Microsoft's smartphone-lite Kin line, consisting of two Sidekick-like phones, was an embarrassment for the company. Reviews were generally middling to scathing, always noting that it was a total ripoff for a non-smartphone to require an expensive smartphone data plan. By some accounts Microsoft sold just a few hundred Kins. It was discontinued after only 48 days on the market, a move that reeked of sheer panic and no confidence at all in the product. But when a new product crashes that hard and that fast, it usually means at least it's not a boring failure. For all of its problems, the Kin had a whole bunch of legitimately good ideas. It was designed to be a sort of modern Sidekick, focused not on texting (so '90s!) but on social networking. Facebook, Twitter, and Myspace were actually more important to the Kin's ethos than standards like a web browser. The interface was something totally new, asking users to drag contacts, browser links, messages, and photos to the "Spot," a dot at the bottom of the screen that handled all sending functions. It boasted an unlimited subscription to the Zune streaming music market, something totally new to messaging phones. Best of all, it introduced a concept called the Studio. The Studio was a web app that mirrored all the activity on your phone, instantly: Take a photo with your phone, it's in the Studio. Enter a new contact or bookmark a new website, and the Studio knows it. Start reading a news story on your phone, finish it in the Studio. Brilliant idea, one that's never really been tried again. Microsoft can't really make the Kin open source--there's too much important intellectual property being used, just like the Zune. But man, what if they had? Lots of the Kin's faults could have been fixed: Developers could have added a much-needed maps and calendar app, could have changed the way the phone dealt with certain commands, or could have altered the camera's firmware so it took less lousy photos. The Kin had potential--it would have been great to see what an enthusiast committee could have done, had Microsoft let them.

Microsoft