The next Amazon smartphone will be cheaper

Despite its name, the first Amazon handset has failed to set the world on fire, and according to a company executive, it's because at $200, the phone was simply too expensive.

Despite its name, the first Amazon handset has failed to set the world on fire, and according to a company executive, it's because at $200, the phone was simply too expensive.

David Limp, Amazon's SVP of Devices told Fortune that: 'We didn't get the price right; I think people come to expect a great value, and we sort of mismatched expectations. We thought we had it right. But we're also willing to say 'we missed'. And so we corrected.'

After less than three months on sale, Amazon smashed the price of the Fire Phone, whose killer feature is a 3D display that actively tracks the user's face, to just 99 cents.

However, like with its tablet range -- which also failed to impress when it first rolled out, Amazon is not giving up and Limp confirmed that the company will continue to work on making the handset better.

And if Amazon does take the same approach to smartphones as it has to its Fire range of tablets, then the company could soon have a very desirable phone.

The latest JD Power Consumer Satisfaction Survey, published Thursday, shows that over the past six months when it comes to tablets, Amazon has risen from fourth place to first -- knocking Apple into second place in the process.

Its Fire range scored highest among tablet owners for ease of use and affordability and also impressed in terms of performance and design.

Of the Fire Phone's immediate future, Limp told Fortune: 'We are going to keep iterating software features to get it better and better. Each release that we're doing, we're learning. Beyond that, I leave it out there to see what people think.'