Amazon, as per a new report from Gadget 360 (citing two sources) is apparently working on a new smartphone line currently codenamed “Ice.” Now, this is not the first time we are seeing Amazon trying its luck with smartphones.
In fact, back in 2014, the company had actually launched a smartphone called Fire Phone which failed miserably due to a multitude of reasons. It, however, seems like Amazon doesn’t want to give up on smartphones just yet.
The new “Ice” line is expected to offer full support to Google’s services and apps — something the Fire Phone lacked — such as Gmail, Google Play Store, and the like.
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One of the Gadget 360’s sources alleges to have used the upcoming Ice phone. The source claims that the smartphone doesn’t come pre-installed with Alexa (Amazon’s AI-based digital assistant) which is a bit odd considering the fact that Amazon would get access to huge amounts of data which could help it improve its assistant.
The source, however, notes that the smartphone could get Alexa-integration at a later point, perhaps before the official launch.
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When it comes to the specs sheet, the Ice is expected to feature a display that’s between 5.2-inch and 5.5-inch in size, Snapdragon 435 chipset, 2GB of RAM, 16GB of onboard storage, and a 13MP camera and fingerprint scanner on the back.
It is expected to boot Android 7.1.1 Nougat when it’s launched and will apparently be priced around USD 93 (approximately Rs. 6,000).
The Gadget 360 report further revealed that the company is targeting emerging markets such as India and that it would launch at least one handset in the country by the end of 2017.
Source: Gadgets 360
