Essential camera

The Essential 360 Camera is one of the marquee accessories for Andy Rubin's expandable Essential Phone PH-1. It's a small 360-degree camera that snaps onto the back of the PH-1 magnetically, adding spherical video and imaging capability to the handset. There are some things to like about it—stitching is done in real-time and is, for the most part, done well. But because it only works when attached to the phone, it's almost purely for selfie shots. If that's your thing, it's a solid, reasonably priced add-on. But if you want a more versatile camera that can be used without a phone nearby, the 2017 edition of the Samsung Gear 360 is our Editors' Choice.