After much rumor and speculation, Microsoft finally revealed its self-branded handsets today. Called Kin, the series is comprised of those all-too-familiar phones formerly referred to as Turtle and Pure. Although they aren't attractive aesthetically, the phones have many social capabilities that could appeal to younger users.
Among the features is Kin Loop, which lets users monitor Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, along with other Web news and events. Kin Spot is a hub that facilitates the sharing of data such as media, sites, messages, and location information. Another function dubbed Kin Studio creates an online backup of your messages, photos, videos, and contacts.
Funky designs aside, the handsets' hardware isn't half bad. The Kin One has a 2.6-inch capacitive touchscreen, a five-megapixel camera, 4GB of storage, Wi-Fi, GPS, FM radio, while the Kin Two boasts a larger 3.4-inch display, an eight-megapixel camera, and 8GB of storage. You can read their full specs after the break.
The phones should be available next month in the US through Verizon, and sometime later this year in Europe through Vodafone. Prices aren't yet clear.
Kin One
* Form factor: Vertical slide, QWERTY
* Display: 2.6" TFT, QVGA (320 x 240), capacitive touch screen
* Camera: 5.0MP CMOS anti-shake, autofocus, dual LED flash
* Speakers: Mono
* Memory: 256MB DDR RAM, 4GB storage
* Battery: 1240 mAh
* Connectivity: EV-DO Rev A, Bluetooth 2.1 w/A2DP, Hi-speed USB, 802.11b/g
* Other: Assisted GPS, FM radio, accelerometer
Kin Two
* Form Factor: Vertical slide, QWERTY
* Display: 3.4" TFT, QVGA (480 x 320), capacitive touch screen
* Camera: 8.0MP HDR CMOS from Omnivision with anti-shake, autofocus, Lumi LED flash
* Speakers: Stereo
* Memory: 256MB DDR RAM, 8GB storage
* Battery: 1390 mAh
* Connectivity: EV-DO Rev A, Bluetooth 2.1 w/A2DP, Hi-speed USB, 802.11b/g
* Other: Assisted GPS, FM radio, accelerometer