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Review: Microsoft Kin One and Two

Form Basics Extras Wrap-Up Comments 9

Music Camera Photos/Video Browse/Customize Extras

Normally, this page is reserved for all the cool, extra features that a phone has. With Kin, there are none. Instead, I offer you a list of what the Kin doesn't have.

Mapping software or any form of navigation.

A calendar.

A calculator. Or a tip calculator.

A to-do list.

Voice notes. Hell, voice "anything."

A dedicated Bing search app for the web. (You can search the phone for contacts and apps, and Bing search is built into the clunky browser.)

Any sort of weather app or widget.

Verizon-branded services of any kind.

No games.

No voice dialing.

No YouTube.

NO APPS. None. No app store, no app widgets, nothing.

Bluetooth

The Kins do have Bluetooth. I was able to pair both phones with mono and stereo headsets. Bluetooth worked fine on both models. I had no problems at all. Sound quality was better on the Kin One through mono headsets, but otherwise they were on par.

Next page: Wrap-Up

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Microsoft's new Kin Two on Verizon Wireless is a social networking magnet with a style all its own. Did Microsoft sacrifice too many features to bring this youthful smartphone to the masses?

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Sharp Kin One

2.6" display 320 x 240 pixels
Tegra APX2600 processor
1,240 mAh battery
Hardware Text Keyboard, Headphone Jack (3.5mm)

Sharp Kin Two

3.4" display 320 x 480 pixels
Tegra APX2600 processor
1,390 mAh battery
Hardware Text Keyboard, Headphone Jack (3.5mm)

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