Rumours have been popping up regarding an Amazon smartphone for some time now but hopefully this one, emanating from multiple sources speaking to the Wall Street Journal (subscription required), should hold some water. Amazon are said to be working on two new smartphone designs one of which sports a glasses-free 3D screen, the other device’s screen is not mentioned therefore suggesting it to be a more conventional display.
The Amazon smartphone with 3D display is said to use eye tracking technology to help it present a holographic 3D image above the screen. That sounds fascinating and I wonder how it compares to devices such as the Nintendo 3DS and how Amazon can sell this 3D holographic ability as a meaningful benefit to end users. Of course Amazon’s business is usually all about selling associated content; as such the company usually sells hardware, at a little over cost price, with which to access its vast content libraries.
Sources speaking to the WSJ also indicated that a further Amazon hardware; a device for streaming music and a set-top box, are in the works. These kinds of devices make sense to take advantage, again, of Amazon’s extensive audio and audio-visual content.
Previous events pointing at Amazon smartphone development
Ten months ago Amazon hired Robert Williams a former Microsoft senior director of Windows Phone business development. More recently Amazon also hired top Windows Phone evangelist Charlie Kindel, who was famous for “trash talking” Android devices to work on an undisclosed project.
According to Amazon’s own Jeff Bezos the company is due to expand its hardware offerings out of the tablet/e-reader sector. In an interview with AllThingsD in September Bezos said of plans to expand device offerings “We will certainly — not any time soon — but next year. We have some more things that we hope people will enjoy”. However at that time he added “It’s premature for me to talk about them.”
