Amazon Launches Game Center Competitor for Kindle Fire, Testing 4-5 Inch Smartphone Displays
Amazon today announced the launch of its new "GameCircle" feature for the Kindle Fire tablet, a set of tools similar to Apple's Game Center that will allow users to chart achievements, compete with others via leaderboards, and sync game progress across devices via the cloud.
GameCircle will make achievements, leaderboards and sync APIs accessible, simple and quick for you to integrate, and will give gamers a more seamless and entertaining in-game experience.
Amazon's GameCircle appears to lack the social aspects in Game Center such as specifying groups of friends and initiating head-to-head gameplay, but its core features are otherwise very similar to what is offered in Game Center while folding in cross-device syncing that some iOS developers have embraced via iCloud.
Meanwhile,
MarketWatch provides a bit more color on Amazon's rumored
smartphone project, noting that the company is currently testing prototypes with displays in the range of four to five inches.
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. [...]
One person said that the screen of Amazon's smartphone currently being tested measures between four and five inches.
As screen sizes on Android phones have increased to beyond four inches, Apple is also said to be planning a boost for the iPhone's screen that has measured 3.5 inches diagonally since the device's launch in 2007. The next-generation iPhone is said to include a screen of approximately 4 inches, with rumors suggesting that Apple will increase the height of the screen while maintain the current width.
Popular Stories
Multiple rumors have suggested that the next-generation iPhone 15 models will adopt the Wi-Fi 6E standard that Apple has already introduced in the iPad Pro and MacBook Pro, and now a leaked document appears to confirm Apple's plans.
Sourced from researcher and Apple leaker Unknownz21 (@URedditor), the document features diagrams of the iPhone 15's antenna architecture. D8x refers to the...
Apple's next-generation iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max are expected to be announced in September as usual. Already, rumors suggest the devices will have at least eight exclusive features not available on the standard iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus.
An overview of the eight features rumored to be exclusive to iPhone 15 Pro models:A17 chip: iPhone 15 Pro models will be equipped with an A17...
Following last week's hardware announcements, this week saw the actual release of several of the new products as well as operating system updates bringing new features and bug fixes across Apple's platforms.
This week also saw some fresh rumors about the iPhone 15 lineup and Apple's upcoming AR/VR headset, while we shared some tips to help you get the most of your macOS experience, so read...
In June 2022, Apple previewed the next generation of CarPlay, promising deeper integration with vehicle functions like A/C and FM radio, support for multiple displays across the dashboard, personalization options, and more.
Apple says the first vehicles with support for the next-generation CarPlay experience will be announced in late 2023, with committed automakers including Acura, Audi,...
New 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models with the latest M2 Pro and M2 Max chips are available in Apple retail stores and are already in the hands of customers, and we picked up one of the new M2 Max machines to answer all of the questions MacRumors readers considering a purchase might have.
Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Yesterday, we asked MacRumors fans on...
The upcoming iPhone 15 models that are set to be introduced later in 2023 will adopt the Wi-Fi 6E standard, according to Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. In a note about Apple's work on a Wi-Fi chip, Kuo said that the company will upgrade the iPhone 15 to Wi-Fi 6E.
Apple is already using Wi-Fi 6E for the 11 and 12.9-inch iPad Pro models introduced last year, along with the new Mac mini and...
The iPhone 15 will support Wi-Fi 6E, according to a research note shared this week by Barclays analysts Blayne Curtis and Tom O'Malley. The analysts did not specify whether the feature will be available on all models or limited to the Pro models.
Apple has added Wi-Fi 6E support to a handful of devices so far, including the latest 11-inch and 12.9-inch iPad Pro, 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook...
Top Rated Comments
Where do you think GameCenter comes from? Have a look at Steam, Xbox Live, PSN.
btw i dont think ive opened GameCenter since iOS 4.0 ^^
-100 :p
I don't know the excuse or reason for it, but I can tell you the advantage: I can say you all stink, Apple products are overpriced copies of others' ideas (well-made, albeit), and that Steve Jobs was SO overrated as a tech-guru or genius or as an innovator, and my ego won't be affected by those downvotes...
:)