it's good. That being said I also want to point out that your experiences may vary depending on the carrier that you use particular when I was using this device I tested it on T-Mobile's Network and Straight Talk Verizon's network I had some issues with the coverage on T-Mobile but whatever I had good cell coverage it work without issue that being said on Straight Talk Verizon I had some really really good coverage regardless of where I went and I had no issues.
9. Camera user interface-okay so I already touched him with the camera could do earlier so now I just want to go over the user interface for the cameras and let you guys know how I feel about it. So that being said you can launch the camera simply by double tapping the power button on your device and this works from anywhere so what do you device is off in standby or your checking something and the Earth takes a real quick picture hits you all you have to do is double tap the power button and you be at the camera in seconds that's a really really nice touch. Now talking about the interface I have to say that I've seen. There's no need to dive through cluttered menus everything is nicely laid out and where you would expect it to me and I'm very happy to report that with Essentials recent update even if you want to change stuff with the camera like resolutions or recording modes it does not take you out of the viewfinder to do so so if you lined up your perfect shot and then you realized you wanted to make it portrait mode instead no need to jump out of the camera interface to change the mode and then jump back in and have to realign up your shot or if you wanted to take a quick video I'm very happy to report that not only can you line that up and then record but when you switch to the video settings or toggle it doesn't automatically start taking video so you have enough time to line up your video and then press record. Really nice stuff I really like what essential is doing not only with their cameras but with the camera interface as well.
10. Gaming performance-all right this is what we talk about the gaming. Now I got to let you guys know up front that I am not a heavy gamer okay. So what does that mean I didn't testout games like Mortal Kombat, Modern Combat, Bullet Force, or Nova 3. I think the most graphically intensive game that I played was Asphalt 8 other than that I'm a Casual Gamer games like Fruit Ninja games like Subway Surfer's. That's me all day and I'm very happy to report that at least when it comes to Casual games you guys shouldn't have any issues and really when you think about the overall tips that that's in this guy if you want to play you more heavy games and graphically demanding games you shouldn't have a any issues either. Again I can only speak to my style and my usage which is light or casual gaming usage which was flawless I didn't have any issues with the games I didn't have any hiccups any slowdowns the device did get a little warm after extended gameplay. Other than that however I had no issues. So gaming on this device was really really good top notch.
11. Benchmarks- now this is going to be a real quick category in terms of events marks again we're running the Snapdragon 835 processor and the Adreno 540 GPU which was last year's flagship chipset so the benchmarks performed pretty much where I was expecting them to off the charts if not some of the highest benchmarks that I've seen in awhile. But what I want to emphasize here is benchmarks nowadays mean absolutely nothing what I feel like everyone should be looking out for is the right combination of hardware and software which equates to an overall smooth and fluid user experience. Which equals a good user experience at the end of the day. Which I feel this device delivers in spades. Now let's move on we're almost finish I promise.
12. Battery life and charge times-now talking about the overall battery life I have to say that the essential phone was good I was easily able to make it through a 12 to 15 hour work day and make it home what about 10 to 15% on heavy days 15 to 20% on light to moderate days. In terms of screen on time I was able to pull down anywhere from 5 hours of screen on time to 7 hours and 30 minutes of screen on time 8 hours if I really pushed it. So this is again where I would say the battery life was good keep in mind that everybody's results May Vary and I am an extremely heavy user. So depending on your usage Style and what you do with your device your results may be better or worse depending. Now moving on to the charge times I'm very happy to report that this device charges up extremely quicklyperiod on average it was taking me anywhere from an hour and a half to reach a full charge to an hour and 50 minutes to reach a full charge depending on the percentage at which I plugged the guy on to the charger now whenever I didn't charge the full so in instances where I charge to like 80% or 75% then I was getting on average anywhere between 45 minutes to an hour which is pretty good not the best I've seen but pretty good and you guys got to keep in mind this device again has a 3040 milliamp hour battery. So those are some really good charge times and overall battery life was I expecting more? Yes but for what it is it's really really good.
13. Price and final thoughts-alright we've made it to the end. Now talking about the price I picked this guy up from Amazon and one thing I want everyone to keep in mind is that I am an Amazon Prime customer so what does that mean? That means that I get free 2-day shipping on all Amazon Prime eligible products. If you're not an Amazon Prime customer you still have to factor in shipping and handling and taxes, but because I am an Amazon Prime customer the only thing I had to worry about at checkout was taxes. That being said I've done a lot of reviews on Amazon and this is one of the first ones where I took advantage of Amazon payment program either the first or second I can't remember but how the payment program works for for eligible customers again let me reiterate and you have to be a prime customer to be eligible but the way it works is. You find a device that is payment plan eligible and at checkout you make your first payment along with paying the taxes then you have to make small monthly payments for 4 months they lay it out in at 5 months increment but because you're doing that first payment at checkout and you're paying the taxes it really comes out to 4 months so you doing 4 months of small monthly payments until the device is paid off. So that being said the full retail price was $500 the monthly payments on that is $100 a month. One thing I want you to keep in mind is that you can pay off the full retail price at any time by calling customer service. And also in terms of the Amazon payment program you can only have one device at a time on the program Okay so if you wanted to get another device on the Amazon Prime payment program you would have to pay off the first device that you have before you can move on. What that being said again this device is available right now today on Amazon for $500 and it is available on the Amazon payment program. So everyone is probably wondering at this point can I recommend this job pick up this device. And I would have to say yes as long as you keep in mind what all you're getting in this device and as long as you feel like you can take full advantage of everything that this device offers then yes I can recommend that you guys pick this up you should have a really in trouble experience. That being said once again I want to say I hope everyone found this review helpful and I hope you have a good evening, night, and or morning. Depending on your location and the time at which you read this review.

One person found this helpful

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Tech nerd

Essential Phone: One of the best devices of early 2018!!! Design on this thing is incredible!! Buy it!

Reviewed in the United States on April 24, 2018

Style: Only PhoneColor: BlackVerified Purchase

The Essential Phone has a lot of polarizing views. I will try to give an updated and honest opinion. I am a tech junkie and review phones as a hobby. I try not to spend more than $400-500 on devices and sometimes much less. I feel that spending close to $1000 for a device I will keep for maybe a year is a waste of money. I also find it a lot harder for companies to offer a truly great device in the mid range price bracket than the top end. It is easy to dazzle when money is not an issue yet even then most devices fail in one way or another. Can the Essential phone really compete with the big guys and are all the negative reviews true? Should I buy a PH-1 when the company is developing a PH-2? I will attempt to answer these questions and more.

As with any company the first device you make can have some issues and when it is your first time making a smartphone even if you are the founder of Android it doesn't mean that you are immune to screwing up. What determines success is not failure but a willingness to never give up and to do your best to solve problems and take responsibility. So a lot of the reviews on this phone were rather negative. Some of the claims a little over the top and the price while not iPhone X expensive was not cheap during its initial launch. All of this caused a lot of dissatisfaction, specially since the software was not polished and prone to bugs.

Fast forward to now April 2018, several months- almost a year after initial release and a few price drops later and how does the Essential phone stand up? The price fluctuates between $500 and $400 depending on the model and sales that are going on. Personally I feel the $500 price is reasonable and should have been the release price and then successive models you could gradually add features and increase the price. By starting the price lower than they did I think a lot of the reviews would have been a lot more forgiving. You have to take a bit of a loss just to get people to try something new. Oneplus and Xiaomi understand this and it has propelled their success. That being said for $400 this device even in 2018 is a real value.

Design-form factor and feel.
I want to start my review by saying I am very critical and had pretty high expectations. I am not unreasonable though and do not expect everything to be perfect specially at the price I paid. I have to say I absolutely love this phone. The longer I own it the more I love it. I can't say that for all the devices I have had. The build quality is really excellent. The Titanium and ceramic with Gorilla glass 5 just feel great. The fully immersive display and smaller form factor really are the future. Any device with large bezels and chins instantly seems old. Ergonomically the size really makes a difference. I have had large devices like the Xiaomi Mi Max 2 with large chins and a 6.4" display and even though I loved the screen and battery it was just too big to hold and felt akward in my hand. One of my needs since my near vision now sucks is a larger screen and 1080p is fine for me at least I thought. I do prefer Amoled panels but a good LCD is fine. So the screen on the Essential phone even with the notch is one of the best ips lcd panels I have used. It does have some visable banding in bright light which is annoying and makes the screen look cheap. That being said it is not a deal breaker and is not always visable. The phone is a lot smaller than my Xiaomi Mi A1 with a standard format and a 5.5" screen and yet the Essential phone has a larger screen-Awesome!! So the design of this phone obviously took some thought and it is not just a copy of an iPhone like so many other devices. I really like the industrial design and the lack of branding!!

Branding
I think it is so important I am going to make a seperate paragraph. There is no branding on this phone anywhere. A bold move from a start up and extremely refreshing! Not even a logo-nothing. The design of the phone is really well thought out. The way it fits in your hand and the way it feels and looks all reinforce good design and high quality. So while I paid a very reasonable price it feels like a unique and high quality device. Did I mention there is not a word, logo, nothing anywhere on this device?? No one does that and it is so bad you have SAMSUNG or HTC or whatever printed in white on the front of your device in some case or some logo etc. I know some people really like the Apple logo but I feel like branding has become so out of control and people just want you to know they have something expesive so please see my brand here that tells you I am a success. I personally would rather people notice the unique design and feel of my device and ask me what brand it is since there is nothing on the device. Also I don't like being a walking advertisement. I really appreciate the lack of branding on this device.

Call Quality and reception,

I have T-mobile and Mint Sim in SOCAL and I have better reception than many other cell phones I have used. Usually I am in a bad reception area where I live and my call quality and reception is excellent with the Essential phone. I was worried because of a lot of negative reviews but it is not an issue for me. This phone is also capable of wifi calling!!

SAR level,
This phone has very low SAR rating. For those concerned about RF exposure this is a great device!!

Software,
Stock Android or as close to it as possible is my favorite type of software on an Android device. I hate skins like touchwiz or HTC sense, etc. Even Moto with no notification led I don't like. I think Essential has done a great job keeping things simple but again really well designed. I have the latest April 2018 security patch and Oreo 8.1. Very happy. I know they had some delays but many other companies still don't have Oreo or it is at 8.0 etc. The software is very lean and does have some nice customizations. If you want themes and tons of added apps included by the OEM then this device is not for you but if you like to run just one app, not three versions of the same thing and like to be able to uninstall or disable any app on your phone then this device is perfect!! Lets just say the software has matured on this phone to the point that everything seems stable and fast-even the camera!

Sound,
There is one mono speaker at the bottom. It is one of the loudest mono speakers I have heard but it lacks any type of bass and can be a bit harsh. I would really like to see better stereo sound on phones. This gets the job done and is louder than a lot of phones but it doesn't impress me. One area where I think they could improve the quality. Sound level is good.

Camera
I am not a professional photographer but I like to take decent shots of my life on my phone. This phone has a great camera in my opinion. It is not an Apple or Samsung camera which are some of the best but it is a good camera that works. The app doesnt crash for me and for the price I paid I am very happy with it. It could be better but I really find nothing to complain about here.

Battery
Even though the battery capacity is not very large-3080mah the battery life is pretty impressive. This device is more efficient than many devices I have used with larger batteries. I would have preferred a 4000mah battery but I can't complain and actually like the battery life on this device.

Other Specs,
It is 2018 and now the Snapdragon 845 is here. Many flagship phones have 6-8gigs of ram. I would certainly like 6 gigs of RAM as ram does help future proof the device and 4 is good but 6 is best right now and 8 is a bit overkill. So does this device have what it takes for 2018? I think it does. Sure it may not have the 845 and 6 gigs of ram but the SD 835 is a very good chip, one of the best from Snapdragon in a while so the 845 while being a bit faster is not a major upgrade. Since we are running stock android the ram is good. The 128 gigs of internal fast ufs 2.1 storage is really nice-you don't need an sd card with 128gigs of internal storage and it would slow everything down on this device. Should you buy the PH-1 since the new model is in the works? I would say yes if you don't pay more than $500. Because even if they come out with a new model it will cost more and you can still sell your device for a good amount and be able to upgrade. Or you may just keep your extra money and enjoy an awesome device that is unique in a crowd of copycats.

Final Thoughts,
Is this a perfect phone? Are there things I would change? I don't think any phone is ever perfect. There are things I would change. However as the device stands now for the cost now I can safely say it is one of the best value and most unique devices available in the Spring of 2018. Even though it may not be the newest release it feels as new as any other device because they were so ahead of the curve. There is also a lot of what I want in a device and little to nothing I don't.

Don't believe all the negative reviews and opinions. Have realistic expectations and find the device at a good price and you might just be pleasantly surprised by how good it really is. I love the color led near the top edge of the device. The braded nylon cables and quality power adapter that matches the color of the phone and the packaging were all a nice touch.

In my opinion this is one of the nicest phones I have owned in a long time regardless of price. Sure there are some changes I would like to see but for a first device they ever made Essentail really hit this out of the park. I can't wait to see what they do next. Despite the fact there is no branding they have made me a fan of their brand. If they can support this device with continuous quality updates for a long time and not just ditch it after they release a new phone and deliver on their founder's vision then they will make me a customer for a long time. I really like what they are doing and have done. If you are on the fence and are considering other devices I would highly recommend you give the Essential phone an honest try. You can always return it if you don't like it but you may just end up really liking it!!

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