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This week Amazon announced its newest device: the Fire Phone. To compete with iPhone and Android phones, Amazon needs to bring exciting innovations. Based on Amazon’s announcements on Wednesday, the Fire phone will be worthy of your consideration.
Earlier this month, Amazon enticed us with this YouTube video showing people’s reactions to seeing something new from Amazon:
http://youtu.be/erUZQ9GK0sE
The video didn’t even reveal that the object of amazement was a phone but on Wednesday Amazon showed the world what was wowing people in the video: the Fire Phone. The company’s first phone is filled with features that make it unique. But will the Fire Phone have enough to compete with the iPhone and Samsung Galaxy phones that dominate the smartphone market?
Hardware
The Fire Phone comes with advanced hardware under the hood, including a 2.2 GHz quad-core Snapdragon 800 processor and 2GB of RAM, as well as a 4.7-inch Gorilla Glass display with an HD-resolution screen.
According to Amazon the battery life is up to:
- 285 hours of standby time
- 22 hours of talk time
- 65 hours of audio playback
- 11 hours of video playback
3D Effect/Dynamic Perspective
One of the more unusual features of the Fire Phone is Dynamic Perspective, which gives you a 3D-type visual effect without the need for glasses. Your perspective of the screen display changes as you move the phone, which is what wowed the people in the teaser Amazon video.
Dynamic Perspective gives added dimension to maps and games, making you feel as if you’re part of what’s on screen. The phone has four front cameras to follow your head as it moves so you get the proper view as you’re looking at the phone.
One-Handed Navigation
The Dynamic Perspective feature also affects the way you interact with the phone. Flip your phone with a flick of the wrist to navigate between screens. Give your thumb a rest and just tilt your phone to move to the next screen or scroll down farther.
Camera
The Fire Phone comes with a 13 mp camera, complete with optical image stabilization. Both the front and rear cameras can shoot HD video. A physical camera button can launch the camera even when the phone is off, making it easier for you to capture shots quickly.
Storing your photos will also be easier with the Fire phone. Photos taken with the phone can be automatically upload to Amazon Cloud storage and there’s no limit on the number of photos you can store there. Photos are stored in full resolution without compression.
Firefly
A source of instant information and shopping potential, Firefly is a feature that enables the phone to recognize 100 million items with the touch of a button on the left side of the phone. Point the phone and press the button to find out about songs, movies, TV shows, products, artwork, email addresses, websites and more.
Firefly takes impulse shopping to a new level. If the item is available at Amazon, the page will open and you can add it to your cart.
But Firefly isn’t only about shopping, it’s also about learning. If the item isn’t available from Amazon, such as artwork in a museum, a Wikipedia page will open so you can learn more about it. For TV shows and movies, Firefly uses Amazon’s X-Ray technology to open the IMDB page to give you more information.
Mayday Button
First introduced in the Kindle Fire HDX tablet last fall, the Mayday button gives instant video customer service at the tap of a button. Fire phones will have the Mayday button so you can get help 24/7/365 in figuring out all of the features of the phone.
Apps
The Fire Phone will run Fire OS 3.5.0, a customized operating system based on Android that Amazon developed specifically for the Fire phone. This operating system is closely related to that on the Kindle Fire tablet and will enable you to use special features including:
Amazon’s Appstore has 240,000 apps which will run on the Fire phone, three times as many as a year ago.
Availability
The Fire phone will be available exclusively on AT&T in the US, beginning on July 25. You can pre-order the phone from the Amazon Fire Phone page now.
Prices for the phone:
- 32 GB $649 or $199 with a 2-year contract
- 64 GB $749 or $299 with a 2-year contract
Included with the purchase of the Fire Phone for a limited time is a free year of Amazon Prime, which saves you $99. Existing Amazon Prime members get a free one-year extension of their membership.
See, Is Amazon Prime Worth $99 for You? Here’s How to Decide!
Your Thoughts
What do you think of Amazon’s Fire Phone? Which features are the most exciting for you? Would you be tempted to switch from your phone and/or your carrier? Let us know in the Comments section below!
Hi Carolyn
Thanks for sharing one of the most comprehensive review on Amazon Fire Phone that poses a big challenge to its peer products because of its more than several features and most importantly its ease in using it.
For me battery timing is one of the important factor before buying an iphone. Its battery timing for video playing is 11 hours and for talk time 22 hours which itself is proof of the fact that it is far better than other contemporary products in the market.
Thanks again for this awesome review and have a great weekend.
Hello Mi, You’re right, when a phone has advanced features, they can’t be put to good use unless the battery is strong. Who cares what a phone can do if it’s dead by noon? I’m glad that Amazon put a strong battery in this phone to power these features that probably need a lot of juice.
Thanks Carolyn for another unbiased product review.
Every new phone has a handful of new features – in this case the 3D effect, Mayday button, etc. In spite of those advancements it’s going to be awfully hard for Amazon to break the grip of Android/Apple in the smartphone arena. A newcomer has a tough uphill battle. Most people were betting Amazon would do what they did with the Kindle Fire tablet – sell it at cost and make money on Amazon store sales – but they didn’t. Without that price advantage and lacking the ability to download apps from the Android Play store, most people aren’t going to want to jump in very soon.
Regarding the motion navigation feature, I’m not sure how users will avoid accidental movements that will trigger screen swaps, etc. Also Apple introduced a 3D effect with iOS 7 that I and many other users immediately turned off because it drained battery life and was mostly cosmetic.
It was just last year that Facebook tried to get into the market by selling a phone that would cause users to be immersed in the Facebook ecosystem. They gave up after only a couple of months. Amazon wants to do the same thing and the question is are there enough people who really want an easier way to buy Amazon products and open up even more of their lives and habits to the company to sustain the business.
Time will tell.
Hi Gary, You’re right, Amazon is facing an enormous challenge in competing against Apple and Android in this market. Many people did speculate that Amazon would offer a phone with more basic features at cost, as they did with the first Kindle Fire tablet.
Instead, Amazon is offering a more deluxe phone with innovative features at a somewhat higher price, but less than an iPhone. Perhaps they learned from the Facebook phone that people want a phone with advanced hardware and features.
I predict that the true killer feature of the Fire phone will be the Mayday button. Can’t figure out how to attach a photo to an email? Ask the Mayday operator. Need a recommendation for the best weather app? Call on Mayday for their suggestion. People who use Mayday get spoiled quickly and soon will have a hard time imagining using a phone without Mayday.
Excellent point about Dynamic Perspective. That feature does remind me of the Parallax view of iOS 7 that many people with motion sickness turned off. Parallax also caused a battery drain for some iPhones which caused others to disable the feature.
I’m not sure whether Amazon will allow Dynamic Perspective to be disabled or whether it will be so ingrained in the OS that it’s necessary for games, maps, etc. People who have motion sickness may want to try out the phone first to see if Dynamic Perspective affects them. I have motion sickness (can’t read in a moving car), but was never bothered by Parallax.
Judging by the conversation here and on social media, I would say that there is much excitement about the Fire Phone. The test will be when it’s launched in July whether sales will match the buzz that the phone is generating. Restricting the phone to a single carrier may dampen sales in spite of the eager anticipation that Amazon has created.
Good summary of all the features Carolyn.
If you’ll allow and including this isn’t against your commenting policy, you might be interested in my alternate view of the device; it might open up some healthy debate…
https://medium.com/@therealsjr/5-reasons-i-wont-be-buying-amazons-fire-phone-cf4a048d18b
Hi Stewart, Welcome to The Wonder of Tech! Absolutely, opposing points of view are always welcome here. I appreciate you including the link to your fascinating article about why you won’t be buying the Fire phone.
As a former UK resident, I understand your frustration about delayed launches of tech there. I remember waiting patiently for months to get an iPad in the UK, well after it was sold in the US.
On the other hand, the UK has much more competition between mobile phone carriers so your plans are generally much more generous and lower cost than ours in the US. Unlimited data plans are hard to find here in the US, and the major carriers tend to charge higher rates for less service than UK cell phone carriers. But our US plans cover a much larger geographic region than the UK so we can travel farther without incurring international charges.
When and if Amazon makes the Fire Phone available in other countries and other carriers, the sales will probably increase significantly. I’m wondering if Amazon actually wanted to limit early sales so that the Mayday operators weren’t overwhelmed by calls and so Amazon could keep its record of 10 second responses in tact.
You’re right about the limitations of the Appstore and of the Fire OS vs. Google Play and pure Android. Dynamic Perspective may be very cool to many people but the charm may wear off if developers don’t incorporate the feature into their apps.
Amazon claims that Firefly can recognize 100 million objects, which may surpass Google Goggles. According to Google Goggles, the service doesn’t do so well with: Animals
Plants
Cars
Furniture
Apparel
Even if you don’t want to buy something, you can find out a lot of information from an Amazon sales page, including the customer reviews. And, if you don’t want to use Firefly, you don’t have to.
My prediction is that the killer feature of the Fire Phone will be Mayday. People who want help with tech questions can get instant video help so they never have to be stumped trying to figure out anything on their phone. I imagine that level of customer service will be extremely addictive so that Fire Phone fans will soon wonder why anyone uses a phone without Mayday.
People who are tech experts or who enjoy figuring out features for themselves may not appreciate the power of instant live customer support but I’m guessing that many people will quickly be spoiled by Mayday.
Time will tell whether the Fire Phone is a hit or miss for Amazon, but I do think the phone has potential to be a hit. In any event, competition is good for consumers, so it’s great to see another dog in the race.
I am intrigued by it and if it was an Android I might even try it but since it is not it becomes a much bigger decision.
The dynamic perspective is very interesting to me and I like the Firefly feature too.
Hello Jack, Well, technically the Fire Phone does run on Android, but with the Fire OS skin on top of it. You are limited to the Amazon Appstore, but Amazon Appstore apps run on Android phones.
If you invest in Amazon Appstore apps and then go back to a pure Android phone, you can still use all of those apps.
Very intrigued Carolyn! I received an email from Amazon about the phone and instantly clicked over to check it out. Sounds like some really great features!
Hi Bren, Yes, there was a lot of excitement in the tech world prior to Amazon’s announcement and now that we know all about the Fire Phone the excitement is continuing. I look forward to trying out the phone to see these features in action. I’m glad you’re excited too!
Hello Carolyn,
Thanks for sharing this well explained article about Amazon’s Fire phone.
Firefly phone really gotta stunning features.. Now firefly buyers can say.. “My smartphone is more smart than your smartphone” 😉
Hi Suraj, Great point! Between Firefly recognizing 100 million objects and the Mayday operator giving instant customer service, the Fire Phone may be the smartest smartphone ever!
Hi Carolyn,
This seems to have good specification. Whether it sells depends on the price! The main problems with my phone are processor speed and battery life. As a phone though it works great. I don’t often use apps. I did add Spotify the other night. It played the playlist at random which was annoying, but gave me some free music!
Hi Mike, Yes, as the Fire Phone hasn’t been announced for the UK yet, we don’t know what the price of the phone will be there. Here it’s less than the iPhone but more than some Android phones.
The processor speed and the battery life of the Fire Phone are impressive. Because the Fire Phone comes with a free one-year Prime membership, it will also come with Amazon Prime Music which is an unlimited, ad-free streaming service.
I would love to check out this phone, but we’re on Sprint and can’t change to AT&T. I imagine that this phone won’t be available on other carriers for several years. Maybe I’ll get the second or third version once it moves to the other carriers.
I, too, like the long battery life more than anything. But we’ll see if the other features are worth it.
It’s interesting because Apple did the same with the iPhone and I never got one on AT&T…then by the time it was available I was so used to my Android Samsung phones that I didn’t want to change and didn’t see a big enough need to change. This may end up being the same way. Depends how long it’s tied to AT&T exclusively.
Interesting perspective. Thanks for sharing, because I hadn’t watched or read about the launch though I knew it was happening.
Hi Steve, You’re right, Amazon will probably have limited sales of the Fire Phone because of its exclusivity with AT&T. Apple didn’t bring AT&T to other carriers for years, but enough people wanted the iPhone that they were willing to switch carriers. That probably won’t happen with a lot of people initially with the Fire Phone because there are so many other smartphone choices now.
My guess is that the exclusivity with AT&T will only be for a short time, perhaps six months. Amazon probably wants to be sure the Mayday service is fully staffed so a slower rollout will ensure that its response time stays at around 10 seconds. Over the next year, Amazon can roll the phone out to more carriers and more countries while providing the customer support for the phone.
Hello Carolyn
Firstly thanks for explaining about Amazon Fire Phone so well.., Good features Fire phone is having, i think now i should replace my phone 🙂
Hi Rahul, Thank you for your kind words. I hope you enjoy your Fire Phone!
Hi Carolyn,
I read about this phone, and I must admit it carries some brilliant features which are not available in any other phone. If this smartphone comes to India, I’ll certainly buy it.
Hi Pankaj, Yes, the Fire Phone has some very exciting features. I hope it is launched in India soon!
Seems like amazon fire phone is trending now and I’ve already checked its reviews from other sites but learned some more additional things about it.
Thanks
Hi Carolyn,
Really great article!!!
Truly very informative article and very good feature in this phone. I am also playing games and this phone best for me.
Thanks for sharing have a good day
keep posting 🙂
Hi SmithLopez, I’m glad you enjoyed this article. I hope you enjoy the Fire Phone too!