Amazon's Fire Phone has had a tough year. Amazon's venture into the smartphone business has led to little more than disappointing sales and a reported cache of unsold Fire Phones worth $83 million. Amazon isn't giving up on the Fire Phone, though, and it looks like they're now priced to go. An off-contract Fire Phone is currently sitting at just $199 on Amazon.
It's Been Rough, But Amazon Isn't Giving Up On The Fire Phone
One of the reasons that the Fire Phone didn't sell at first – at least, according to Amazon itself – is that it was priced too high. It was just as expensive as its competitors, competitors who already had plenty of smartphone experience and existing market share. Earlier this year, Amazon cut down the Fire Phone's original $649 off-contract price tag to $449. Now, an unlocked Amazon Fire costs just as much as a normal on-contract smartphone. If this doesn't move phones, then Amazon will know that it's not just the price that's holding the Fire Phone back.
To make the deal even sweeter, the purchase of a Fire Phone even comes with a year of Amazon Prime, a $99 value. When all is said and done, you're looking at a decent smartphone, totally unlocked, with an effective cost of $100. No matter where your mobile loyalties lie, that's a pretty enticing offer.
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The Fire Phone has faced a couple of other problems in its lifespan, though some have since been fixed by software patches. One of the most obvious issues with the phone is its lack of app support. Fire Phone owners need to deal with Amazon's own app store for their app needs, and, quite frankly, there's little existing incentive for mobile developers to put the time into ports for Amazon phones. If they can reach the wide majority of the mobile market by developing for just iOS and Android, there's little incentive for them to spend the development resources investing in a version for Fire Phones. Granted, most of the big-name apps already do support the Fire Phone, but finding support from smaller developers is still tricky.
(Thanks, 9to5Google)
