Essential, led by Android co-founder Andy Rubin, on Wednesday, showcased prototypes of what could be the next design standard for phones. Dubbed as GEM, these smartphones have a unique slender design. The screen is rather tall than wide, almost half of the width of current brick-like large screen phones.
The phones are seen with new UI optimized to make most of the new full screen. The UI gives access to multiple apps simultaneously. The screen design allows bigger real estate to these multi-tasking applications.
Another hardware innovation is the floating color design. Called ColorShift, the rear panel changes colors when you look at it from different angles. The panel is quite different from the usual reflective panels we see on some of the premium and mid-range smartphones. There’s a cut out for camera on the top left corner but that’s pretty much similar to several punch-hole camera designs.
Essential is expected to reveal more information about its prototype in the coming weeks. The company said it had “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.”
Even as Essential’s new phone is far away from an official launch, but the new prototypes are certainly unique. The industry is likely to give a good look at the feasibility of the design. It may be recalled Essential was the first company to launch a notched Essential Phone, long before Apple iPhone X made the design mainstream.
