It's official: the Kin phones are dead. Disappointed by an abysmal performance, Verizon has ceased sales of the social networking devices, pulling both from its site and shipping the remaining supply back to Redmond. The carrier plans to continue selling Kin accessories for now, and Microsoft will run the servers required to keep the phones in service. Big Red's move comes only weeks after Microsoft dropped the handsets and disbanded the Kin development team.
Announced in April, the Kin One and Kin Two waltzed straight out of a Dr. Seuss story giving teen hipsters social-centric mobile features without all the extras of full-fledge smartphones. Unfortunately, that market proved to be non-existent, with Microsoft rumored to have sold less than 10,000 units. Besides the limited audience, the phones were priced too closely to more capable devices - not to mention the awkward and creepy advertising campaign.
If you're one of the handful who purchased a Kin, what are your thoughts on the device? Will you continue to use it?