T-Mobile Sidekick 4G Review

Introduction:

Believed at one point to be utterly annihilated from existence, which blackened its reputation somewhat with the mini meltdown that occurred back in late 2009, the lovable Sidekick line is alive and beating once again. Still placing its emphasis on the messaging and social networking oriented aspects, the reincarnated T-Mobile Sidekick 4G brings back the popular line with its new manufacturer in Samsung and involvement with the Android platform – as opposed to the forgettable Danger OS which previously powered the Sidekick. Naturally, the handset has been given a modernized makeover that should appeal to a lot of people; even if you haven’t experienced one before. Moreover, its $99.99 on-contract cost from the onset is no doubt one attraction that makes it uber affordable for anyone, but can it contend with the likes of other highly prized QWERTY style Android handsets out there?

The package contains:

Design:

First and foremost, the Samsung-manufactured T-Mobile Sidekick 4G embodies all of the design cues that instantly make it a recognizable Sidekick, but it doesn’t quite hit the mark as being the prettiest one we’ve seen. Employing an entirely plastic body, it feels a little bit on the cheap side, but that’s generally what you expect out of a youth inspired device like this. Furthermore, we’re surprised to find this hefty sized (0.6” thick) handset packing some weight (5.7 oz) with it – especially more when it’s made out of plastic. Still, the three toned handset (black, white, & pink in our case) has plenty of character to stand out while retaining a solid feel, but don’t think for a second that it’ll compete with the likes of the industrial designs from HTC’s camp. Then again, it’s targeting a whole different demographic.



You can compare the T-Mobile Sidekick 4G with many other phones using our Size Visualization Tool.

Even though we’re happy to see the Sidekick 4G flaunting a captivating 3.5” WVGA (480 x 800) LCD display, it actually isn’t the highest resolution display found with a Sidekick – that noteworthy recognition goes to the Sidekick LX with its 480 x 858 resolution. Nonetheless, it still produces some stellar detail that even manages to provide some distinctive outlines with the most miniscule of text on screen. Not stopping there, we’re soundly impressed with its superb and robust color production – which is amazing considering it’s a regular LCD display as opposed to the AMOLED-based screens that are prominent amongst Samsung’s stable. And finally, the great viewing angles mean that there are no problems trying to get a good fix of what’s on screen in the direct view of the sun.


Now if there one design flaw that we notice, it has to be none other than the placement of its physical buttons around its display. Obviously, it’s actually normal to see soft keys of some sort grazing the corners of any Sidekick, but seeing that this is an Android powered smartphone, the placement of the home and jump keys are annoyingly out of reach. Fortunately though, they’re all sufficiently sized and offer that satisfying clicky feel when press. Meanwhile, the circular optical pad is a fitting choice for this modernized Sidekick device and allows for a better placement of the cursor when typing something.

Adding to its venerable usability, we find a 0.3-megapixel front facing camera above its display that can be used for video chat with the handset’s featured Qik app. And even though we miss the illuminating trackball found with previous models, which is mainly used for notifications, the tiny LED notification light on the Sidekick 4G is a decent replacement.


Sadly, gone is the beloved swivel mechanism that’s been a staple with most Sidekicks in the past, but rather, Samsung has opted to differentiate its model with a “pop-tilt” hinge mechanism. Getting the keyboard exposed is a little bit unusual since it requires you to push up and down on the lower portion of the display while holding it in landscape. From there, it snaps solidly into place and feels sturdier than the Z-hinge found with the T-Mobile G2.


Without question, the 5-row keyboard layout of the Sidekick 4G is resoundingly one of the more favorable ones out there on Tmo’s lineup. Granted that the rubbery and raised buttons are somewhat tiny in size, we adore how there is plenty of spacing between them to perfectly allow accurate presses without hassles. And of course, dedicated buttons like the “@” and Google Voice Search are highly appreciated, but the dedicated row of buttons for numbers are especially valuable. All in all, we’re quite fond of the keyboard and it seemingly follows in line to what’s expected out of a Sidekick.

Interface:

Just because it’s part of the Sidekick line, don’t think for a second that this doesn’t pack some horsepower under the hood to make it contend with some of the great ones out there. Impressively, the same usual 1GHz Cortex A8 Hummingbird processor used by many of Samsung’s Galaxy S devices is employed by the Sidekick 4G, and fittingly, it provides a sensual experience. Actually, we’re gladly accepting of the peppy response exhibited by the device – and it’s evident in almost everything you do from loading apps to scrolling smoothly between its homescreens.

Naturally, one of the other beloved aspects of the Sidekick line is the heavily animated and flashy looking interface employed by the handsets, and of course, we’re treated with a customized Android 2.2 Froyo experience with the Sidekick 4G. In fact, it’s vastly different from what’s currently found with other Android smartphones since it flaunts an edgy look to its guise, and at the same time, it’s more in line to attract the youthful crowd out there. From the all caps fonts in use with the handset to the spelled out clock with its unlock screen, there’s plenty attention to detail with the Sidekick 4G which drastically differentiates it from its Android siblings – and that’s the kind of thing this device needs to stand out on its own.

Packing a total of 7 homescreens, it shares the same set of useful Samsung widgets that are found with Samsung’s Galaxy S smartphones. However, it manages to carry along a few other ones specific to it, like the sticky messaging and group texting widgets, which profoundly showcase its affinity to its messaging roots. Also, it borrows the same helicopter view used by other handsets and displays all homescreens simultaneously by executing a pinch gesture on the homescreen.




Organizer & Messaging:

Continuing to flaunt its unique spin on things, there are many organizer apps that have been given a makeover to better expand the handset’s edgy style. Tapping on the “Contacts” button on the homescreen, we’re transported to our typical address book, but we find it very handy in quickly calling or messaging someone by executing a left or right swipe gesture. Moreover, it’s integrated well with social networking aspects since it aggregates content from our respective accounts all at one place – while tastefully providing some basic functions like replying to Facebook posts or retweeting.


Meanwhile, the Feeds and Updates widget is the centralized hub for all your social networking needs seeing that it works with Twitter, Facebook, and MySpace. Not only can you post messages to all three services at the same time, but you can even attach and upload photos simultaneously – which beats having to run separate apps for that. All in all, it might not utilize anything new that we’ve haven’t seen before with other devices, but it’s nice nonetheless to see that it caters to the inner most desires of social networking conscious individuals.


Increasing its messaging focus, the T-Mobile Sidekick 4G hosts a bevy of messaging apps that are sure to keep anyone conversing all through the night. First, the Group Texting app provides a linear and organized experience seeing that you can carry on a conversation with multiple people. Meaning, if someone replies to you, it’ll be seen by everyone else included in the group so that they’re constantly in the loop. Secondly, the Cloud Texting service will allow you to manage and track your text messages online through a computer. However, it’s not yet available and will go live once the device is commercially launched. Finally, there are tertiary things like the sticky message feature, which basically allows you to pin some of your favorite messages to the homescreen. That increasingly shows off the Sidekick 4G’s focal attention to messaging.

Even though we’ve seen a great deal of transformation with the messaging aspects of the device, we’re simply presented with the traditional Gmail experience – which isn’t bad at all since it functions perfectly.


Strangely enough, one of the most sought out feature with prior Sidekicks is omitted with this one. Although you’ve got the Android Market for all your app needs, it would’ve been nice to see some sort of preloaded instant messaging app on board, but sadly, it’s completely missing in action. Sure it’s not a complete bummer, but considering the Sidekick name, this is one area that should’ve gotten some face time.

Camera:

With a majority of its specs floating near the upper echelon of things, the Sidekick 4G’s 3.2-megapixel auto-focus camera is really a letdown – both in capacity and quality. Generally, photos shot outdoors appear to look a tad bit dull and over-exposed. In addition, it produces some cooler looking colors which doesn’t help in exposing fine details in the scenery. Oppositely, indoor shots under low lighting come out with an abundance of digital noise that’s further drowned by its blurry appearance. Truth be told, it’s worth it for some in the moment photo opportunities, but not something you’d want to frame in an album.




Needless to say that the 0.3-megapixel front facing camera is best reserved for the occasional video call, and rightfully so, it gets the job done as we used it with Fring’s video chat service.

As much as we’d come to expect 720p video recording with most top shelf devices, we only find the T-Mobile Sidekick 4G supporting a maximum capture resolution of 720 x 480. Although we accept its smooth capture rate of 29 frames per second, we’re not particularly fans of the hazy results with its recording.

T-Mobile Sidekick 4G Sample Video:



Multimedia:

Not surprisingly, we find the typical gallery app with the Sidekick 4G which lays out all of your photos and videos. Being an Android smartphone and all, there’s a ton of sharing options to get content to specific services – like YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, and Picasa. Lastly, there are some basic editing functions, like cropping and rotating that are available with photos.


Gladly accepting the refreshing look of its music player interface, we dig the in-your-face attitude it exudes with its presentation. Not only does it complement the handset’s youthful vigor, but we like the usefulness of the mini-player that’s displayed on the unlock screen – it quickly provides control at an instant. However, it would’ve been nice to see better eye catching animations when flicking through albums – as opposed to its monotonous look. Producing some blaring tones from its speaker, it definitely comes off as being screechy and irritating when it’s placed on the highest volume setting.


Combining its brilliant looking display and speedy processor, the Sidekick 4G is no doubt one engaging handset for all your video watching needs. In fact, it didn’t have any problems in smoothly playing a video encoded in DivX 1280 x 720 resolution. Of course, the sheer amount of iridescent colors produced by the display is enough to keep our eyes fixed on it at all times.


Imagining that most of today’s youths are constantly snapping photos and videos, its included 2GB microSD card might seem insufficient. But of course, you can always replace it with something as high as a 32GB microSD card.

Internet and Connectivity:

Global trotters will unanimously find the T-Mobile Sidekick 4G fitting for their needs since it’s a quad-band GSM (850/900/1800/1900 MHz) GSM and dual-band (1700/2100 MHz) UMTS smartphone. With that, you’ll be able to place phone calls just about anywhere, but we’re even more in love with its Wi-Fi calling functionality – which is undoubtedly an asset where connection is rather low or non-existent. And of course, it has support for T-Mobile's 21 Mbit/s network speeds. Finally, its 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi, GPS, and Bluetooth 3.0 gladly complete its list of arsenal.

Considering that this is a “4G” branded smartphone capable of delivering blazing speeds with T-Mobile’s HSPA+ network, one would sense that the web browsing experience would be fantastic. Sure it’s fast in loading up complex web sites, but we’re appalled by the jittery nature of scrolling through Flash heavy web sites. Even though it handles most web sites with little to no problem, it’s seemingly affected adversely whenever it comes across Flash content. For a respectable device like this, we were expecting nothing less than an exhilarating web browsing experience, but instead, it’s marred by some finicky and stutter navigation.

Performance:

Interestingly enough, our callers had no apparent issues on their end of the line comprehending our distinctive voices, but the same cannot be said about the experience on our side. Surprisingly, the earpiece produces some crackly and muffled voices that don’t necessarily provide the most audible calling experience. Moreover, the same experience is evident with the handset’s speakerphone as well – which renders it almost incapable of carrying out a lengthy conversation.

Riding steadily at -77 dBm of signal strength in high coverage areas, we didn’t experience any abrupt movements during our testing – nor did it drop any calls as well in the greater Philadelphia region.

Even though we managed to pull through a solid 8 hour work shift without the need to charge the handset one bit, we’re rather unimpressed with its battery life. After charging it fully, we rigorously used the Sidekick 4G and managed to reach the 10 hour mark before it tapped out completely. Considering that it’s a messaging oriented device, you’ll probably want to consider juicing it up whenever possible to avoid finding yourself phoneless.

Conclusion: 

Rising back from a shallow grave, the T-Mobile Sidekick 4G has enough fuel in its tank to supremely live up the expectations brought on by previous devices. Still embodying and placing a lot of attention on some of its beloved prime features, there’s no denying that this modernized Sidekick will undoubtedly keep up with the demanding needs of the no talk and all messaging personalities of today’s youth. At $99.99 on-contract, the T-Mobile Sidekick 4G has plenty of admirable features and specs to keep its head above water against some of the competition. Granted that it isn’t the best looking Sidekick we’ve seen, we’re more than pleased with the drastically customized Android experience and its bevy of messaging oriented services that are no doubt appreciable on so many levels.

Software version of the reviewed unit: Android 2.2.1, Build FROYOO.UVKD1

T-Mobile Sidekick 4G Video Review: