Amazon is believed to be gearing up to release a smartphone in the second half of this year, according to reports in the Wall Street Journal over the weekend.
According to the Wall Street Journal’s sources, the tech and online retail giant is believed to have demonstrated prototype handsets to developers in recent weeks both in San Francisco and at its Seattle headquarters
At this stage, the company hopes to put the device into mass production later this month, with an official announcement planned by the end of June, ahead of a September launch.
A key feature of the new device is said to be a 3D screen that doesn’t require special glasses, a feature the company hopes will differentiate its device from competitors, including Apple and Samsung.
The device also uses retina-tracking technology through the use of four front-facing cameras.
The sources also claim Amazon has lined up two display suppliers, including Japan Display Inc, with an initial run of 600,000 devices planned.
This isn’t the first time reports have surfaced claiming Amazon is working on a smartphone with reports back in November 2012 that Foxconn had landed contracts to build smartphones for Microsoft and Amazon, which were expected to launch in the middle of 2013
Andrew Sadauskas is a former journalist at SmartCompany and a former editor of TechCompany.
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