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There Aren't a Lot of Reasons to Get Excited About a New Amazon Smartphone

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decade after bailing on the dismal Fire Phone, Amazon is giving the smartphone a second try. Reuters reports that Amazon's Devices and Services unit is working on a smartphone—dubbed Transformer—with Amazon's Alexa+ AI assistant and shopping as a major focus of the experience. Details are slim. It's unclear what this smartphone would cost, how much Amazon is spending to develop Transformer, and what operating system it will run. There's no word on when it will launch, and there's still also a chance the project could be scrapped altogether. When reached by WIRED, an Amazon spokesperson said the company doesn't comment on rumors and speculation. Amazon famously launched the Fire Phone in 2014, but it was discontinued shortly after due to a limited app ecosystem and terrible sales. Alongside a gimmicky 3D display, it had an app called Firefly that allowed you to buy things (from Amazon.com, naturally) by pointing the camera at an object.…

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