Social Networking Phones — KIN 1 and KIN 2 [Verizon]

Microsoft, Sharp and Verizon teamed up to deliver the KIN 1 and KIN 2. I briefly mentioned these phones before when they were codenamed “Turtle” and “Pure.” I tried out both of the KINs this past weekend and believe they present a new option to mobile phone customers because they fit somewhere between a top feature phone and below a low-end smartphone. The reason they fit between the two is they blend everything you would expect form a phone like the LG Env3 plus the have native support for social networking.

I’ve read many of the reviews out there of the KINs and I believe that many reviewers haven’t considered the target market. These phones are designed for 13-15 year olds.  If I were in that demographic, I would be delighted to have a phone that offers Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, email, an HTML browser, Zune music features, Wifi, cloud archives of all activity, a camera, decent memory capacity and a solid keyboard.  However, if you’re outside of the young teen demographic or you’re looking to upgrade from your LG, you might want to consider a full blown smartphone, which permits app installations and greater customization.

I offer the caveat that I didn’t try out every feature of the KINs but in my time with the phones I formulated the following opinions:

Likes

The hardware, manufactured by Sharp, is good.  I particularly like the large screen on the KIN 2. Both phones have full QWERTY keyboards that are easy to use. The cameras are 5 MP on the KIN 1 and 8 MP on the KIN 2.

The Windows Phone interface is funky with asymmetry on almost every screen.  I like the “tile” layout which is a nice departure from the mundane world of gridded icons.  In this regard, perhaps the KINs offer a glimpse inside of the core elements that will likely become Windows Phone 7.

The simplicity of the phone makes it a good choice as a youngster’s first phone.

Dislikes

The browser isn’t terrific.  It can display basic pages but it fumbles a bit on more complicated pages like those on many news sites and blogs.

It takes some getting use to because, as I mentioned, it’s not a traditional gridded icon interface.

At this point, I’m a spoiled HTC Incredible user and wouldn’t look back. However, if I were a parent buying a first phone for my kid who is just old enough to object to being called a kid, the KINs would be at or near the top of my list.

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