New Sidekick Looks More Stylish, Not Svelte
Of the cellphones with keyboards introduced since 2002, the Sidekick with its spring-loaded, swing-out screen took the prize for ... most clunky.
No matter that its ability to send instant messages captivated teenagers and the Hollywood party crowd. The inescapable truth is that the thing looked like a miniature Etch A Sketch or a piano for trained mice.
Not only that, the Sidekick has been frozen in time since 2003, when the last version came out. That’s ancient history for a high-tech trendsetter. It was high time for something the party crowd can understand: a makeover.
This week, the only cellphone provider offering the phone, T-Mobile USA, announced that the Sidekick 3 would go on sale Wednesday for about $300 with a two-year contract.
It couldn’t come a minute too soon for the device’s position in the marketplace.
Its chief competitors among keyboard phones -- Research in Motion’s Blackberry and Palm Inc.’s Treo -- have introduced slimmed-down models since the last Sidekick came out. And just last month, Motorola Inc.’s super-svelte Q phone joined the fray.
Judging by its advertising, the Q may be aiming for the Sidekick’s bread and butter, the youth market -- and for business users as well.
So what’s new about the Sidekick 3?
First of all, a more sophisticated look. Its black and silver case is 20% more compact and more spare -- no more rubberized buttons on the top and bottom. The controls also have shrunk and the labeling on them has been toned down.
If the Sidekick II was hip hop, the new model is smooth jazz.
Even so, it’s still clunky. The Sidekick retains the swing-out screen and horizontal orientation, ensuring that the phone can almost never be used with one hand. And it remains bigger than its competitors.
But if you’re a Sidekick fan and don’t mind the extra bulk, it hardly matters.
For all its clunkiness, the Sidekick 3 does more things well than any other keyboard phone I’ve ever tried. It’s easy to fall in love with the darned thing, like you would with a clumsy puppy.
What separates the Sidekick from the crowd of cellphones with keyboards, in addition to its looks, is the ease with which it can handle e-mail and, especially, instant messages.
I found myself tapping out e-mails and instant messages to friends wherever I went and then grabbing it anxiously when I had an incoming missive.
Most instant messages are sent computer to computer via the Internet. They’re called instant because they can travel faster than e-mail and they automatically pop up on the receiver’s screen as soon as they arrive.
The cellphone equivalent is text messaging, phone to phone, using the letters on normal telephone keypads to tap out short notes. (I don’t know anyone over the age of 20 who can do it with dexterity.)
But on the Sidekick and some other cellphones, you can send an instant message to any device hooked up to the Internet, including a desktop or laptop computer or another Sidekick.
The Sidekick 3 comes with software for three of the most popular IM providers -- America Online’s AIM, Microsoft’s MSN Messenger and Yahoo Messenger -- preinstalled.
You just sign in with your user name and password and start sending and receiving messages. No direct Internet connection is required.
The messaging on the Sidekick 3 worked so seamlessly that none of my message buddies realized I was corresponding from a cellphone, not a computer. One reason is that the Sidekick 3 uses the high-speed Edge cellular network -- accessible in most metropolitan areas -- for faster data communication. In areas outside of Edge’s reach, messages travel on a slower cell network.
The Sidekick 3 also sports several new features, most of which are aimed squarely at the youth market. They include an MP3 music player and a much-improved camera, plus a slot for a memory card (sold separately).
The music player is no iPod when it comes to ease of use in downloading and organizing music. (Then again, nothing is.) But the Sidekick player is far less troublesome than its competitors. There are limitations: It can handle audio files only in the MP3 or WAV formats, and it’s not equipped to play music purchased online.
The resolution of the camera is a respectable 1.3 megapixels, a big jump up from the 0.3 megapixels in the Sidekick II. Using the e-mail function on the phone, I was able to send photo attachments with little fuss.
The only Internet function that disappointed was the Web browser. Although it can display some photos and graphics, it is extremely slow. It took as long as a minute to access some Web pages.
So would I make the Sidekick 3 my regular cellphone? Probably not, mostly because of the bulk, and I don’t much need messaging capabilities. For everyday use, I’m still a fan of simple, clamshell-type cellphones that can be easily tucked away in pockets.
But clunky or not, using the Sidekick 3 is undeniably a kick.
David Colker can be reached at technopolis@latimes.com. Previous columns can be found at latimes.com/technopolis.
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The not-so-skinny
For the first time since 2003, the Sidekick cellphone, known for its e-mail and instant messaging abilities, has been revamped.
Model: Sidekick 3
Available: June 28
Cell service provider: T-Mobile USA
Price: $299.99 with two-year contract
Service fees: Voice plans start at $29.99 a month. Unlimited data plan for e-mail, instant messaging and Web browsing costs an additional $29.99 a month.
Pros: Comes preset for AIM, MSN Messenger and Yahoo Messenger instant-messaging services. E-mailing also is a breeze.
Cons: The horizontal keyboard and screen make for a bulky phone.
Source: Times research
Los Angeles Times
