Amazon smartphone screen may measure between 4-5 inches

Afew days ago, it was reported that Amazon may be working on a smartphone that would compete directly with Apple’s iPhone and would run on Google's Android operating system. As per a recent report by The Wall Street Journal, it appears that Amazon is taking these plans forward and is already working with component suppliers in Asia to test a smartphone, and in the process, expand on their mobile device offerings.

Amazon's new phone could measure between 4 to 5-inches The report stated, “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.” Commenting on the size of the new phone's display, the report adds, “One person said the screen of Amazon's smartphone currently being tested measures between four and five inches.” It is expected that Apple will increase the display size of the iPhone from 3.5-inches to 4-inches and if Amazon does launch a handset with a 4-inch screen, it would not only compete with the Apple iPhone but also with the Samsung Galaxy S III and the HTC One X, both of which feature a display measuring over 4.5-inches. “A smartphone from Amazon would spur more competition in the already crowded market. While Apple’s iPhone and Samsung Electronics Co.'s Galaxy handsets continue to dominate the lucrative high-end segment, the overall smartphone market is expanding rapidly with many players offering new models that are diverse in terms of sizes, technological features and prices,” the report reads. Chinese mobile manufacturer Foxconn International Holdings Ltd. is working with Amazon for building this handset and Amazon is seeking to complement the smartphone strategy by acquiring patents that cover wireless technology and would help it defend against allegations of infringement. This is not the first time that Amazon has sought to enter Apple’s market, as last year, the brand successfully launched their Kindle Fire. This tablet was the only tablet that managed to pose a threat to Apple’s dominance in the tablet market. A lot of talk is surrounding the launch of theKindle Fire 2, with reports suggesting that the tablet will have better integrated lighting and more hardware improvements. No details about the processor and the other specs have been revealed yet. When it was first launched, the Kindle Fire was touted by many as the 'iPad Killer', primarily because of the price tag that came attached. The Kindle Fire faced tough competition from the Barnes & Noble Nook tablet, but the competition is going to be even more massive this time if the pricing of the Fire 2 and the Nexus 7 is going to be similar. Amazon may also announce Kindle Touch, which will be at a lower price point. What this means is that ‘low-budget but non-performing’ tablets will soon be phased out as the world shifts focus to good quality products selling at ultra-low prices. 。 wholesale accessories,ipod accessories,ipad accessories,iphone accessories

House GOP Blocking Abortion Access for Raped Soldiers

Republican Senators John McCain, Scott Brown, and Susan Collins all support an effort by Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, a Democrat from New Hampshire, to expand abortion access for military women who are raped. But despite bipartisan support in the Senate, Shaheen's proposal may not make it into the final version of the 2013 defense authorization bill—because House Republicans oppose it. If Shaheen's measure passes, military families will finally have the same access to abortion that other federal employees already receive. Unlike the rest of the federal government, the Department of Defense currently only provides abortion coverage if the life of the mother is at stake. Under current law, if a State Department employee is raped, her government health insurance plan will pay for an abortion if she wants one. But if an Army medic serving in Afghanistan is raped and becomes pregnant, she can't use her military health plan to pay for an abortion. If she does decide to get an abortion, she will have to pay for it with her own money. And if she can't prove she was raped—which is difficult before an investigation is completed—she may have to look for services off base, which can be dangerous or impossible in many parts of the world. "We have more than 200,000 women serving on active duty in our military," Shaheen tellsMother Jones. "They should have the same rights to affordable reproductive health services as all of the civilians who they protect." In late May, the Senate Armed Services Committee approved Shaheen's amendment, attaching it to the 2013 National Defense Authorization Act. McCain, the committee's top Republican, voted in favor, as did Brown and Collins. Shaheen is "hopeful" her proposal has enough support to be included in the final bill. The NDAA still needs a vote on the Senate floor. But for Shaheen's amendment, there's a bigger problem: the Republican-controlled House. "We don't really understand why anybody would oppose [Shaheen's bill]," says Sharon Levin, the director of federal reproductive health policy at the National Women's Law Center. "The only reason it wouldn't go through is if the Republican leadership in the House tried to block it." That appears likely. A GOP staffer "familiar with defense issues" told Army Times last week that the Shaheen amendment "stands little chance of surviving" when the House and Senate meet to work out their differences on the defense bill. "Historically, social provisions that are not reflected in both bills heading into conference don't survive," the staffer said—conceding that the House version of the defense bill will not include anything like Shaheen's proposal. Shaheen says the story of a young woman stationed in Korea who was raped by a fellow soldier demonstrates why this law needs to be changed. The woman's military health insurance wouldn't cover an abortion, and she could not find a safe place to have one off base. In the end, she lost her job, and later had a miscarriage. "This is somebody who wanted to make the military her career, and she was ultimately forced out because of a situation that was not of her making," Shaheen says. "Most of the women affected here are enlisted women who are making about $18,000 a year. They're young, they don't have access to a lot of resources. Many of them are overseas." Current Pentagon policy is more restrictive than the 1976 Hyde Amendment, which prohibits federal funds from being used to provide abortion services except in the case of rape, incest, or if the woman's life is endangered. The DOD enacted its stricter, life-of-the-mother-only limiton abortions in 1979. In 1988, the law was tightened again—Congress now forbids women from using their own money to pay for abortions in military health centers unless they are a victim of rape or incest, or if their life is at risk. The military reported 471 rapes of servicemembers in 2011 alone. The true number is likely far higher—the Pentagon's Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office estimates that only about 13.5 percent of all rapes and sexual assaults in the military are actually reported. The Women's Health and Rights Program at the Center for American Progress estimates thatseveral hundred women in the military become pregnant as a result of rape each year. But despite numerous reform efforts over the past several decades, including failed proposals in 2010 and 2011, the Pentagon's strict anti-abortion policies endure today. Shaheen hopes that this year will be different. The Stand with Servicewomen campaign, organized by retired military men and women in partnership with a coalition of civil and reproductive rights groups, is backing her effort. "When a woman comes in the military comes in the military, she's guaranteed health care," says Col. Elizabeth Fleming, a retired Army veteran who now practices law in Alaska, who was in DC recently to lobby senators on Shaheen's amendment. "If this is excluded, she's not getting it." Another vocal vet is Joellen Oslund, who became the Navy's first woman helicopter pilot in 1974, and in 1993 was one of the first female aviators promoted to the rank of captain. Now retired, she says she hopes that granting access to abortion care for women in the military—at least for victims of rape—will be relatively non-controversial. "We lost these privileges and these rights a little bit at a time, we're going to have to get them back a little bit at a time," Oslund says. "This is the one piece that's probably the least controversial, and helps the most people." wholesale accessories,ipad accessories,ipod accessories,iphone accessories