Is Amazon's new mobile a game-changer?

Simon Leps, CEO of Fontera Digital Works, believes that the online retail giant may experience difficulty switching loyal Apple and Samsung users to use the Fire phone.

"Amazon is entering a fairly mature market against two behemoth market leaders with a product that is almost the same as the incumbents, but at the same price, with a new and untested operating system."

Leps says that the difference is that the Amazon Fire does not have the same brand cache as Apple or Samsung smartphones, which are established phones at the very top end of the market with huge followings, thereby guaranteeing the sales of millions of each model when launched.

Features

He says that the Fire phone has a few great features such as 3D display, a new multi camera system, 32 gig storage and good incentives, including a free year of Amazon Prime, which offers multiple shipping benefits. The key selling point of the phone is the Firefly feature, which is likely to spur on impulse shopping and in-turn increase online retail shopping.

This feature allows users to identify products by scanning barcodes using the camera phone and then buying the item on Amazon. The Firefly feature also includes audio recognition which identifies songs and allows the user to purchase it, much like the popular apps Shazam or Soundhound.

"In my opinion, if the 3D display or Firefly feature is meant to be the incentive to switch Apple and Samsung users to Amazon, it just won't cut it."