05-16-2010, 10:15 PM
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Thinker
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 431
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I like the Kin!
The Kin appealed to me the moment it was announced. I am not in the target market for the device but I was still intrigued by it. My mobile phone history is varied. I have owned Symbian and Blackberry devices as well as at least one model of Windows phone from each of the various names it has gone through.
At present I have an HTC Touch Diamond 2 for my work phone. I also have a simple Samsung SGH a777 that I use for strictly personal needs. I am very interested in the upcoming Windows Phone 7 devices, and like many others, think the Dell Lightning looks promising.
I wanted to try out the Kin because it was a way of seeing if the concept behind the Windows Phone 7 user interface was as interesting in practice as it appears in You Tube videos. I also wanted to experiment with the integrated social network features. By the time those first WP7 devices appear, I will have some experience with the UI, the social network integration, the over the air update feature and whatever other experiences carry over from the Kin subset to full WP7 capability.
It certainly seems unfair to compare my Kin 2 to my HTC TD2, but they represent my most recent devices; so here goes. Size-wise, the two phones are near twins, which is remarkable considering the Kin is hiding a slider keyboard. The Kin feels more secure in my hand because of its matte finish. The shiny TD2 has slipped from my hand more than once. That said, when the TD2 has hit the floor, it survived. I am not as confident that the Kin Two would do the same. I am a fan of the HTC Touch Flo and Sense user interfaces. They are fast and intuitive and have become more customizable and extend deeper into the Windows Mobile phones as they have matured. Many HTC users probably never encounter the underlying WM interface, but I do. And here the Kin beats the TD2. The UI on the Kin is every bit as good as I had hoped. Call it a subset of Windows Phone 7, or a proof of concept, or a variation, or a sampler. The fact is the Kin UI works like the WP7 UI will. And that is good news. We can debate various decisions Microsoft has made concerning the WP7 devices, but there should be no debate that they have developed a UI that is both new and familiar; easy to use and powerful. There are a few areas in the Kin UI that I expect will be more polished and refined in the WP7 devices, and because those phones will be aimed at larger target audiences and will cost more, that is reasonable.
Here are a few other quick observations: The Kin set up process is simple and straightforward. The phone call quality is good and the speakerphone volume is loud at its maximum setting. I have experienced no lag in sliding the UI screen and no freezes or hangs. Customization is limited to selecting one of four colors for text and borders, changing the lock screen, and moving the app icons around. The camera has done well for me in outdoor, well lit settings. It performs just adequately indoors. There is both a dedicated camera button and an onscreen button. A sensor turns the screen off when the phone is held to your face for a call and back on when you move the phone away, say to push a key to delete a voicemail. This is a much better arrangement than with my HTC phone.
Lots of people have commented on the Kin Studio feature and I join in the praise. The automatic backup is a feature that should come with every phone except the most basic models like my Samsung. Studio is also very intuitive and connects to support forums as well as the usual help files if there is something about the Kin that isn't obvious.
I do have a few quibbles. I agree with those who think the omission of a calendar is an error. Again, I know I am not in the target market, but a simple planner is a practical feature for any age if for no better reason than to look up whether the 23rd is a Monday or a Tuesday. I suspect Microsoft is aware of this too. In the Kin forums they have already posted information about how Outlook Web Access can be set to send reminders as SMS messages to the Kin. If you haven't filled out your contacts names properly in Windows Live, your favorites will show up as "Unknown" on the Kin. It is a simple fix, but it takes a little shine off the finish when the device lists your favorite people as strangers. It seems odd to me that the Zune interface doesn't rotate. You must turn the Kin to type an entry in the Zune search box, but the Zune UI itself remains in portrait mode. Would it really have messed up the Metro look that much to operate the music function in landscape mode?
I have also had a battery issue. On two consecutive days I had Bluetooth on because I was in and out of my car a lot. I made and received several calls, one of which was very long. I was also taking lots of pictures which the Kin automatically uploads to the Studio. I noticed on a couple of occasions when I was using the phone I had dropped from 3G service to what the Kin calls "1X". The result of this usage pattern was a dead battery within 12 hours. With Bluetooth off, and a much lower photo use, the battery drain was much slower. The Kin uploads photos and syncs with your social networks on a set schedule. You can set the phone to do this manually instead. It might be a good idea to provide an automatic setting that only works when 3G service is detected.
The KIn is a good semi-smartphone. It does well what it was designed to do. You can be disappointed or dislike that design, but the phone is a well executed user friendly social networking device. I think those of you who think it is overpriced for what it does have a fair point, but that wasn't the purpose of this review. I bought the Kin to experience the upcoming WP7 user interface and the social networking features. It is meeting those needs. If Microsoft does over the air upgrades that address the few shortcomings of the device, that is icing on the cake.
This grandfather who wasn't the intended customer of the Kin is nevertheless pleased with his purchase. Will I trade it in when a full featured WP7 device is available? Probably. But until then, I will use the Loop and Spot with pride.
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