Amazon launches 3D, shopping-ready Fire smartphone

Amazon has introduced its own smartphone, Fire, which will be closely tied to the products and services the e-commerce giant sells. Here's a look at the new device. Seen here are mediapersons waiting at the venue of Amazon's news conference.

Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos introduced the Fire smartphone at a news conference in Seattle on June 18, 2014. Seven years after Apple's iPhone took over the smartphone category, Bezos believes there is room in the market for something different.

The $200 smartphone is equipped with a 3D-capable screen and an ability to recognize music and TV shows, hoping to stand out in a crowded field dominated by Apple Inc and Samsung Electronics.

Bezos shows off the 3D features of the new smartphone. "We wanted to make a device that's great for one person," he said. "It's like a certain person likes chocolate and another person likes vanilla. The customer can choose."

An Amazon representative shows off the 3D map features of the new smartphone. Fire has a slim profile, a sturdy glass touchscreen, minimalist buttons and cameras for facing toward and away from the user.

Fire comes with a 4.7-inch screen, suitable for using with one hand, and earbuds with flat cords and magnets that are designed to eliminate tangles.

The Fire smartphone also comes with 12 months of Amazon Prime, the company's free shipping, video, music and book subscription plan, which normally costs $99 a year.

AT&T Mobility President and CEO Ralph de la Vega (left) talks about the Amazon Fire smartphone as Bezos looks on. The entry-level Fire phone costs $199 with a two-year AT&T contract. But the phone comes with 32 gigabytes of memory, double the standard 16 GB.

The phone's most significant feature, 'Firefly' employs audio and object recognition technology to identify products and present the user with ways to purchase the items through Amazon.

Users can simply snap a photo of a book, for instance, and Firefly will offer up its title and author, give more information about it and provide ways to buy it through Amazon with a single click. The phone will be available from July 25 in the US exclusively through AT&T.