In 2010, Microsoft made a social smartphone for teens and 20 somethings who didn’t want a smartphone. It… well, it didn’t work out. Let’s learn about Microsoft Kin!
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J Allard was the executive at Microsoft that had been CTO of Consumer Products and brought a lot of successes to the market like Windows 95, Xbox, Xbox Live, and Zune. While the former wasn’t a success compared to Apple’s iPod, it had a lot of great attributes and the hardware/software was solid. The 2007 iPhone was $599 on a two-year contract and required an expensive $30/mo. data plan. Far too expensive for teens. And the other smartphones? Well, they were for nerds! Or, at least business people. What began as a focused, well-thought-out plan to bring a high-end feature phone to market for teens focused on social media and instant messaging spiraled out of control costing Microsoft and Verizon Wireless over $1B in losses. That phone? Microsoft Kin.
Credit: YouTube/Snazzy Labs
