Smartphones are an increasingly lucrative industry, with many companies embracing mobile technologies through Bring Your Own Device initiatives and app developers creating robust software for cellphone owners. However, Amazon is now entering the foray to compete head on with smartphone juggernauts Apple and Google. Early in May 2013, Amazon announced their intentions to create a new 3D smartphone that can be controlled by users’ eye motions.
Since this technology is still in its very early stages of development, it’s hard to pinpoint exactly what this new phone will be capable of. However, if we can make any predictions based off of their Kindle devices, phone users may see a very different approach to phone sales than what tradition has taught us. Take a look at these four ways Amazon’s 3D phone announcement may change the cellular playing field.
1. Innovation
Smartphone releases in the past few years have followed fairly predictable upgrade patters, with processors getting faster, hard drive capacity growing, and two-dimensional screens becoming crisper with higher resolutions. However, no mobile device has been able to provide a 3D experience without the assistance of glasses.
Amazon claims that their new technology will form a 3D image above their screens, allowing it to hover in the air for users to examine a display from all angles. If this technology is easy to maintain and accessible to a large consumer base, then we can expect Amazon’s work to generate further buzz.
2. UI
Another major point of Amazon’s announcement is the possibility of interfacing with a phone by using mere eye motions. For example, users may be able to scroll through content by guiding their gaze across the screen. This takes hands-free interfacing to an entirely new level. Users may be able to partner this technology up with spoken commands to interact with their technology without any touch. This expands the horizons for users with disabilities, who may not be able to use a traditional touch screen, but may be able to control a phone with their eyes.
3. Price point
Historically, Amazon has challenged major tablet companies with their appealingly low price points. They have targeted Apple’s iPad directly on their homepage, comparing the specs and price points of the iPad to the Kindle and questioning Apple’s higher costs. For students, low-income families, and others operating on a tight budget, the Kindle can be an appealing entryway into tablet technology.
4. Product potential
If 3D displays are released by Amazon and are well received, this could open up integration of 3D graphics in other smartphones. There have been over 210 million smartphones sold worldwide in the first quarter of 2013, and industry experts anticipate that these numbers will rise. App developers, mobile marketing companies, and consumers will benefit from a low-priced, 3D smartphone release from Amazon. These innovative predictions may boost Amazon’s role in our technological future.