Amazon Underground - not working on stock Amazon Fire Phone

[ulises.rodriguez]

Do you mean that the new "Amazon Underground" APP is now available from the Amazon Appstore for the fire phone ?

I would like to know if can now be installed on the Fire Phone, and if it works flawlessly ?

Can you post the version number and the download link from amazon ?

 

[aoleg]

Still not working. I can see Underground apps in the Amazon shopping app, but clicking on any of them opens the Appstore which doesn't let you buy one. Bummer. They still need to fix the Appstore app.

 

[mad1980]

Never mind. I installed it but can't find it. Seems to open the standard Amazon Shopping app. I can see underground apps but can't buy them...

Same here ( am on 4.6.3)

 

[Bingo Bronson]

While the Fire Phone users have to wait for a compatible version, you can download the
Amazon Webinar: Promote Your App and Earn Revenue Through Amazon's Services



Join Amazon's Mike Hines as he shares information on Merch by Amazon, Amazon Underground, Advertise Your App, and the Amazon Mobile Ad Network.

You will learn about:

• Getting Paid for every customer for every minute that they use your Amazon Underground app
  
• Generating revenue through creating your own branded t-shirts with no out-of-pocket costs to you
  
• Driving Installs by promoting your app on the Amazon Mobile Ad Network and Fire tablet wakescreens
  
• Earning revenue through integrating high-quality ads from Amazon and brand advertisers

Before you ask: yes, the audio quality is really that amazing and yes, it sounds like a 15 year old walkie-talkie with dying batteries.

--- update ---

Amazon Underground 6.0.0.200 got released, target SDK is 23, so it is supported by Android M. Meanwhile on Fire OS...

 

[tecb0yjoy]

This is ridiculous.... didn't even prioritize their own devices

 

[ratbags]

I'm obviously one of the few who's glad we don't have underground. I've railed against adverts for years and having an app installed where you can't buy apps and have to suffer ads in albeit free apps is not something I want....

 

[Bingo Bronson]

True, true. I'm happy with using F-Droid and customs repos / donating to independent developers.
Though I understand that (mostly younger) people will be happy about free stuff in their favorite games and parents will be pleased about not getting bothered, hehe.
The main reason they created "Underground" is to pull developers (and consequently customers) to their platform so they can increase their market share and Amazon is willing to invest quite a bit.
Just watching the two latest webinars made me chuckle more than once. The marketing strategies sometimes reminded my of (bad) jokes from a 'Simpsons' episode.

 

[mad1980]

I sent an email to them asking for 5000 coins similar to other Amazon customers and this is what I got from Amazon

Hello,

I understand your concern regarding the coins we're offering as a good will gesture for not having the Underground app on Fire phone.

I also understand that you want us to extend this to offer to all Fire phone users.

I've forwarded your comments to appropriate department in our company for consideration. We'll consider this as your feedback as we plan further improvements. It is always important for us to hear how customers react to all aspects. We do value the feedback of our customers and make every attempt to integrate their comments or suggestions into our stores and procedures.

As a one-time good will gesture, I’ve requested 5000 Amazon Coins to be applied to your Amazon account. You will receive these Amazon Coins within 3 business days, if you are eligible. You will not be eligible if this request has been submitted for your device previously.

To find your current Amazon Coins balance and view your Coins transaction history, log in to your Amazon account on the Amazon website, go to Amazon Coins (https://www.amazon.com/gp/coins/account) in the Amazon Wallet Payment Methods section of Your Account.

For the most up-to-date information on apps available on Fire phone, you can check here:

https://www.amazon.com/firephoneapps

We look forward to seeing you again soon.

Best regards,
Satyanarayana Reddy P.
Thank you.
Amazon.com

 

[wilef]

They just gave me $10 credit (not coins) for my inconvenience

 

[Bingo Bronson]

Amazon Underground 6.0.2.200 got released and it contains *drum roll* ... bug fixes and performance improvements!
Welp...

 

[Newcron]

Just found out tonight that I can't access Underground apps from my Fire Phone. Googled it and got this thread. Tried the chat thing and no matter how long I tried to stall and expressed my disappointment, the guy didn't seem like he's even thinking of giving me any coins or credits. In fact I asked straight up: if I wanted to play some games that I already installed and played on my other Android devices, and I want to play the same games on my Fire Phone, I have to pay for them? He simply answered: yes.

Oh well

 

[tigerbenzin01]

- deleted -

 

[phoenX80]

It is possible to install the underground app but installing f.i. Navigon Select gives error 500. But as the store itself is up and running could there be a way to tell it somehow its a different device? I'll try restore Navigon via titanium backup from another phone but dont think it will work.

 

[Bingo Bronson]

It is possible to install the underground app but [...] error 500

Same here, still not working properly: untouched / unrooted 4.6.6.1 (tested on GSM unlocked and DE variant):

Updating the app is possible but when it's accessing the Underground apps:

Titanium can't help in this situation, no matter if you restore an app that was downloaded via Underground or even the Underground app itself, since the "device" will be identified each time...
Since it works on custom ROMs, things like IMEI, WiFi MAC address, make no difference in the process but if you look at the permissions of the Underground app, it's allowed to gather lots of information about the device, more specific: a lot of them refer to features only found on Fire OS devices, so maybe it helps to blindfold it to a certain degree... cue: trial and error. ^^

small update:
With editing only the 'build.prop' to a large extent (including removing Fire OS and Lab126 exclusive entries), I got to the point where it said "The specified device could not be authenticated. Please try again".
Combined with the fact that I had almost all Amazon related apps deactivated (not deleted) at his point, it still wasn't able to receive the Underground apps page inside the app...

 

[phoenX80]

Thanks for trying. Personally I dont have the time atm to persue the issue hope u have more success in the future and post ur progress.

 

[Bingo Bronson]

Thanks for trying. Personally I dont have the time atm to persue the issue hope u have more success in the future and post ur progress.

I'll try two new approaches, although only one of them may be feasible for real world usage, since it needs to be applicable rather easily for everyone...

edit: the lazy test with Sudohide module didn't work, so I guess it's time to logcat with a filter... I'm already bleeding from my eyes.

edit: Amazon sure has a good sense of humor - Underground Pre-Loaded on New Unlocked Phones

edit 2: Huehuehue - https://developer.amazon.com/blogs/...b94/announcement-amazon-actually-free-program