We’ve only been using the Microsoft KIN Two for about half a day. Even though that isn’t enough time to put a comprehensive review together, we can still comment on our initial reactions about the device.

The Microsoft KIN One and KIN Two are aimed at a non-professional crowd, mostly the young Justin Bieber generation. For phones in this category, they definitely do pack a punch. For starters, there is Microsoft Exchange support (no calendar support), an 8 megapixel camera with 720p video capture, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, a slide-out QWERTY keyboard and all the social networking integration you could want. Microsoft actually is not very spec-heavy when pushing this device as they realize the specifications are almost irrelevant to the target buyer — and that’s smart.

The real issue is that we cannot remember a phone in recent memory that has felt so cheap and so clunky to use. Seriously. For some reason — and I am really not exaggerating here — I do not remember ever being so frustrated with a phone. It is slow and far from intuitive. There are feature phones that I would rather carry around with me. The one saving grace we thought the KIN had was that the data plans would be more economical than the traditional $30/month unlimited data packages. Well, we were wrong. The KIN Two goes for $99.99 on a two year contract after $100 MIR, but you still need that $30 data plan on top of your texting plan, on top of your voice plan (or family plan). I’m sorry, but I don’t see the advantage of a device this limited in this day and age, not with $100 Android devices, $100 iPhones, and $100 BlackBerry handsets (that all use the same $30/month data package). The concept is fine, but the execution is more a mashup of glitter, key lime pie, and a crappy stained glass window artist all thrown together under Sharp’s assembly lines.

Yes, the added value stuff is cool — KIN Studio lets you see a historical archive of your entire phone, complete with text messages, photos and videos, and KIN Loop on the homepage is great in theory — but again, the execution here is the issue, and it reminds me of Motorola’s MOTOBLUR mess of a homescreen.

Going one step further, this device kind of spoiled my excitement for Windows Phone 7 — it is definitely not the same (though they do have the same base kernel), but it seems to be a little peak into that window, and from where I am standing, I don’t like the view. We have some photos ready to go in the gallery, plus the HTC Incredible makes a cameo for some size comparisons.

Click on over to our Microsoft KIN Two gallery!

Not even a whole two months removed from their announcing Windows Phone 7 Series, Microsoft is back today with another event in which it is expected to reveal its Project Pink line-up including the handsets known as the “Pure” and “Turtle”. Whether or not they’ll run WP7 or something else entirely isn’t clear, but all of this will soon be clear. As the event carries on we’ll be updating this post with the latest information, so be sure to check often lest you be left out of the loop. All of the goodness is after the jump.

And would you look at that, right as the event got underway KIN.com went live with all of the information about the new handsets.

KIN ONE

• Compact keypad for one-handed texting
• Multi-touch display
• 5 megapixel camera with LED flash and SD video recording
• Wi-Fi
• GPS
• External mono speaker
• 4GB internal memory (enough for 1,000 songs)
• Media powered by Zune

KIN TWO

• Horizontal sliding QWERTY keypad
• Multi-touch display
• 8 megapixel camera with LED flash and HD video recording
• Wi-Fi
• GPS
• External stereo speaker
• 8GB internal memory (enough for 2,000 songs)
• Media powered by Zune

Windows Phone 7 is about simplifying people’s lives, whereas KIN is all about amplifying people’s lives. It represents Microsoft “cranking social up to 11″ for “people who live to be connected, share, express and relate to their friends and family.”

The homescreen of the KIN is known as the Loop, an always running and constantly updating portal into your social life with support for services like Windows Live, Facebook, MySpace, and Twitter. You can customize Loop by adding your best friends to your favorites. This will ensure you see more frequent updates from your favorite people. Also found on the homescreen is KIN Spot, a little green dot where you can drag all of your favorite media content to share with friends and social media networks. The device’s browser is tightly integrated with the Spot so sharing an awesome BGR scoop with your friends couldn’t be more simple.

The KIN also comes with KIN Studio. “It’s your phone, online, on any web browser.” With KIN Studio, all of your call logs, texts, contacts images, videos, and more are stored in the cloud and viewable in a pretty nifty looking timeline. Pretty much everything you do on the KIN is compatible with geo-tagging, so if you forget where you were when you took a particular picture or video you can go online and refresh your memory thanks to the integration of Bing Maps.

The KIN ONE and TWO are the first Windows Phones to feature a full-fledged Zune experience. Music, video, podcasts, FM radio, you name it, the KIN’s got it (okay, no Zune gaming). Purchase yourself a Zune Pass subscription and you’re good to listen to millions of tracks on device or on your PC.

The KIN ONE and KIN TWO will go on sale with Verizon next month, while Vodafone will be offering the two devices across Europe in the Fall. Pricing has yet to be announced.

Definitely cool stuff, but the KIN line-up is not without huge, huge flaws. There is no support for third-party apps, the hardware looks to be pretty cheap and uninspired (the design could easily have been stolen from a Playmates Ninja Turtles toy circa 1989), and the displays are tiny. You know, two out of the three things that did Palm in in the past year.

Developing…

Dell unleashed a deluge of products and information upon us today. First up is some clarification on Dell’s Mini 3 smartphone. Though Dell announced its Android-powered Mini 3 handset and AT&T announced that it was getting a Dell handset yesterday, neither company confirmed the obvious — that the Dell Mini 3 is headed for AT&T. Thankfully, Dell came to its senses and confirmed today that the Mini 3 is indeed coming to AT&T. Dell also confirmed that it is working on a prototype 5 inch tablet, which looks curiously similar to the previously leaked Dell Streak. Rounding things out, Dell refreshed its PC and notebook lineup by redesigning its Inspiron series of PCs, introducing the sweet new Alienware M11x — a netbook-sized gaming machine, debuting an updated version of its Studio 14 notebook, and replacing the older Core 2 Duo with Intel’s latest Core i3, i5, and i7 processors. Hit the jump for the full press release and a few press photos of the prototype tablet and the new Alienware M11x.

At CES Dell Unveils First “All Powerful” Ultra Mobile Gaming System, Next Generation Smart Phones, Tablet Concepts and a New Line of Design Inspired Laptops

• Provides sneak peek of Mini 3 smart phone and a 5-inch tablet concept
• Unveils Dell’s first ultra-mobile gaming laptop with the Alienware M11x
• Announces AT&T to be next mobile operator offering the Mini 3 Android-based smart phones
• Launches redesigned Inspiron, refreshed Alienware and Studio laptops featuring Intel Core i3, i5, and i7 processors

LAS VEGAS–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Dell is responding to people’s desire to have mobile products that help them stay connected and leverage the latest tools and services for immersive digital experiences on the go.

Today at CES 2010, Dell showcased a broad range of new products including its first ultra-mobile gaming laptop. Additionally the company provided a peek at new products, including a 5-inch tablet concept and an Android-based smart phone for AT&T, both slated for launch in 2010. Dell also refreshed its Inspiron, Studio and Alienware systems incorporating the new Intel Core i3, i5, and i7 processors.

From a suite at the Palms Casino Resort, Dell gave bloggers, journalists and partners an early look at the upcoming devices, further illustrating how the company is using its unique relationships with people around the world to innovate consumer electronics to be more mobile, convenient and powerful.

“We are focused on technology and solutions that help people connect and share content virtually anytime and anyplace,” said Michael Tatelman, vice president of sales and marketing for Dell’s global consumer business. “Consumers are demanding enhanced mobility in high-quality devices, and want to know they have made smart choices with their purchases.”

Dell is expanding the personal-computing space with new products to respond to and best meet the expressed needs of consumers. The new products include:

• The Alienware M11x, the most powerful 11-inch gaming laptop in the universe — as easy to carry as it is powerful, making high-performance gaming accessible to all.
• A refreshed Studio 14 laptop for individuals who create and consume digital content, combining powerful technology with features that deliver a rich multi-media experience like enhanced audio solutions and high performance high definition displays.
• New versions of the popular Inspiron PC line continue to deliver on value and personalization while incorporating Intel’s new Core i5 processors and its “smart” features such as Turbo Boost technology.
• Dell expanded on Wednesday’s announcement saying that U.S. based AT&T will become the next mobile operator to offer the Mini 3 Android-based smart phone.

Dell shared interesting results from a study of more than 1,500 people about their smart phone experiences. Among highlights: 82 percent of those who own smart phones said they would not leave home without them, while more than half of those surveyed said they wanted to choose from a wider variety of smart phones options from additional providers. For more information on the survey highlights visit Dell Official Flickr page.

The News

Alienware M11x
The Alienware M11x demonstrates the graphics power of a 15-inch laptop in an 11-inch form factor
Play all of your games and media, whether at home or away, at HD 720p resolution
With the Alienware M11x, gamers can enjoy the feel of the gaming without compromise anywhere they go

Alienware OptX™ AW2310 23″ 3D Full HD Widescreen Monitor
The 23″ Alienware OptX™ AW2310 provides an immersive stereoscopic 3D experience that takes gamers to a whole new level of extreme, ultrarealistic game play*
Enable intense stereoscopic 3D effects on hundreds of PC game titles with NVIDIA® 3D Vision™ technology
Price for monitor is $499 (NVIDIA 3D Vision Kit not included)

Alienware M17x, M15x
The most powerful 17-inch and 15-inch Alienware gaming laptops ever created
The M17x, the most powerful 17-inch gaming laptop in the universe, now offers Intel Core i7 processors combined with dual graphics to deliver extreme frame rates at HD resolutions while maxing out game settings.
The M15x delivers exceptional HD video and audio editing, 3D animation and high-end PC gaming
M17x start at $1,799 and the M15x start at $1,399

Inspiron 14, 15, 17
Redesigned Inspiron laptops full-featured and ideal for on-the-go media consumption
Now with new, thinner chassis, 16:9 aspect HD displays, SRS Premium Sound™
Available today with new turbo-charged Intel® Core™ i5 processors starting at $849.
Systems featuring the Intel Core i3 processor will be available later this month, starting at $569.

Inspiron 580, 580s
Ideal for consumers looking for great, high-value desktop computers
Best-selling desktop line gets a boost from new processors, and many models may be personalized with color choices. Prices start at $269.

Studio 14, 15, 17
Refreshed Studio laptops feature Intel Core i5 and i7 processors and are perfect for sharing photos, music and videos with friends and family.
Portable Studio 14 available in North America later this month with prices starting at $699.
Studio 15 has high-definition, 15.6-inch LED widescreen design and is rich with multimedia technology, like True HD resolutions that show off content crisply, starting at $849
Studio 17 features beautiful 17.3-inch display, with unbelievably realistic audio. Prices start at $949

Studio XPS 8100
Knock-out features for families seeking a high-performance, multi-purpose desktop computer
Replaces Studio XPS 8000 with juiced-up Intel Core i5 processor technology, new theater-quality THX® TruStudio PC™ sound and cutting-edge design. Prices start at $749

About Dell
People worldwide can buy Dell online, by phone and through more than 50,000 outlets.

*Stereoscopic 3D requires optional NVIDIA® 3D Vision™ Kit and a desktop system with Dual-Link DVI Ports and a compatible NVIDIA graphics solution. For a full list of system requirements please visit: http://www.nvidia.com/object/GeForce_3D_Vision_Requirements.html.

Just as expected, Dell’s rumored Studio XPS notebooks made their debut on Dell’s website just in time for CES. According to the respective product pages, the new Studio XPS 1340 and XPS 1640 come in Obsidian Black with leather accents and will feature the following specs:

• Intel® Core™ 2 Duo P8400 (3MB cache/2.26GHz/1066Mhz FSB)
• Genuine Windows Vista® Home Premium Edition SP1, 64-bit
• Edge-to-Edge HD Widescreen 16.0 inch WLED LCD (1366×768) W/2.0 MP  or Edge-to-Edge 13.3″ HD WXGA LCD with 2.0 Megapixel Camera
• 4GB Dual Channel DDR3 SDRAM at 1067MHz (2 Dimms)
• 320GB 7200 RPM SATA Hard Drive
• 8X DVD+/- RW(DVD/CD read/write) Slot Load Drive (Sorry no Blu-Ray!)
• ATI Mobility RADEON® M86XT – 512MB
• Dell Wireless 1515 802.11n Half Mini-Card
• 6-cell Battery
• High Definition Audio 2.0
• Bundled with 15 months of McAfee Security Center, Dell Online Backup 2GB for 1 year , Microsoft Works
• 1Yr In-Home Service, Parts + Labor,24×7 Phone Support
• $200 Promo Dell Gift Card Card – Card to arrive 6-8 weeks after purchase

Both the Studio XPS 1340 and the Studio XPS 1640 have listed starting prices of $1,149. Pricing and specs are tentative as they may just be placeholders until official announcements come from Dell.

[Via Notebook Review]

Read (Dell Studio XPS 1340)
Read (Dell Studio XPS 1640)

Since you Canadians got the Blackberry Bold first, you had to wait for these – but now the wait is over. If giant towers are cramping your style, check out Dell’s new line of Studio Hybrids. You’ll also be happy to know, if you’re at all environmentally conscious, that these are Dell’s “greenest, most power-efficient desktop.” Like all of their machines, the Studio Hybrid is very customizable and comes in 6 different interchangeable color shells or bamboo. The disc slot will handle DVDs and Blu-Ray as an optional feature. Starting at $529, here are some of the features that can be had:

Pretty good deal, eh?

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