Essential wants to reframe your perspective on mobiles; the result looks promising

There have been rumours from quite a while which suggested that Android-inventor Andy Rubin and his team over at Essential was working on the second-generation Essential Phone. There was a lot of chatter online regarding how the handset would look since the original Essential Phone was one of the first to feature the notch. Now, in a twist, Andy Rubin has previewed the next Essential Phone and it comes in a form-factor that’s completely different from anything we have seen so far.

The new handset which is codenamed Gem comes with an elongated body that has the appearance of a television remote control than a regular smartphone. Rubin calls this a “radically different form factor.” The rear of the device comes in a metallic finish with a colour-shift effect as seen in this short clip that Rubin has shared on Twitter.

Also, the Essential Phone 2 comes with a unique interface that’s optimized for the elongated display. The software features tile-like apps that can be stacked on top of each other. Speaking about the handset, Essential says, “We’ve been working on a new device that’s now in early testing with our team outside the lab. We look forward to sharing more in the near future.” In a follow-up tweet, the brand stated, “We've been working on a new device to reframe your perspective on mobile. It's now in early testing with our team outside the lab. Look forward to sharing more in the near future!”

The Essential Phone 1 was introduced in 2017 and it was positioned as an Android flagship that was made by the operating system’s founder. It came with a modular system build for add-on extensions.