If you're not interested in iPhones, not awed by Android and not wowed by Windows, there's a new competitor in the smartphone market that you might be interested in.
Amazon makes a big deal about a few cool features on its new phone. It has a screen with a 3-D image on the lock screen. Tilt the phone up, and you'll see the animated screen from different angles. It is, like the commercials show, way cool.
There aren't a lot of games that can use the feature, but the few that do, like Saber's Edge are pretty awesome.
Amazon is all about media with the Fire. Heavily integrated with Amazon, all of the media content you've purchased is loaded onto the device automatically.
The screen is slightly smaller than a Galaxy S5, and it is beautiful. Like most smartphones, the makers put an emphasis on how the phone looks and the size of the screen.
It is an Android phone, but you can't download all Android apps. Amazon offers its own apps, and not nearly as many. Apps by Google, such as Maps and Gmail, aren't available for the Fire. There's Facebook and some Twitter apps, but even the YouTube app is something called V-Tube.
Navigating around the Fire takes some time getting used to. It took me a while to figure out when to swipe, when to tilt and when to hit the home button. But it does have a home button, something many Android phones are missing.
The battery didn't last all day like a Galaxy S5 or iPhone does.
Is it a competitor to the iPhone and Androids? I'd say no. To be honest, the Fire phone is a lot like Amazon's Fire tablets -- you just get to make calls with it.
The new Fire is only available on the AT&T network, and it's more expensive than other smartphones -- $200 with a two-year agreement.
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