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Two Months After Debut, Microsoft Kills Kin

If you blinked, you may have missed it.

The Kin, RIP 2010-2010 James Martin/CNET

Two months after introducing its Kin phone, Microsoft has pulled the plug in favor of concentrating on the development of its Windows 7 phone. Microsoft historians will be hard-pressed to remember a faster about-face on a product launch. In retrospect, though, this won't leave many shocked. From the outset, Microsoft was criticized for charging too much on a product missing important features.

Microsoft's official statement didn't get into the gory details.

"We have made the decision to focus on our Windows Phone 7 launch and we will not ship KIN in Europe this fall as planned. Additionally, we are integrating our KIN team with the Windows Phone 7 team, incorporating valuable ideas and technologies from KIN into future Windows Phone releases. We will continue to work with Verizon in the U.S. to sell current KIN phones."

But sales had been underwhelming. In what might have been a harbinger earlier this week, Verizon sharply reduced prices both on the Kin One and Kin Two. Carriers usually slash prices at the end of a product's life span, not six weeks after their debut.

CNET has the story.

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