KIN in retrospect

[magictriangle]

Any (ex)KIN owners in the house?

When the KIN came out I was super excited about the user interface and the features that were included. I ended up getting the KIN Two M and I was happy because it was basically in between a feature phone and a smart phone. For example, I could use wi-fi and such without having to buy a data plan. PLUS it had some good features, the interface looked really cool and it was different than anything else... But it makes sense that it flopped since they were initially charging for data plans with this phone. The 2nd generation of them could have done better when they made them feature phones, but I guess people were jaded (I mean, it did have it's flaws). Marketing is everything and maybe it was just too much of a niche device.

The interface and design of the KIN sold me on the idea of getting a Windows Phone once I upgraded to a smart phone. The Nokia Lumia 900 is my first "smart phone" and I couldn't be happier with the WP7 system.

Anyway, what are your thoughts on the KIN? Was it great? Terrible? A mistake? I feel like I am the only person who has ever heard of the KIN. :mellow:

 

[Laura Knotek]

I never knew anyone who had a Kin. Then again, I was in my late 30s when the Kin was released, so my peers were using smartphones, not feature phones.

Sent from my Lumia 900 using Board Express

 

[anon(5335877)]

I remember the KIN. I never owned one, but I was excited about it back then.. until the read the reviews.

 

[sdreamer]

It was basically an an alpha phone with WP7 being the beta phone. My cousin and gf had/hace the kin phones. Things that killed it were poor quality hardware (camera is atrocious on these things for being a "social phone"), initiall data plans costing as much as a smartphones' (just get a smartphone then if you're paying the same), and marketing. I think the plans killed it off first though, for a feature phone it should have had the data plan dirt cheap. Next the quality of hardware, the screen is grey and unsaturated, limited themes (there's like 3, so it's hard to even get your favorite color), camera was horrible (how are you suppose to share moments on social networks like this), and the plastic feels really cheap and hollow. Honestly, I was kinda hyped for this until I realized all of these factors. The concep was great, though.

Sent from my Lumia 900 using Board Express

 

[Laura Knotek]

Here is a good article about the Kin's demise. http://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2010/07/a-post-mortem-of-kins-tragic-demise/

Sent from my Lumia 900 using Board Express

 

[anon(1458)]

I had a kin for a week and under buyers remorse took it back. It had potential, but the size of it was ridiculous!

 

[Laura Knotek]

Interesting videos in this story. Exclusive: Internal Videos Show Why the Microsoft Kin Cratered | Gadget Lab | Wired.com

 

[london_bridge]

I have the same KIN Two M but I need to hard reset or factory data reset it. I dont know ANYBODY who knows how and this site isn't helping at all ! If you know or find out how to hard reset the KIN Two M, please let me know.