Review: Amazon.com Application for BlackBerry
About.com Rating
Amazon started out as a great place to buy books, and has since become ubiquitous with online shopping. You can buy almost anything from groceries to electronics on the site, and that convenience has made Amazon one of the biggest retailers in the world.
That's fine -- as long as you have access to your computer. But as smartphones begin to replace our laptops and desktops, more and more people turn to their smartphones to shop.
Luckily, you can have access to Amazon while you're on the go.
Amazon capitalized on the success of their online store by releasing Amazon.com for BlackBerry. Although this application is simple, it allows you to take advantage of most of the conveniences of Amazon without having to find your way to a computer.
Application Organization
The application is not overly cluttered with features, and everything is easy to find and use. There is a link bar across the top of the screen that allows you to easily access your Cart, Reminders, Wish List, Gold Box, Your Account, and Help. The look and feel will be very familiar, and is reminiscent of Amazon.com without being an exact replica of the website. The search engine is the same engine used on the website, and provides the exact same results in the same order. As you search, Recommendations will appear in the form of small photos across the bottom of the search screen, and most of the photos are easy to see without clicking on the item to see larger versions.
It is very easy to move around the application and perform multiple searches quickly.
The Amazon App lets you log into your account, just like you would on the online store, and access all of your account information. You can see your past purchases, track packages, view and cancel items or orders, update your e-mail notifications and change your 1-Click settings. Everything is easy to access, easy to read, and easy to use. You can tell that the developers took time to organize the application in a way that would make Amazon shoppers feel at home.
Wish Lists are one of the oldest features on Amazon, but they're also extremely popular and useful. The Amazon.com App allows you to add items to your Wish List or shop directly from it. Just select an item, click the Buy Now button, and proceed with your purchase.
Amazon Remembers
Amazon has included a new and exciting feature called Amazon Remembers. It allows you to take a photo of something you are looking for, upload it to Amazon, and Amazon will search for the item then notify you when it is found. I took a picture of my BlackBerry Curve 8900 to test the feature, and within minutes of uploading the photo, Amazon provided me a link to purchase a new Curve 8900. If you are in a hurry, this feature will allow you to do comparison shopping on Amazon without entering long item names or SKU numbers.
One Major Weakness: Cannot Download Mp3 Purchases
The only true disappointment about the application is that you cannot purchase mp3s and download them directly to your BlackBerry. If the feature is eventually implemented correctly, it could allow Amazon to give iTunes some more competition, and allow BlackBerry users (and other smartphone users) to download songs directly to their devices. You can add the mp3s you want to download to your Wish List and purchase them when you get to a PC, but the lack of instant gratification is a huge let down. Hopefully the feature will be added in the near future.
Pros and Cons
Even though there are a lot of positives about the Amazon.com BlackBerry app, the inability to download mp3s is a major detriment. By not implementing this feature, Amazon continues to lose ground to the iTunes/iPhone combination. A lot of iTunes/iPhone detractors see that relationship as a major negative, but it provides a convenience that Amazon still has not delivered to BlackBerry users.
Amazon started out as a great place to buy books, and has since become ubiquitous with online shopping. You can buy almost anything from groceries to electronics on the site, and that convenience has made Amazon one of the biggest retailers in the world.
That's fine -- as long as you have access to your computer. But as smartphones begin to replace our laptops and desktops, more and more people turn to their smartphones to shop.
Luckily, you can have access to Amazon while you're on the go.
Amazon capitalized on the success of their online store by releasing Amazon.com for BlackBerry. Although this application is simple, it allows you to take advantage of most of the conveniences of Amazon without having to find your way to a computer.
Application Organization
The application is not overly cluttered with features, and everything is easy to find and use. There is a link bar across the top of the screen that allows you to easily access your Cart, Reminders, Wish List, Gold Box, Your Account, and Help. The look and feel will be very familiar, and is reminiscent of Amazon.com without being an exact replica of the website. The search engine is the same engine used on the website, and provides the exact same results in the same order. As you search, Recommendations will appear in the form of small photos across the bottom of the search screen, and most of the photos are easy to see without clicking on the item to see larger versions.
It is very easy to move around the application and perform multiple searches quickly.
Access Your Account Information
The Amazon App lets you log into your account, just like you would on the online store, and access all of your account information. You can see your past purchases, track packages, view and cancel items or orders, update your e-mail notifications and change your 1-Click settings. Everything is easy to access, easy to read, and easy to use. You can tell that the developers took time to organize the application in a way that would make Amazon shoppers feel at home.
Access Your Wish List
Wish Lists are one of the oldest features on Amazon, but they're also extremely popular and useful. The Amazon.com App allows you to add items to your Wish List or shop directly from it. Just select an item, click the Buy Now button, and proceed with your purchase.
Amazon Remembers
Amazon has included a new and exciting feature called Amazon Remembers. It allows you to take a photo of something you are looking for, upload it to Amazon, and Amazon will search for the item then notify you when it is found. I took a picture of my BlackBerry Curve 8900 to test the feature, and within minutes of uploading the photo, Amazon provided me a link to purchase a new Curve 8900. If you are in a hurry, this feature will allow you to do comparison shopping on Amazon without entering long item names or SKU numbers.
One Major Weakness: Cannot Download Mp3 Purchases
The only true disappointment about the application is that you cannot purchase mp3s and download them directly to your BlackBerry. If the feature is eventually implemented correctly, it could allow Amazon to give iTunes some more competition, and allow BlackBerry users (and other smartphone users) to download songs directly to their devices. You can add the mp3s you want to download to your Wish List and purchase them when you get to a PC, but the lack of instant gratification is a huge let down. Hopefully the feature will be added in the near future.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Exceedingly easy to use
- On-the-fly price comparison with Amazon Remembers
- Quick access to make purchases and track items
Cons
- Cannot purchase mp3s and download them directly to your BlackBerry
Conclusion
Even though there are a lot of positives about the Amazon.com BlackBerry app, the inability to download mp3s is a major detriment. By not implementing this feature, Amazon continues to lose ground to the iTunes/iPhone combination. A lot of iTunes/iPhone detractors see that relationship as a major negative, but it provides a convenience that Amazon still has not delivered to BlackBerry users.
