T-Mobile Sidekick LX officially announced all over again
By Chris Ziegler 
posted Apr 17th 2009 12:01AM
posted Apr 17th 2009 12:01AM
We had a chance to sit down with the new model for a few minutes recently, and we'll say it on no uncertain terms: this is by far the best Sidekick that Sharp (or Motorola, if you want to get technical about it) has ever made. It's the first model we've ever come across that actually feels professional and aspirational; it makes every other Sidekick seem like a toy by comparison in terms of physical design, materials, and build quality, and the addition of ActiveSync support makes this an entirely reasonable choice for young, white-collar types who cut their teeth on an older model. T-Mobile couldn't have picked a better time to be launching a device with tight Twitter integration, and it worked like a champ for us. We didn't have a ton of time to play with Microsoft Live Search and its GPS mapping capabilities, but maps loaded reasonably quickly, you've got live traffic data available to you, and naturally, you've got some pretty comprehensive search capabilities in there as well. The phone is physically large, but not impractically so -- owners of the original LX will feel right at home -- and the soft-touch plastic looks and feels great in either color. The 854 x 480 display is one of the best (if not the best) we've ever seen on a mobile device launched in the US, crisp to the point where individual pixels are utterly imperceptible to the naked eye (see the gallery shots to get a sense of what we mean). Put simply, from our brief time with it, we're struggling to come up with bad things to say -- and frankly, we're a little jealous of anyone plunking down the cash.
Wow, it's ugly.
I disagree, I think it's really nice. This is the first time since the Sidekick 2 that I think a Sidekick is cool. I would not mind having this what so ever.
NO, its very ugly
This is the newest Palm Pre killer. It also has a keyboard and does background processing. Everyone will throw away their Palm Pres to get this. Oh wait....Nobody has a Palm Pre, yet.
where is the MOTO logo what"s up with the sharp thing
@Jay: IIRC Sharp makes the Sidekick hardware (Motorola only made one Sidekick model a while back) Danger (e.g. Microsoft) makes the software, and T-Mobile owns (or exclusive license?) the Sidekick brand-name...
With the rise in consumer oriented Blackberries, Android, and [as much as I hate to admit] the iPhone, Sidekicks just don't have quite the ahem...kick they used to.
That's because Microsoft bought Danger.
This phone was way into late development before Microsoft bought danger.
Good try.
We in Europe never had the possibility of getting any Sidekicks and I always digged the form factor.
Did we miss something?
Cool. Everyone who had their previous generation sidekick break will be interested in this. Scratch that. Everyone who has owned a sidekick will be interested in this....
Oh haha, I was like "Noooo, I can see the pixels" til I realized they were the ones on my laptop's screen, not the phone's. That screen does look crisp.
even though the sidekick is mostly for teens you have to admit they have come a long way. most comfortable keyboard ever. amazing aim intergration and now 3g. i might think about picking this bad girl up. but god the sidekick 4 was the worst phone ever. it would always do that triangle thing and never have service.
VGA? hot damn!
the sidekick grows up?
It's still missing a touchscreen. They could have thrown one in.
because the directional pad AND trackball arent enough? it should have a bluetooth joystick, too.
The sidekick ui is based entirely on easy navigation with the trackball and keyboard shortcuts. A touchscreen would be useless on a sidekick.
Actually on a "on-the-go" device of this size touch screen is not a very practical UI.
The android has a touch screen.
where i live only like hoodrats have sidekicks. they used them in joint with MetroPCS phones, so they usually dont have call service, just data on them. i live in the bay area btw
That sounds about right. Texting and push-to-talk are the hallmarks of hoodratism.
Hey, I'm one of those hoodrats. Okay, well, I do live in Oakland and I do have a sidekick.
So you are going to judge a phone based on the people who used them?
That doesn't sound right. Maybe I should say only homosexuals use Macs so Macs must be gay as well. Does that make sense?
your stupid as hell...ive had sidekicks, metro pcs, and am currently at an unlocked blackberry storm...I can assure you that i am no hoodrat or any sterotypical idea you have about people in the bayarea...by the way i to live in the BAY AREA!
geez guys calm down, i was just talking about where i live and the general ppl who have them in this area. don't get butt hurt, there are far worse things things going on than my 3 sentence rant on sidekicks.
i've lived in the bay area all my life, i have nothing against it. lighten up.
Does this have push support? How is this any less of a smartphone vs BB, Android, etc?
OS, I guess. A good thing about running a Smartphone OS (Winmo, Android, etc) is that you can install apps on it and customize it to a degree. I'm guessing Sidekick is still running a proprietary OS, so you wouldn't be able to install many apps unless they are java based dumbphone apps or apps provided by T-mobile.
The specs for this phone look good, but I'm wondering how much of it a user can actually utilize. GPS and 3G are great, but if you have to pay for something like Verizon Navigator (or w/e it's called) and use a mobile web browser, the value of those features are kind of lost...
I guess people who are used to Sidekicks may want to get this device, but other than that... wouldn't people want to buy a Smartphone instead, at that price point?
I mean I have a G1 and I'd take it over this any day because its cheaper, has the touch screen and Android.
I suppose if they had better app support for the sidekick it would be considered a smartphone. Aren't BB and adroid apps based on Java as well?
@Abuzar Baloach
Not really. Android uses a java-like language, but it's apps have nothing to do with the mobile java apps that run on most phones today. If you have run typical mobile java apps and compare them to the apps on Android, you will notice the apps on Android tend to be a lot more powerful and have much more hardware specific functionality. Most "dumb" phones can run mobile java.
To clarify, Android runs in a JVM -- so it's a Java Application.
Mobile Java is basically running apps inside an Applet (much less powerful than an application).
It has push support... always has (for the email address they give you). And it's getting Exchange support.
And it had an App store long before Apple. Not standard Java apps, but third party apps designed specifically for the Sidekick. Works great. Over the air OS upgrades too.
I'm not sure where you got the idea that Push Email is the definition of a Smartphone, I've never thought of it that way. To me a Smartphone is any phone that has an openly available SDK where anybody can develop apps and release them to other users. Whether or not the iPhone's app store counts is up for debate, since the apps require approval, but it's definitely a hell of a lot closer than the Sidekick's system of approval where they basically deny everything that isn't from a major developer.
They include the European UMTS band and not their own? Idiots.
it supports the t-mo usa 3g band as well as europe band. idiot.
I found the specs on another site. The "3G" mentioned in the 2nd sentence of the Engadget article does indeed mean US T-Mobile 3G. I thought it meant that but wasn't sure, so I checked. It would have been a bad move to exclude the US 3G.
"Dual-band UMTS/HSDPA (AWS Band IV & Band I)"
3G data plans are too expensive, especially with the recession. 70 bucks+fees? No thanks, I'll just make do with a 30 dollar plan.
Seriously, why do monthly plans for smartphones cost more than monthly plans for cable TV and internet combined?
Oligopoly.
seriousam7: probably partly due to the phone subsidies (in the US). though it's still too expensive. And anyone with a data plan should get free texting.
Those buttons dont look very solid for people with large fingers.
There's always finger-reduction surgery.
Sucks to your ass-mar, fatty.
webkit browser? we'll see...
omg im so stupid im all lik "i wonder why they decided to go with microsoft live search" until lik 5 minutes later when i remembered that microsoft bought danger lol
Sidekicks are great if you're like between 6 and 10 year old, but i can't see a grown ass man with a freggin sidekick, i mean it just don't look right, also most all the people i seen with them look kind of dirty, no offence.
Excellent, this looks like a Very Promising Step or should I say Kick, in the Right Direction.
That Screen is going to be Absolutely AMAZING!!!
They still have that Bob game? Thats the game with the bouncing ball right? I remember having that on my Sidekick 2 trying to make time go by faster through Calculus. Ahhh high school.....
im not gonna bash the sidekick, they were revolutionary back in their day,
I have G1...I'm about to get thissssssssssss!
i still have my first sidekick .,from october of 2002.,.,also my first cell nokia from 1996.
sidekick are the worst phones
Why? Because they do what they were meant to do? Complain about it all you want but it does what it was designed to do. Calls are fine, I can hear the person clearly and vice verse. Texting is great on the phone, full keyboard that is easy to type on (Im a guy with semi big fingers). Media player that plays different types of music files as well as videos. Video player could be better but overall not horrible. Browser is great. I haven't used that many other cell phone browsers so I cant compare but for a regular internet browser it does fine. Configures the website to fit the screen layout but also gives the option to view a full page layout. Camera is also pretty good. Its not the best cell phone camera out there but takes good quality pictures that are fine with me. Im not expecting something huge from a cell phone camera. Umm lets see what else. Great email setup. I can had my other email accounts straight to my phone with its own tab. So I have my school account, yahoo account, and tmail account all in different tabs. The sidekick also has spell check, so I dont have to worry about spelling things wrong when it comes to an email, or a text.
Now were getting 3G, GPS, myspace/facebook/twitter (ok, not that huge but for certain people it is), better screen. better camera (3.2mp and autofocus), and probably some more things that Im missing. So yeah, I dont know where you get their the worst phones.
The sidekick found its humble beginnings in the deaf/hard-of-hearing world, and it has always been a text-based communication champ. You will not find a device that is easier to use for IM, rapid-fire email.
I had a Sidekick 2 a month after it came out and it served its purpose well. Contacting my friends through IM was my only option as using the cell phone is just plain fruitless. Consider that the "sidekick" plan was quite a bit cheaper than the blackberry plans as well as unlimited data plans. If this continues to be the case, it will continue to be the champion of instant text-based communication simply because of its physical format.
Even my Palm Treo 650 and Blackberry Curve cannot match the IM superiority of the sidekick, and it is something I sorely miss at times. Unfortunately, with the physical format being superior, the software and hardware has since the 3rd sidekick lagged one step behind in intuitive nature. We'll see if Microsoft can change things around for the better.
This looks excellent. I was going to upgrade to the palm pre when it came out for GSM but I'll probably stay with the sidekick line even longer.
Looks very nice. Love that screen... but.... how is the browser??? this is kind of key.
I love the sidekick hardware, but I think the OS is starting to look very dated. I don't know if I could ever go back to a non-touch screen device at this point. I haven't used a Sidekick since the Sidekick 2, so I wonder how the web browser has progressed and how it compares to something like Opera Mobile.
Why is the sidekick such a loved phone? I don't understand its following, maybe you just have use one to understand.
That photo looks fishy to me, the screen is the wrong way around , the T-Mobile logo is on the wrond end of the phone, looks like another photoshop job that fooled you engadget guys.
You're the one getting fooled.
The logos are oriented the exact same way as the LX sitting next to my keyboard.
As all previous Sidekicks this has a screen that must be swiveled not slid.
Then go look at the official photos at http://sidekick.com/
I'm impressed, especially with the screen.
With all these amazing phones it's going to be a tough one to decide which to get next!
Pre, N97, G1, TG01...
IMHO a Snapdragon filled TG01 FTW :o)
Can someone with a good knowledge of phone carriers answer me this...
My girlfriend wants a sidekick (the hills/gossip girl a big influence) but were over here in the UK. Would an "unlocked" sidekick work over here (internet, 3g, facebook etc) if we bought a tmobile monthly sim card with a data package?
cheers
This particular model does appear to include worldwide 3G bands for roaming, it seems possible that it would work. Sorry I can't say for sure, but it looks a lot more promising for UK than anything else that T-Moble USA has ever released.
The old (US) sidekicks if unlocked for UK use would only do calling and SMS. No internet. No IM.
Bah, what does this have that my iPhone doesn't? Aside from a video recorder. And a higher resolution screen. And a 3.2 megapixel camera with autofocus and flash. And microSD card support. And turn by turn navigation. And copy and paste. And instant automatic wireless backup of your data to the web. And a kick-ass keyboard.
Seriously though, the Sidekick is a great messaging phone, with a solid, easy to use operating system. If this had come out a year ago I might not have bought an iPhone.
The cool thing about smartphones (like the iPhone) is that there's really no limit to their functionality because there's always new applications to discover. The Sidekick is (and always has been) the king of Messaging Phones, it has an incredible keyboard (probably the best on the market) and tons of built-in functionality, but you're pretty limited on your ability to expand that functionality later on. It does have a small app store on the phone, but since T-Mobile is extremely stingy about what they're willing to put on it you're not going to find anything overly exciting.
The only other major issue with the Sidekick is that T-Mobile locks down the operating system HARD. You can't even assign a photograph as your background because it only accepts the $3 backgrounds purchased from the online store.
so will we still be paying for ringtones?
seriously I love that on my WinMo device....and thats about it.
I will probably be getting this or the Pre. Even tho they apeal to a totally different audience I got WinMo after my SK3 died because of all the possibilities, but hardly ever used 10% of them. I have a netbook for anything web related and the Danger severs do a great job of formatting websites and like Opera Mini you only download the format not the whole thing which is why I use both Opera 9.5 beta and Opera Mini, Mini is way quicker despite it's limitations. Hopefully they open the development a little more and add features more frequently through the OTA updates. Sidekick was doing that like 5 years ago. Hopefully voice dial and A2DP also and I will probably get back onto T-mo for it, plus their customer service still rocks. I have never heard it mentioned but I always thought that sidekick did the best job of polish till the iPhone. Nothing that was on the SK2 worked wrong, everything was flawless inside its limitations, I think that's what we need more in phones instead of everything you want is possible just don't expect it to be perfect.
what I meant is on WinMo devices pick any mp3 and make it a ringtone. You don't have to pay for them from the service provider.
no
If this thing has turn-by-turn directions, i'm selling my g1 for this.
I use turn-by-turn directions on my G1 daily. Check out Telenav, it works great.
I'm excited about the exchange support.
I'm not trying to be a jerk, but why? I'm honestly asking. Do people have personal Exchange servers? The only Exchange servers that I've ever known of are the ones controlled by the IT departments of companies I work for, and those are always locked down to only work with company-supplied Blackberry devices.
@ chegon_ign errr www.sklxthemes.com and if you mean when you "lock" the phone and the screen guard doesnt show a picture, you can change that to whatever you want in the actual phone settings. lxthemes is easy u just copy paste it to your phone and you apply it..so idk why you said that other than maybe you were misinformed. also to the G1 users, im selling mine on craigslist come may 13th. I had an original LX before the G1 and the G1 was great and all but man do I miss the streamline AIM conversations.
The keyboard is SECOND best to the sidekicks (the G1's) but yeah I'm done waiting for cupcake (apparently its coming out in 4days) but i dont care, my new LX is here and its a solid phone, so all you sidekick haters out there can hate, but the phone does everything it needs to do flawlessly. It was a good 6+ months G1, LX 2009 here I come. oh and btw, im curious chefgon, how do you use turn by turn daily? do you have your G1 perm connected to your car charger? cuz the G1 battery life SUCKS COMPARED TO EVERYTHING, HTC ftl.
FYI, its only $199 if you are qualified for the upgrwde - if not, its more than $400. Wish it had wifi, that would make me forget the G1.
Technically it is $250 + SHIPPING + TAX
The $199.99 is*AFTER* a $50 mail-in-rebate, which really isn't a FULL $50 since you HAVE paid sales tax on the full $250
I know on past Sidekicks, you haven’t allowed customers to add their own ring tones. Is this still the case?
No, this has been opened up now. Customers can add their own ring tones in addition to those available in the download catalogue.
WIN!!!! hows that for being locked down HARD c[;
Psh, I don't even use Wi-FI on the G1 because it's so spotty, plus it kills the battery but doing anything on my G1 kills the battery so w.e
Now you've done it.
I've always been a sidekick fan, as the III/LX were how I survived high school. But now that I own a G1, I don't need this one(although if i DIDN'T have a G1, I'd surely get this)
one thing the sidekicks have over other phones is a cheaper plan. The data plan is only 30 bucks extra and has unlimited texting and internet. That's the only reason I have a sidekick.
FYI if you an original sidekick user the data plan is $20.00 that's for those of us that have had this for a longer time. They no longer offer the $20.00 plan
I thought the sidekicks couldn't get any uglier..........i was horribly wrong!
Thanks for ordering the Sidekick LX!
Your new phone will be delivered to your door no later than 5/12.1
Already have a data plan? Get set to experience the wonder of 3G speed, GPS, e-mail, web browsing, Facebook, MySpace, Twitter and more. Be ready…your Sidekick LX is coming!
Woot Woot!
the screen is awesome, no doubt about it. but no shots of the web browser?
email is "tabbed", so I wonder if the browser is, too. that's the biggest downside of the sk3 browser - singletasking.
This LX model is based on the older body style of the Sidekick. I
have the SDK 2008 model and yeah it was cool when T-Mobile released
it. Now this LX is no different than it's earlier models. Yeah
Sidekick 1/ Monocrome display, Sidekick Color same thing color screen,
Sidekick 2 same thing different body style and colored rubber bumpers,
Sidekick 3 better keyboard, replacable battery and MP3 player. Then
the LX 1 model Wider body style but really no differences. Then the
2008 model smaller and different operating platform. What does the LX
2009 model have? Oh yeah finally G3 and more social networking apps
that you pay for monthly oh GPS (Windows Live Search) big deal they
just offered that on the 2008 model and it's a free app. You've also
got a 3.2 megapixel AF camera with LED flash, microSD expansion
(T-Mobile throws a 1GB card in the box), video recording and playback
(including YouTube access), stereo Bluetooth, quadband EDGE, and HSDPA
2100 for high-speed coverage when you're galavanting around Europe. Oh
are we going to Europe anytime soon now? What the heck where is the
windows mobile application? for $199.00 thats garbage I have had the
Sidekick since day one and they haven't changed much in the last few
years. when are they going to make it better so that you can do more
without spending more. My Space is $1.99 monthly now add up Twitter
and Etc.. doesn't make sense oh I forgot Photobucket you pay for that monthly
too geez make this a Windows mobile based phone and maybe it woud be
worth the $199.00 and for those of you touch freaks, get a G1 model
the Sidekick would suck with a touchscreen. I don't like the fact
that this LX 2 version is nothing more than an overpriced social
networking cash hog. Gee Wiz G3 finally and now more apps to pay for
monthly ( see where there going?) I remember when you paid a one time
fee to have most apps or games, now there swaying slowly to pay per
month I figure a good $7.00 extra or more a month with Twitter,
Photobucket, My Space Etc...Oh I'm glad to see that they got smart
and added the flash back for the camera feature and 3.2 megapixel
WOW. So all your mindless chatter about this model and you see there
is really no significant changes except Exchange ActiveSync support that I might finally sync with my Anytime Organizer program. www.anytimeorganizer.com I have wanted to make more use of this but to pay $199.00 to use this on the LX LOL you have to be high LMAO geez what will they think of next charging to use the sync feature? Maybe the 2008 users will get the option to use this unless of course this is yet another OS platform change.
Oh the travesty of misinformation by the uninformed. How about you read a little bit before coming up with all these ASSumptions:
http://forums.t-mobile.com/tmbl/board?board.id=SidekickFAQ
No significant changes. Lets see:
Higher resolution screen than the iPhone
3G
GPS
Better camera w/Flash
OS is now Linux based
And since I am sure you are a fan of custom ringtones you can now use your own in addition to the ones on the catalog.
Yep, you are right zero to see here no upgrade whatsoever over past devices...sigh.
looks really nice, i cant wait to play with it, but my heart is still on the G1, even thou its gettin a little age on it, I dont care, I had a chance to get more familiar with it tonite, and I cant get my mind off it, lol
A few things i found interesting about this device
-Will current Sidekick customers who pay for the MySpace application continue to be charged the $1.99 monthly fee? Or will this change since now this application is free on the new Sidekick LX?
Only customers who purchase the new Sidekick LX will not be charged for using the integrated MySpace application.
-Will you provide turn-by-turn directions on Live Search for the Sidekick LX?
Yes. Shortly after launch, Sidekick customers will be able to download an application with turn by turn directions.
-Data Plans
With a voice plan, there are two data plan options:
unlimited Web and 400 messages for $24.99/month
unlimited Web and messages for $34.99/month
Without a voice plan, there are two data plan options:
unlimited Web and 400 messages for $44.99/month
unlimited Web and messages for $54.99/month
i will be buying this the day it comes out