Amazon created some buzz on Wednesday afternoon when it posted a tweet inviting people to join Amazon’s founder Jeff Bezos for a launch event on June 18. An accompanying link takes visitors to a page where they can fill out a form providing the company with information about why they want to attend the launch event. The invitation form asks if the requestor is an Amazon customer, a developer or a journalist.
There is speculation that Amazon will launch a smartphone with the ability to display images in three dimensions (no 3D glasses required). The form that developers fill out provides some hints by asking the following questions:
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- Describe an innovative way in which you have used gyroscopes, accelerometers, or other device sensors in your app development.
- Are you interested in developing apps utilizing a new type of sensor?
- Do you have machine learning experience? Please describe.
Customers and developers also have the option of submitting a 30-second video explaining why they would like to attend.
The Amazon teaser video on the invitation request page features people looking down (as if holding a device) and moving their bodies, and saying, “it moves with me,” and, “I’ve never seen anything like this.” A big mystery is why the people featured in the video are moving their bodies rather than the device. Indeed, a post from Boy Genius Report in April explains the device features gesture controls. BGR reported:
“By tilting the handset in different directions while the device is in use, Amazon’s interface will display additional information on the screen without the user having to touch or tap anything. This will not only be a point of differentiation for the company’s phone lineup, but also a way for larger devices such as Amazon’s upcoming 4.7-inch flagship phone to be operated more comfortably with one hand.”
Want to dig even deeper into BGR’s report on the supposed Amazon smartphone? See this BGR post, also from April.
If you’ve got the time to travel to Seattle on June 18th, request an invitation on the Amazon launch event page, and let us know if you’re invited to attend.
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