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No marketing??

So with supposedly only 2 weeks to go before shipping according to the weak statement Andy gave at the Recode conference I'm baffled that there has been absolutely no marketing ANYWHERE ??
Maybe this is because they don't want a mass campaign yet and see how what the guinea pigs...aka us unlocked buyers from website , have to say about it first ..
I'm struggling everyday whether to keep this as priority or just jump ship to OP5

OnePlus burned me way too much with the last few phones they did. I have no faith in them and cant even consider the 5 as a viable option. The Pixel 2 rumors look nice though, but for me the phone is a bit too far away still. So this phone will probably bee the one I end up getting.
As for marketting, looks like Sprint will do some advertising soon.

I'm pretty sure their not trying to sell a ton as they have already acknowledged that 20 million sells would destroy them. They already have 300 mil in investments with a 1 billion evaluation. Word of mouth probably already got them to there goal is

Well Essential is on a good start in Canada. Telus just announced they will carry it.
http://www.gsmarena.com/essential_phone_will_be_a_telus_exclusive_in_canada-news-25635.php

The Niche
Based on what's been shared to date it would seem Essential (Andy Rubin & Co.) are promoting the PH-1 entry as a "Minimalist" Smartphone. A pure Android OS similar to Pixel and a Smarthome Device via their Ambient OS, storing data locally as opposed to Cloud based platforms. No doubt Andriod Purest's are eagerly looking forward to the device. As with any first gen device there will be hurdles going forward but in my mind the biggest will be value. At $700.00 it's surely not a "Minimalist Price" and in direct competition with iPhone 7 and the Galaxy S8. Also the release date is curious, right after the S8 and right before the next gen iPhone. Hard to imagine this marketing approach will pay dividends for the first few years, assuming the company is still in business at that time.
Here's why I would consider the device....
Android OS without all the bloatware
Snapdragon 835 Processor
128GB Internal Storage
Dual Cameras
19:10 Aspect Ratio
Type C 1.0 USB
Here's why I wouldn't consider the device...
1st Generation Device
Limited Carrier Network and Support
Back Mounted Fingerprint Reader
No Facial or Iris Recognition
Propritary Modular Connector
No 3.5 Connector
No Wireless Charging
Not Waterproof
No MicroSD
No Dual SIM
3040 mAh Battery
Price/USD $700.00+

NEVER BUY A HONOR PHONE - heres why.

In the beginning I would like to present you my device and experience with Huawei, I am a smartphone geek and I had many devices in my life, and the most sentimental hate I have about is Huawei, I bought my favorite Honor 7, 2-3 months after it was released, Huawei was something new for me because in those days the "flagship" Hisilicon kirin 935 in 2015-16 was cool and new, not to mention fast charging, ar blaster (remote control), 20 Mpix camera with HDR and slow-motion recording at 60fps, revolutionary thermal construction, "Hey Honor" head control, audio + Hi-Fi, several annual updates of new functions and Android from version 5.0-6.0 until ... until the moment Huawei shoves its "sales system" of new devices, in previous device brands in which I sat I had an impression that my device is "on time" but in Huawei is quite the opposite and here it gets worse. Users of Honor 7 know that the last update of Honor 7 was in November 2017. (version B396). In brief, I will tell you one thing: Huawei gives a fu** about us, even if Ren Zhengfei is reading this, let him understand that we are awake. Every device that you release and is supported until the end of "materialistic" two years, put our Honors in the trash can which means that since the last update the device gets, youre phone starts to get boring and older which brings you to buy a new Huawei, but wait a minute, I just bought my honor 2 years ago and it's not good anymore? Naturally, we look at the internet why we do not get new upgrades where everything becomes clear the processors produced for Huawei are specially designed to work only for two years! Then Huawei tells us that you need a better version of Open Gl / CL and that the new EMUI will not go ble ble ble. And then we understand such a device with pseudo-strong peripherals it loses support after two years and spending hunderds of $ isnt worth it. So the question to Huawei is why you are making the same mistakes, why you are blocking the bootloader, and why EMUI is so limited, after all EMUI can compete with MIUI or Samsung Experience, just open up for people, update our devices more often so that they do not retire at the age of 2 years. It's all artificial. For now it is the silence before the storm because I hope that people who have reached to the end of this message will understand that people who purchased Honor 7,8,9,10 will be disappointed and how they will be treated after the warranty period and the end of Android support, where unfortunately the company counts money and not users.

Once I am like you (I'm looking at you HTC) but now I have move on (bought honor 10 when it launch). Do watcha want with your money. All company doesn't force you to buy their product anyway.

November 2017? i'm quite jealous, my idol 4s(alcatel main 2016 flagship) never received a major update and only ever received one security patch, the february 2017 patch. We're in june 2018 and my phone runs android 6 and a 1,5 year old security patch, all of this in a 400 euro phone. Software updates nowadays are a niche privilege, if you want them buy a google or apple phone. You pay a premium but if software is a priority, they re the only players in town.

If you value updates so much you should only consider Google Pixel line of phones or Android One phones. You know what you're getting into by buying other manufacturers' phones.
Anyway, it sounds like there is no hope for you as 2 years support is also too short for you. Pixel and Android One only support 2 years of Android updates. I am not counting the additional 1 year of security updates.

Looking for late 2018 / 2019 phone for custom roms.

I am currently using the Asus Zenfone 4 ZE554KL and it is the worst phone I ever bought. Android updates and support by Asus is horrible. The phone came out summer 2017 and they can't seem to give any official word on if this phone is getting Android pie. On top of that, the skin they apply over Android is horrible. There is no community support for this phone to provide 3rd party ROMS to compensate for the lack of competence by the manufacture.
This was my first phone since using Google's previous line of Nexus phones which I dearly miss. Google was always reliable for providing updates to their phones.
I am looking for a phone that recently came out or has been announced at Mobile World Congress that will provide support, or at least a strong community support for 3rd party ROMs like Lineage OS or Pixel Experience.
Ideally the phone will have a headphone jack, I am very bitter with current market trends with the removal of the headphone jack and the lack of reason by all manufactures. I will vote with my money! I also would accept a phone with a tear drop notch. I can't stand notches but I will at least settle for the minimum style notch possible.
As I can't trust any other manufacture to provide a timely update to their phones, I want to be in control of that as it seems the 3rd party ROM community is much better at this than the manufactures which I find sad on their part.

Anyone???

Poco on Android One, Revisiting an Old Idea

I've used the Galaxy S2 as my first phone when it was released (the day I decided to become an Android Fan Boy), I've used two <100$ phones that run Android including Redmi 5A. I made sure to get my hands on the OP2 when it was released in India and I've bought the Poco F1 twice (first got flushed drown a drain) all over a span of 8+ years.
I've installed over 50 custom ROMs on mine and my parents' phones (Redmi Note 4, Yu Yureka) and my on laptop too. I've loved CyanogenMod and consequently LineageOS too and they have always shown how powerful a phone can become if you've got the right software.
I've stayed up to date on the latest tech news on a daily basis and I've always looked for phones that have truly stood out (Most of the phones I've purchased have caught eyeballs and wallets of many during their times and in their categories). I've run my hands down a lot of other devices too.
Despite so many great devices being launched, 3 year old iPhones are still among popular best-sellers in the entry level premium segment.
If there's anything that can really challenge the mid-tier dominance of 3 year old iPhones, it is a mind blowing H/W (from someone like Poco) and the OS in it's purest form - Stock Android with UPDATES (this is not emphasized enough).
Though Nokia and Motorola offer these, they often cut costs on H/W.
Xiaomi always makes a "just good enough" implementation of Android One, so as to not cannibalize its own series.
After using the Poco F1, I've realized this phone is exactly everything I need and nothing I don't (which is their motto), but with Android One. I'm pretty sure a lot of Poco Users would resonate, the 90k Pixel Experience ROM downloads, beryllium(code-name) being one of the most popular phones for all major after-market ROMs is a big indicator of an underlying need. Given that Poco has become an independent unit (which basically means they have greater control over marketing and software) and they're planning to launch maybe 1-3 devices (too many rumors) this could be a great pivot point for them.
It's been a dream waiting to happen for years, a true Android One phone + High End H/W + A cost that puts everything else to shame. And I don't think anyone else is poised to do that better than Poco. It's a great strategy to pivot away into a quasi-premium line and compete with High End Chinese + Starting Range OnePlus/Nokia Premium Phones. This is the category that most first time buyers of premium-ish phones flock to.
If all the feedback all over the years has said anything it is this - People want the best H/W with the purest experience of Android and a bang for your buck. In the end it's Xiaomi (Mi, Redmi, Poco) vs BBK (Oppo, Vivo, OP, Realme) anyway (I don't assume Samsung and Huawei would really focus on this given their sheer size and investments in core technologies such as silicon, imaging and network technology).
Poco could be an outlet for all of Xiaomi's best performing H/W tweaked to their philosophy of keeping everything you need and nothing you don't to re-birth as Android One Phones.
I mean why isn't anyone doing this, and why isn't Poco doing it!

Because no one cares about Stock/Pure Android
If you're on XDA anyway might as well flash Pixel Experience and keep on keeping on. I dont know about the ins and outs of making an Android One device, but it would probably involve licensing with Google, and actually not that many people dislike MIUI as you might think. 100K downloads on PE means nothing compares to the total amount of users that didnt even bother to change away from MIUI, or changing ROMs at all

Doogee phones highly likely to have backdoor and other security risks?

I'm looking for a thermal camera and after looking at the specs for the V20 Pro, I started to wonder if it could actually be my daily driver phone as well. But I'm very concerned that it's full of state sponsored software and will send a lot of my data back to it's mothership. The major brands of phones are very limited in styles and capabilities. But the alternative appears to be untenable for a different reason.
Thoughts?

Welcome to XDA.
Chinese phones probably come with CCP inside.
There are other options.
The 2 best thermal imaging smartphones you missed in 2023 | OSCAL