T-Mobile's SDA and MDA: on pre-order 19th

We're not sure when they're actually gonna drop, but T-Mobile phoned home to let us know that their long awaited MDA and SDA are set for pre-order on the 19th (that'd be this Thursday, unless for some reason they meant February 19th). Unfortunately it looks like the Tornado gained the same unsightly bulge Cingular's 2125 did when it hit the streets on its US release, but better here and uglier than not here at all (except but by import), right? We know it'll be for Q1 release, but stay tuned for exact details on pricing, release dates, availability, etc.

[Dave @ Jan 17th 2006 12:25AM]

T-Mobile US or T-Mobile Elsewhere?

[modenadude @ Jan 17th 2006 12:26AM]

I'm really glad to hear this, but I'm disappointed with that SDA design... damn.

[Matt @ Jan 17th 2006 12:27AM]

Can't wait!!!

[Desperate for 8125 @ Jan 17th 2006 12:28AM]

Where the hell is the 8125? or for that matter have you tried to find anymention of the 2125 on the cingular website? I couldn't find it anywhere. What is going on I need that phone.

[turkish @ Jan 17th 2006 12:31AM]

sweet deliverance! i've been waiting for this news for months. and perfect timing too, as my current contract expires march 9th. hopefully that will be enough time for amazon to get this phone up with tmobile service and their crazy rebate deals. i'm hoping to pay around $100 for this with a year contract (i can dream, can't i? and through amazon i got my moto a630 for -$50, so it might be possible).

[turkish @ Jan 17th 2006 12:34AM]

ps; i'm talking about the wizard/MDA, above.

[Virtuous @ Jan 17th 2006 12:44AM]

Finally! TMo is so slow!

[bruno @ Jan 17th 2006 12:58AM]

unless there is a decent rom update soon your in for a world of headaches... i love mine but have never been more annoyed by a device...

[noel vasquez @ Jan 17th 2006 12:59AM]

hmmm, do I switch to verizon for the vx6700 or stick with T-mobile for the MDA?

[iceberg @ Jan 17th 2006 12:59AM]

After speaking with a Tmobile tech earlier today, I learned that the "MDA Wizard" as he called it will be available sometime in February, and will be carrier subsidized to $300.

[Craigy @ Jan 17th 2006 1:13AM]

After speaking with the tmobile guy all the kiosk at the mall, man he told me that they would pay all my bills 4 life!!! 4 real!!! Cuz you know the tmobile kiosk temp, or "tech", or "rep" just has all that inside info.....



*slits wrists*

[iceberg @ Jan 17th 2006 1:14AM]

Why was my comment deleted? Did I violate the engadget terms of service?



Anyway, I wanted to add that the HTC Wizard is based on a TI 200mhz processor, and can access EDGE data services. In contrast, the CDMA version called the HTC Apache is available on Sprint, has 1xRTT/EVDO and a 412Mhz Bulverdale processor (made by Intel), but with the downside of being priced $449 with a 2 year contract, and it also has an antenna stub, making it look less sleek than the Wizard.

[brewster @ Jan 17th 2006 1:34AM]

http://onlinestorez.cingular.com/cell-phone-service/cell-phones/cell-phones.jsp?v=1&q_deviceId=cdsku9870100&WT.svl=mod21



thats for you desperete for 8125. you said you couldnt find any mention of the 2125 but its right there listed with all of cingular's other phones.

[George McFly @ Jan 17th 2006 1:54AM]

Probly on T-mo UK. I've grown accustomed to poor selection in the US.

[Orneta @ Jan 17th 2006 3:15AM]

Yes, it's for T-Mobile US.

[TJ @ Jan 17th 2006 6:15AM]

Attention: These phones are coming to T-Mobile USA! T-Mobile UK, and other overseas T-Mobile companies, already have these phones! It will be out in mid to late February.

[PEZ @ Jan 17th 2006 6:18AM]

Took them long enough - I test drove this thing months ago for them. Had lots of problems. And damn, is it slow.

[Fred Nub @ Jan 17th 2006 6:37AM]

To add to the HTC Apache note, there is no comparison to EDGE and EV-DO speeds. EVDO and the Apache combo rocks.

[Warren @ Jan 17th 2006 6:51AM]

arg!

V3i or this??

[Hawk @ Jan 17th 2006 7:09AM]

I'm so sick of people complaining about this hump thing.



It's a freaking GSM antenna. American GSM networks suck because america is really big and spread out and, oh, most spots in europe aren't and have much better GSM coverage?



Waaaaah, my phone has a hump, girls won't like me.... oh well, not like I want them to anyway.

[msmathguy @ Jan 17th 2006 7:38AM]

Will there be no camera versions?

[mrjeffery @ Jan 17th 2006 7:53AM]

I've had the wizard for a couple of months and its great but VERY buggy at the moment. It desperately needs a ROM upgrade to sort out issues with the new activesync. Apart from that its very sweet indeed.

[rommel @ Jan 17th 2006 10:33AM]

to poster #10

where do you find these tmoble reps? i can never find anybody who knows anything about phones!

[Larry @ Jan 17th 2006 11:51AM]

Has anybody been able to verify this story or has anyone seen news like this on the T-Mobile site or any other sites on the web?

[doyouflip @ Jan 17th 2006 12:14PM]

I've had the Qtek version of this same device for a couple months. It IS buggy, but with some work, it's possible to get it in a stable state. However, as someone else noted, this thing is slow. If you're accustomed to the responsiveness of the newer Blackberrys or Treo 650, this thing will drive you nutes. As much as I want to love it for all its features, I don't think I'll keep it for very long.

[Scott Batura @ Jan 17th 2006 1:14PM]

Does anyone know if a camera-less version of either device will be available?

[Jules @ Jan 17th 2006 2:39PM]

I think the MDA is great. I've been waiting for it for weeks. Although, now I'm having second thoughts coz a few people mentioned that it is "buggy". Just how slow and buggy are we talking about. I am planning on buying a PDA but with this I was hoping to kill 2 birds with one stone. Still, I might end up getting it.

[CWY @ Jan 17th 2006 3:19PM]

Anyone know what kind of data package you will need to get with this phone? Right now I have an unlocked SMT5600 and I have the $4.99 t-zones which gives me unlimited GPRS access on my phone plus I'm able to tether to my laptop.

[jimmcq @ Jan 17th 2006 4:20PM]

Please forgive my ignorance, but how does the billing for something like this work? (specifically the internet/data portion).

Do you get unlimited data traffic? Or do you pay per MB of traffic? Does internet usage eat away at your talk time minutes?

I'd appreciate it if someone would explain this to me.

[Joe B @ Jan 17th 2006 4:34PM]

I was in a T-Mobile Corp store yesterday inquiring about the SDA. The manager said that they wouldn't be available until Q2 2006. Hopefully Engadget's got a tighter connection to this info - waiting on T-Mobile is like waiting for Microsoft, delay, delay, delay.

[dev3l @ Jan 17th 2006 7:53PM]

29: T-Mo offers unlimited data, and it does not affect your talk time minutes, both a crippled version the $4.99/mo. unlimted t-zones, and the full Internet package as $19.99/mo. which includes 300 text messages.

28: The regular t-zones should work since it's only a matter of settings.

24: Our corporate rep sent me the brochures today. consider it verified.

22: Corporate reps are _the_ source of information and are typically assigned to corporate customers for businesses that have t-mobile service contracts.

[Thrillah @ Jan 17th 2006 9:11PM]

I will wait for a review of the US version before I make any decisions.

[Grant @ Jan 17th 2006 10:23PM]

31: Can you tell us if the brochures make any mention of UMA (Unlicensed Mobile Access, http://www.umatechnology.org/) support on the new handsets?

[dev3l @ Jan 18th 2006 2:35AM]

33: There isn't mention of UMA, just GPRS, EDGE, and WiFi (a major improvement over the Cingular version). That said the incorporated technologies would be a good platform to bring UMA onboard.

[turkish @ Jan 18th 2006 2:42AM]

for those concerned with speed, here is a review of the MDA/wizard that includes a fair number of benchmarks and comparing it the the above-mentioned Apache. http://www.mobiletechreview.com/i-mate_K-JAM.htm. it is slower, but not tons slower, and certainly not less than half the speed as the raw proc. speeds would indicate. all of the review i have read have said that the phone does not feel slow, but of course it is all relative. i'm upgrading from a moto a-630 so i am sure it will seem quite responsive compared to that dog of a phone.

[Chris @ Jan 18th 2006 8:34AM]

Do all the phones based on this "HTC Model" use the same processor? Or is the T-Mobile version using a slower processor to keep the phone's price down? If that later is the case it might be worth spending a little extra and getting an unlocked version to use on T-Mobile.

[Dukester @ Jan 18th 2006 10:50PM]

. Took them long enough - I test drove this thing months ago for them. Had lots of problems. And damn, is it slow.

Posted at 6:18AM on Jan 17th 2006 by PEZ 0 stars

It's called an NDA for a reason PEZ!

[diem @ Jan 19th 2006 10:32AM]

ok so its thursday, where are the new handsets??

any info on HOW TO PRE-ORDER??

[Ed @ Jan 19th 2006 11:07AM]

Just tried to preorder through T-Mobile's 1-800 number. No go. They don't have the information and indicated that they do not except preorders. No pricing information either.

[Larry @ Jan 19th 2006 12:31PM]

I've searched the t-mobile site and no mention of the product anywhere.

[aggie88 @ Jan 19th 2006 2:11PM]

Talked with rep this AM. They have the info in their system but they do not have a pre-order option. Available Feb 20th.

[John @ Jan 19th 2006 3:27PM]

That's TMo for you...

[DLC @ Jan 19th 2006 3:50PM]

Just got off the phone w/ Tmo...Same as aggie88...Device was approved on the 12, and possible release by the 20th of Feb...They are definitely slow...

[Chris @ Jan 19th 2006 4:53PM]

I keep hearing the word 'slow'. Are you saying that T-Mobile is slow or the device is slow? I was all excited about getting this phone but I'm now worried that it will have very slow performance.

[diem @ Jan 19th 2006 7:20PM]

I just spoke with a Tmo CSR and he was clueless, so those of you that DID receive information, thats more than I got. The CSR I spoke with said that they typically release new handsets on Mondays. This sounds a little sketchy... I have TMO now and notices that they just upgraded their voicemail system in the past few days, perhaps this has something to do with using Windows Mobile 5.0 handsets on the network???

anyway... if anyone gets info from Tmo please post, with details...


-diem

[Matt @ Jan 19th 2006 7:48PM]

#45 - no connection

They will both be released late Feb.

Never heard of pre-order with T-Mobile, it would be a first.

No other internal news.

[nutzareus @ Jan 19th 2006 7:53PM]

My TMO guy said SDA on 2/13 and MDA on 2/20. No pricing.

[monal @ Jan 19th 2006 9:49PM]

check http://www.t-mobile.com/bethefirst tomorrow morning for a pre-order. The page will not show anything till then

[Christine @ Jan 20th 2006 9:08AM]

Still getting a 404...

[TJ @ Jan 20th 2006 9:58AM]

Give them time. Give them til like 11am EST to have the website available. They are always slow at putting phones on their website when they launch.