Essential Products, the smartphone and gadget startup founded by Android creator Andy Rubin, is exploring a potential sale, Bloomberg reports.
The company also canceled development of a new phone, the report said. The appeal of Essential’s first device was that it gave users a “pure” Android experience, meaning it didn’t come with a bunch of built-in apps. It also had a titanium frame and a large screen.
It received favorable reviews, including from CNBCbut did not sell well at its original price and was heavily discounted.
A spokesperson for Essential told CNBC that it has “several products in development at the same time and we agree to cancel some of them in favor of those we believe will be most popular.”
The report says that one of the other products in development is related to smart home.
“We are putting all our efforts towards our future breakthrough products, which include mobile and home products,” the spokesperson said.
Rubin, who co-founded Android before Google bought it in 2005, launched Essential in 2017, several years after leaving Google. Rubin also runs a startup incubator called Playground Global, where Essential is headquartered.
Read the rest of the Bloomberg report here.
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