Amazon continues to innovate at the convergence of consumer devices and shopping. The online megastore made big news this week when it threw its hat into the smartphone race. While Amazon is a late entry into the category, the new device plays into its biggest strength: shopping.
The phone’s special feature is an app called Firefly. Firefly is a simple way to scan anything around you in the world—physical objects, shows on your TV screen, music playing at the coffee shop, etc.—and Amazon will tell you what you just saw or heard. This will provide users with everything from IMDB.com data for TV shows to album titles for music. Of course, it will also offer users the ability to purchase whatever they scan from Amazon.com. Firefly is so integral to Amazon’s new phone that there is a special button located on the side dedicated to activating this feature. Has Amazon just armed shoppers with the ultimate showrooming tool? Does its new world-scanning device remove the only remaining barriers for shoppers to use their smartphones to buy virtually everything?
Image Source: CBS News
