Just two months after Microsoft pulled the sheet off its Sidekick-like KIN handsets to raised eyebrows and lukewarm reviews, the poorly received handsets have already gone to the virtual bargain bin. On Monday, Verizon dropped prices for the Kin One and Kin Two to just $30 and $50, respectively.
That’s over half off the Kin Two’s original price of $100, and close to half for the formerly $50 Kin One.
Despite the fire sale, both phones still face stiff competition from more full-featured smartphones at their new price points. The Kin One must compete with the likes of BlackBerry’s Curve 8530, the HTC Ozone and the Palm Pixi Plus, which is actually free with contract. The Kin Two, meanwhile, faces off with LG’s new Android-powered LG Ally and the Palm Pre Plus at the $50 price level.
At launch, both phones faced criticism for their stripped down operating system, which couldn’t run apps, and a lack of basic features, like an instant messenger client or even map application.
Two weeks ago, rumors actually suggested Microsoft had sold only 500 of the phones, although that number has never been substantiated.
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