Sometimes products hit the market and we all wonder just what the maker was thinking when they came up with the idea. One of the more recent products that had many asking WTF was the Microsoft Kin phones. The Kin project reportedly spanned two years and when the phone was released, it failed after only two months on the market.

That failure certainly hurt some egos over at Microsoft and apparently, the pain was felt in places other than ego for CEO Steve Ballmer. Ballmer lead Microsoft to a record year, but his bonus for the end of the year was half what it could have been. Don't feel sorry for Ballmer though, half the possible bonus was still $670,000.

Ballmer's bonus was equal to his yearly pay and could have been as much as twice that amount had the Kin not failed and Microsoft had been able to do something in the tablet market. The official reasons for the smaller bonus from Microsoft were the "unsuccessful launch of the Kin phone, loss of market share in the company's mobile phone business, and the need for the company to pursue innovations to take advantage of new form factors."