Amazon Unveils Fire Smartphone at Seattle Press Event
Posted on June 18, 2014
Amazon has unveiled its first smartphone, called Fire. Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos unveiled the phone at a press event in Seattle. The phone has a unique sensor system that lets users use one-handed shortcuts - called tilt, swivel and peek - to access menus and information. Another feature, called Firefly, lets users recognize products by pointing at them with the phone's camera. The product can then be pulled up on Amazon.com.
The 5.5-inch phone has a 4.7-inch HD LCD display with a 1280 x 720 resolution. It is powered by a 2.2Ghz Quad-core Snapdragon 800 CPU and has 2 GB of RAM. The phone weighs 5.64 ounces. The operating system is Fire OS 3.5.0.
Fire's camera for taking photographs in a 13 megapixel rear-facing camera. It features optical image stabilization, a panorama setting, burst capture and a lenticular mode. The capture can capture 1080p video at 30 frames per second. Amazon says the camera can be launched in about one second even when the screen is off by using the phone's dedicated camera button.
The phone features Dolby Digital Audio plus. Amazon says the Dolby technology "auto-adjusts volume, creates virtual surround sound, and delivers easier-to-understand dialogue in movies and TV shows." The phone comes with earphones that have tangle-free cords and magnetic earbuds.
Amazon is offering 12 months of Prime free with purchase of the phone. They are also offering free cloud storage for all photos taken with the phone through the Amazon Cloud Drive. Amazon is offering the phone only through AT&T. It will costs $199 for a 32GB Fire phone with a 2-year contract and $299 for the 64GB. The phone costs $649 for a 32GB and $749 for a 64GB when purchased without a plan. The Fire phonewill begin shipping on July 25, 2014.