Latest Podcast



Featured Articles

Wednesday, June 18, 2014

Amazon announces its Fire smartphone

Online retailer Amazon has announced its first smartphone. The new device is simply known as Fire - the same branding used to differentiate the company’s multimedia tablets from its eBook readers - and will launch next week on the AT&T network in the USA.

Fire will run Amazon’s own version of Android on a quad-core 2.2 GHz processor. It offers a 4.7-inch HD display, a 13 megapixel rear-facing camera, a 2.1 megapixel front-facing camera, 4G connectivity and stereo speakers with Dolby Digital Plus virtual surround sound.

Image

There are four cameras and four infrared LEDs built into the front of the Fire phone to offer 3D effects on some applications and the User Interface. It means the handset can respond to movements of the user’s head as well as their hands; this ‘Dynamic Perspective’ enables shoppers to look more closely at certain products and to play games that adjust the character’s viewpoint when the user looks round obstacles. It’s also possible to operate some features - such as scrolling online or turning eBook pages - by tilting the phone.

In addition, a new ‘Firefly’ feature can recognise products, music, films and text via the phone’s camera and microphone - making it easier to buy via Amazon’s web service.

Jeff Bezos, the founder and CEO of Amazon.com, said “Fire Phone puts everything you love about Amazon in the palm of your hand - instant access to Amazon’s vast content ecosystem and exclusive features like the Mayday button, ASAP [Advanced Streaming and Prediction], Second Screen, X-Ray, free unlimited photo storage, and more. The Firefly button lets you identify printed web and email addresses, phone numbers, QR and bar codes, artwork, and over 100 million items, including songs, movies, TV shows, and products - and take action in seconds. We invented a new sensor system called Dynamic Perspective that recognizes where a user’s head is relative to the device - we use it to offer customers a more immersive experience, one-handed navigation, and gestures that actually work. And this is only the beginning - the most powerful inventions are the ones that empower others to unleash their creativity - that’s why today we are launching the Dynamic Perspective SDK and the Firefly SDK - we can’t wait to see how developers surprise us.”

US pricing is $649 (£382) SIM-free for the version with 32GB memory (a 64GB model is also available) or from $199 (£117) with a two-year contract. There's currently no availability in other countries.

Print
Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Rate this article:
No rating

Leave a comment

This form collects your name, email, IP address and content so that we can keep track of the comments placed on the website. For more info check our Privacy Policy and Terms Of Use where you will get more info on where, how and why we store your data.
Add comment

Opinion Articles

How AI technology is transforming the smartphone experience

How AI technology is transforming the smartphone experience

From improved performance to personalized recommendations, AI is enhancing the functionality and usability of smartphones for users

By incorporating advanced algorithms and machine learning capabilities, AI can help to optimize a smartphone's performance, providing users with a faster, more efficient and user-friendly experience.
Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating
Whatever happened to all my tech?

Whatever happened to all my tech?

Mark Bridge revisits his mobile technology reviews

Mark Bridge writes:

I've been taking a look back at the devices I've written about during the past few years. Some are still faithful companions, others... well, let's just say my faith was misplaced.
Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

Predictions for 2016: Network Function Virtualisation, 4G throttling and video calling

Mark Windle, head of marketing at OpenCloud, predicts that this year’s reduction in the number of traditional telecoms operators in some countries will provide an opportunity for other operators to innovate and capture market share in 2016.

He says next year will be a year of rapid change for telecoms… whether it’s MVNO disruption, competitive tariff pricing or simply defence from the ‘dark art’ of hacking.

Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating
Kapture review: the audio-recording wristband

Kapture review: the audio-recording wristband

A 'recording watch' that links to your smartphone

Mark Bridge writes:

The most memorable moments in life often go unrecorded. You don't have your camera in your hands. Your finger is still hovering over the 'pause' button on your audio recorder. Or you were simply too busy experiencing whatever was happening. It's all about the one that got away.

That's where Kapture can help.

Author: The Fonecast
4 Comments
Article rating: 4.0
Making mobile websites work better

Making mobile websites work better

Device detection and responsive design explained

Mark Bridge writes:

James Rosewell shows me a colourful roll of paper that's the width of an iPhone but well over three metres long. When I look closer, I can see it's a printed copy of the Wall Street Journal's mobile website. That's a lot of scrolling to do... and a pretty unfriendly user experience for anyone reading the news online. Why does it work so badly?

Author: The Fonecast
1 Comments
Article rating: 4.0
RSS
1345678910Last

Recent Podcasts

From higher licence fees to lower roaming charges... and much more mobile industry news

Podcast - 16th October 2013

Product news in today's podcast includes Samsung's curved-screen smartphone, an HTC phablet and an update for Windows Phone 8.

We're also talking about malware, roaming charges, Ofcom's licence fees, a drop in mobile revenue, BT's MVNO and a project that sounds... well... silly.

Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

The ups and downs of the mobile telecoms industry

Podcast - 9th October 2013

In today's podcast: Samsung's profit, UK mobile ad spending and Vertu's smartphone range are all increasing.

Meanwhile HTC's profit and the proportion of children with mobile phones are both going down. Discover the background to these news stories - and plenty more - in our regular weekly broadcast.

Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

Accidental app purchases, increasing in-train coverage, Amazon announcements and much more

Podcast - 2nd October 2013

Today's podcast starts with a gentle warning to app developers from the Office of Fair Trading.

We then move on to Amazon's new tablets, HTC's sale of its Beats Electronics stake, Twitter's emergency alerts, UK government plans to improve mobile broadband on trains, customer complaints and the growth in adult content for mobile devices.

Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

The future of ring-back tones: we talk to Florent Stroppa of OnMobile

Podcast - 27th September 2013

Ring-back tones offers consumers yet another way to customise their mobile phone service. Yet despite this - and the revenue opportunities that can be generated - many network operators don't provide ring-back tones.

In today's special feature we talk to Florent Stroppa of OnMobile to discover why the UK doesn't really seem to be bothered about ring-back tones... and whether the next-generation of interactive ring-back services could change this.

Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

Two tablets for Microsoft, one tablet for Tesco... and a headache for BlackBerry

Podcast - 25th September 2013

There are big changes on the horizon at BlackBerry. We talk about the company's potential future and also look at the recent tablet announcements from Microsoft and Tesco... plus the rest of the week's mobile news.

There's also a special report from IAB2013 about the sometimes awkward relationship between mobile devices and the television industry.

Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating
RSS
First1213141517192021Last

Follow thefonecast.com

Twitter @TheFonecast RSS podcast feed
Find us on Facebook Subscribe free via iTunes

Archive Calendar

«December 2024»
MonTueWedThuFriSatSun
2526272829301
2345678
9101112131415
16171819202122
23242526272829
303112345

Archive

Terms Of Use | Privacy Statement