“Amazon.com Inc. is working with component suppliers in Asia to test a smartphone, people familiar with the situation said, suggesting that the Internet retail giant, which sells the Kindle Fire tablet computers, is considering broadening its mobile-device offerings,” Lorraine Luk reports for The Wall Street Journal.

“Officials at some of Amazon’s parts suppliers, who declined to be named, said the Seattle-based company is testing a smartphone and mass production of the new device may start late this year or early next year,” Luk reports. “One person said that the screen of Amazon’s smartphone currently being tested measures between four and five inches. Bloomberg last week reported that Amazon was developing a smartphone.”

Luk reports, “In May, people familiar with the matter said Apple’s next iPhone, which is expected to come out later this year, will likely have a screen larger than four inches, compared with the current iPhone’s 3.5-inch display.”

Read more in the full article here.

MacDailyNews Take: Because nothing says “quality user experience” more than a branded smartphone from an online retailer powered by an OS from a search engine/online advertising firm.

What’s next, are McDonald’s and Omnicom going to team up to build nuclear submarines?

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