As you may recall, former Android co-founder, Andy Rubin, once launched his
Essential smartphone to crazy hype in the US way back in
2017.
Essential Phone was a 4G titanium handset with a
camera notch that was going to crush Apple iPhone and Samsung Note. Only it didn't. It
flopped badly, due to overpricing, as we outlined
here a few years ago.
By
2018, Essential was all but gone, and it finally wound down in
2020.
Fast-forward to early
2021, and news outlets this week are reporting Essential's brand, patents and
ownership have been transferred (in a UK deal) to
Carl Pei, co-founder of Chinese phonemaker OnePlus.
Mr Pei now runs
Nothing Technologies, a curiously named tech firm (backed by Google Ventures) that is planning
TWS earbuds and perhaps a 5G smartphone for Europe or Asia before 2022. Presumably, Essential will give Nothing a good war-chest of techs, IPR or
patents for Western markets in the coming decade.
For now, Nothing is
nothing. But Essential could make it
something.
Let's call it "OnePlus 2.0".
Stay tuned.