14 DAY TRIAL // Having a Microsoft-branded device launched on the market doesn't sound like something incredible, as two leaked images of the supposedly Turtle and Pure phones that should come out of the Pink project have just emerged into the wild on Gizmodo. Rumored for quite some time now, the two handsets are reportedly the fruits of a tight collaboration between Microsoft and Sharp, and are also the result of Danger's team expertise.
If one asked why this particular trio, one would receive a simple answer. It seems that Sharp is the company that came up with the hardware for Danger's Sidekick, and their collaboration continued even after Microsoft acquired Danger a while ago. Moreover, it seems that the Pink project is aimed at the same market segment as the Sidekick, and that it might not be too long before the devices reach the market, as they are supposedly in the final stages of development.
For the time being, however, there are no exact details on what the two phones will come to the market packed with. Yet, rumors suggest they are mid-range devices, although sporting deep integration of social networking features. At the same time, there are also voices suggesting that the phones will sport some Zune-ish features and services, something that was already suggested by the previously leaked details on Pink.
For what it's worth, it should be quite interesting to see what these handsets will come to the market with. Earlier rumors suggested that Pink was about a mobile phone based on Windows Mobile 7 and the services attached to it, and that a Microsoft Chassis also surfaced in the development process. The hardware specs for the Chassis were quite appealing, which would suggest that these phones might come with attractive specs as well.
“The hardware design has a definite younger feeling: Turtle looks like a chunky child's version of a Palm Pre, while Pure seems like a standard slider, and both are clearly plastic, with an overall sense of roundedness, thanks to lots of soft angles and circular keys,” Gizmodo describes the two phones. Coupled with attractive services, with rumors on Zune having to do something with Pink too, these devices might indeed appeal to the mass-market, just what Microsoft is said to aim at.
