Microsoft Monday introduced two new “cloud phones” that store a user’s information in the cloud called KIN ONE and KIN TWO.
Users don’t have to worry about how much music or video will store on the device due to cloud storge. Also photos are automatically stored in the cloud where they can be accessed from almost any browser. And the photos and video are archived in a time line so you get a “journal of your life.”
Available in May exclusively from Verizon for the U.S. market, the new KIN ONE and KIN TWO are billed by Microsoft as “social phones.” They are the first to use the new Windows Phone OS and the first Windows Phone to ship with Zune music and video.
The slider phones have touch screens with high end cameras. KIN ONE is a compact, pocketable model with 5 MP camera and flash. It’s designed for one-handed operation. KIN TWO has a larger screen and keyboard, with more memory, better, 8 megapixel camera and hi-def video record capability.
The phones automatically bring together feeds from Facebook, MySpace, Twitter etc. in one place with a fluid user interface. You can prioritize favorite people’s status updates, messages, etc.
Information is automatically backed up to the cloud on the phone including photos and video, which ABI Research believes may help Microsoft get some of the user loyalty which Apple derives from iTunes. “Having all of a user’s contacts and pertinent social data stored in a Microsoft vault creates the potential for a very sticky service, ” said ABI mobile device analyst Michael Morgan.
The smaller KIN ONE has 4GB of memory and a mono speaker, while the two-handed KIN TWO has 8GB of memory and a stereo speaker plus the hi-definition recording. No word of pricing yet.
Tuesday Update: Social phones are it. Nokia also announced three new QWERTY messaging phones – the Nokia C3, Nokia C6 and Nokia E5 – designed to bring messaging phones to lower price points.
The Nokia C3 is the first phone to bring a full QWERTY keyboard to the Series 40 platform and the first in the platform to put Facebook, Twitter, etc. on the home screen. It offers WiFi, 2MP camera, 2.4-inch color screen and it supports up to an 8GB memory card. U.S. availability is late Q2 or Q3 at about $122 in many colors including golden white, slate grey and hot pink.
The Nokia C6 is a Symbian-based smartphone with 3.2-inch screen and full slide out keyboard, also with Facebook on the home screen. It supports apps from the Ovi Store at about $299 due in late Q2/Q3.
A new Nokia E5 for the “social professional” user is also Symbian-based. It works with 90 percent of the world’s corporate email and allows app downloads from the Ovi Store at about $244 due in Q3.
Source: Microsoft and Symbian
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