Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos unveils the Fire Phone at a press event Wednesday in Seattle. Photo: Roberto Baldwin/The Next Web

Years of speculation are finally over: Amazon is taking on the iPhone with a handset of its own that offers advanced features and a tight integration with Amazon Prime.

Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos triumphantly pulled the new Fire Phone from his pocket this morning in front of a Seattle crowd of 300 reporters and Prime fanatics, revealing a new handset that looks like an iPhone but houses tons of Amazon special features to set it apart from Apple’s and Samsung’s top wares.

To do battle with the iPhone and Apple’s enormous ecosystem, Bezos says Amazon chose a 4.7-inch screen for the device after testing models between 4.3 inches and 5.5 inches. Like the iPhone 5s, the Fire Phone uses Gorilla Glass 3 for the front display, but Amazon has wrapped the enclosure in an injection-molded rubber frame.

With iOS 8, Apple is bringing a multitude of exciting new features to iPhone and iPad. In some cases, Cupertino is playing catch-up as it tries to match what’s currently available in KitKat; in others, Apple’s next-generation mobile operating system is about to blast past the latest version of Android.

Android and iOS will secure a staggering 95 percent of smartphone market share between them in 2014, according to the latest research from IDC. While it’s strictly a two-horse race, Google’s platform is currently far out in front when it comes to number of users, with Android’s market share expected to reach 80.2 percent by the end of the year.

Google has a new Android update up its sleeve that will be announced this summer, but while Apple posts impressive upgrade percentages, Android fragmentation typically slows deployment of Google’s latest, greatest mobile OS.

Apple has always been keen to point out that iOS users spend more time with their devices than those who choose Android, but what exactly are they doing with them? According to statistics from Pornhub, one of the biggest and most successful free porn sites with 38 million users a day (did it need an introduction?), many of them are enjoying porn.

BlackBerry has today begun rolling out its version 2.2 update for BBM, which adds a bunch of new emoticons and makes some nice improvements. Signing up is easier than ever for new BBM users with this release — as is adding new friends to your BBM contacts list.

Every day, your smartphone picks up millions of germs that rub off on your face and fingers when you use it. A 2010 study found that the average phone carries 18 times more bacteria than a toilet seat. That’s not the case for phones that are charged using PhoneSoap.

PhoneSoap uses germicidal UV-C light to quickly and effectively sanitize your smartphone as it charges, and for a limited time, you can get your own for just $54 (16% off the regular retail price), thanks to Cult of Android Deals.