Verizon is offering to replace KIN phones for free.
A Verizon Wireless document (JPGs) obtained by Windows Phone Central reveals that Microsoft will permanently close KIN Studio on January 31, 2011. For the 500 or so consumers who actually bought the "social" phone, this means the backbone OTA feature set will no longer be available. Instead, owners will be reduced to sending texts and making calls. Brilliant.
"Any data you are currently storing [in KIN Studio] will not be available to you after that date," the Verizon document reads. "All photos, videos and contacts on your KIN phone (or in KIN Studio) that you wish to save will need to be downloaded to your personal computer by January 31, 2011. In addition, some features tied to the KIN Studio and service-- such as linked contacts, text messages, call logs and feeds-- will no longer be available after January 31, 2011. Unfortunately, these cannot be downloaded or saved."
According to the document, social networks will only be accessible through the mobile web browser starting next month, eliminating all contacts previously displayed on the phone via KIN Studio, and eliminating the ability to post comments or pictures directly from the main screen. Additionally, the Feed Reader, Search Near Me, and the loop features will stop working, the latter of which will cease displaying comments. KIN Spot will only send emails, and most pictures currently stored on the KIN One and KIN Two will appear at thumbnail resolution.
The good news is that the KIN One and KIN Two won't be completely worthless-- they'll still have the ability to make calls, send and receive texts, and access the internet. However Verizon understands that its customers bought the Microsoft phones based on its social features, and now wants to offer those KIN buyers a free, new 3G phone without a contract renewal through March 31, 2011. Although a free replacement phone is great, the only drawback is that the new device may require an additional data package.
Still, Verizon seemingly apologizes for Microsoft's blunder and is offering step-by-step guidelines on how to save KIN Studio contacts, photos and videos before Microsoft pulls the plug on the service. To learn more, head to the KIN One support page here and the KIN Two support page here.
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Not cool, MS....
Kins will be buried next to ET in the desert.
^ I have a copy of ET
terrible game btu a good collectable ... doubt the kin will be a collectable though
Who didn't see this coming? really? Well, apparently about 500 people. I knew those were junk when I first saw them on Tom's.
It could have been a great featurephone if it wasn't so misnamaged and didn't have that insane initual contract.
That's just... wow. The Studio was the whole selling point of the Kin. I don't see how Microsoft can do this to their customers, with not a hint of remorse. Well... really... I'm not surprised... at all. Good on Verizon for going the extra mile for the consumer, creating the walkthroughs for people to retain their media/data and offering a free trade up sans contract renewal. (Obviously it's not all good-will and charity by Verizon, as they stand to profit from pricier smartphone plans, but still good to see something offered to the MS jilted customers)
The new Kin - coming soon to a recycling center near you.
How dare Microsoft cut support for all 8 KIN phones!
The worst part about the KIN was that it did NOT work with Windows Me! =(
The KINs were made with fairly powerful hardware, so if you can hack the software/firmware, they could make decent phones yet, just not as KINs.
Best idea I can come up with is closing the studio the way they plan and pushing an OTA upgrade to kill the whole KIN interface and replace it with WP7 or Android (or if you're REALLY crafty, iOS) designed to work with the KINs' hardware. Make it a bit more useful, rebrand the phones that were already made, and turn lemons into lemonade!
If I had a KIN, this is what I would do.
Nothing new, just Microsoft making more loyal customers.
So, call logs are lost ? Not even available to be downloaded ? There goes the trust these companies are trying to sell to the consumer that the "clod" thing is a good thing.
And wasn't there a news article that stated they has restarted selling these Kin's.. like tow weeks ago ? Microsoft really screwed this one big time!
Sell it to Nokia, or RIM, they want in. Maybe there's something they could use...
fail
EPIC FAIL
Wow, now ask people to trust cloud computing!!!
Also thinking about cloud computers, they had the Sidekick phone that was cloud base and they also pull the plug on that one if I remember correctly. They will do the same to the rest of their futur products they will pull the plug sooner or later(probably sooner).
They should "open" the phones and let people have fun installing Android or something. You have Tegras in there, not cheap, generic hardware.
Micro$oft ...Kin whatev... never bought into their crap. I bet some exec's got bonus money and boosts because it was a grand idea that took off at the table. And wrote off any losses but the higher ups got their Christmas presents untouched.... they suk.
Not true on the exec's bonus money as they short change his bonus check due to Steve Ballmer's epic blunder this year.
So Steve is pretty miffed about it.
The worst part about the KIN was that it did NOT work with Windows Me! =(
Windows ME... as in Millenium Edition? People are finally starting to leave XP behind for Windows 7, and you are trying to hold on to Windows ME!!?? gosh... you don't need a KIN or any other smart phone then, you need to hold on to a Nokia from 15 years ago...
This is all Verizon, not Microsoft.
Microsoft made a mistake of porting the danger code to winCE. This added 18 months dev time. Verizon at the time was getting killed by the iPhone and wanted such a social device.
The Kin is still ahead of it's time in many of the features it has. If it had been released 18 months earlier and with a reasonable (say $10-15) data plan it would have sold like hotcakes. Verizon got all pissy and decided to milk as much money from the Kin as they could so they bundled it with a $30 data plan that killed it.
That's why Verizon wasn't a priority when it came time for WP7 and they are pissed about that too.
This decision is 100% verizon. They are dicking the customers here, not Microsoft. Heck just selling the Kin with everything that makes it stripped out is a slap to the face of upcoming customers. They'll get a gutted feature phone plus a (reduced price mind you) data plan for a device that no longer does data...
Streaming Zunepass over wifi only and not 3G? Yeah...that's Verizon being a dick, not Microsoft.
So let me get this straight: They put the device back on sale, and yet they kill the backbone of the service? I'm not quite understanding why...
You can't get a replacement smartphone from Verizon. The phones they have on the account for replacing Kins are all dumbphones. My wife and I bought a Kin Two at launch and now our choices are:
1) Keep the Kin, stripped of all its redeeming qualities
2) Get one of the cheapo replacement dumbphones phones Verizon is offering and have a marginally better featureset than the gimped Kin
3) Shell out $500 on an Android phone
Thanks Verizon.
You can't get a replacement smartphone from Verizon. The phones they have on the account for replacing Kins are all dumbphones. My wife and I bought a Kin Two at launch and now our choices are:1) Keep the Kin, stripped of all its redeeming qualities2) Get one of the cheapo replacement dumbphones phones Verizon is offering and have a marginally better featureset than the gimped Kin3) Shell out $500 on an Android phoneThanks Verizon.
I dumped em. I paid a big contract cancellation and went to AT&T (which is decent in my area..your milage may vary). I snagged a buy-one-get one Samsung Focus (WP7) for me and the Mrs.
Vuck Ferizon. Last straw.
i was sooo excited when i get this phone but i am just now finding out about all the terminated features and now.... this phone is useless and a pos. in a way i should have kept up with the world and its &*^%ed up plans to ^%$# on customers but whatever..... dont release something thats gonna abuse the consumer you greedy @$$ microsoft $%cks....