![]() It's closer in price to texting phones such as the Samsung SCH-U740 on Verizon or Virgin Mobile's Kyocera Switchback. MySpace works fine on the phone, by the way, if slowly and somewhat awkwardly, using the ID's Web browser I managed to dismiss several spam "friend" requests using the Sidekick.Īt $99 (or $249 prepaid), with data service running $20/month (or $1/day prepaid), the Sidekick iD doesn't really compete with smartphones. The only real weakness I can see here for its target market, though, is the lack of a camera, because you know those kids, they love to post their cameraphone photos on that MySpace thing. It has no camera, no music player, no memory card, no Bluetooth, a low-res 240-by-160 screen and the slowest Web access you'll ever see, thanks to an ancient GPRS modem. It's almost churlish to run down the ID's failings. If your tastes tend towards the Frankensteinian, you can mix and match parts to create the ultimate in garishness. ![]() ![]() They'll start with black, yellow, red, white, magenta, purple, and glow-in-the-dark models at $20 each, but they're expected to proliferate into a range of fashion styles. Since teenagers seem to have a biochemical drive to define their own identities, the iD has removable bumpers and backplates. The Sidekick has a photo gallery app, but you have to get your pics through e-mail or log onto a special picture-messaging Web site to view them. You can't add your own ringtones-you're stuck with the ones in the Sidekick Catalog, though they have hundreds-and you can't receive MMS picture messages, though I've never understood why. There are a few frustrating restrictions. You can download hundreds of ringtones, plenty of games, and some other apps from a built-in catalog application that's a heck of a lot easier to use than the WAP-based download decks on other phones. There's a standard 2.5mm headset jack that works with an included mono earpiece.Įverything, absolutely everything, syncs up with a simple Web interface that also lets you import contact and calendar information from Microsoft Outlook or Entourage. Transmissions from the microphone sound very good indeed, but sound a bit hollow from the speakerphone. The speakerphone is clear, but doesn't get very loud. The gadget gets decent reception, but there tends to be a sort of clippy fuzz in the sound of loud voices at top volume. The iD isn't the greatest phone, but it'll do. And, of course, it's compatible with T-Mobile's MyFaves, which gives you unlimited free calling to five people your MyFaves contacts appear in red in the 2,000-person address book. Mail sent to the T-Mobile account appears pretty much in real time POP3 mail comes on a 15-minute delay. ![]() The installed e-mail client merges POP3/IMAP (but not corporate Exchange, Hotmail, or Yahoo!) accounts with its own T-Mobile Mail account and pushes them to the device. A moderately capable messaging device, the iD can log into AIM, Microsoft Live Messenger, and Yahoo! Messenger simultaneously. With the screen closed, you hold it to your head to make calls. You swivel the screen open (that's the "kick") to reveal an extremely clear keyboard of well-separated hard plastic keys, similar to the Sidekick 3's. Now, thanks to its makeover, the handset resembles a much flatter brick, at 5.1 by 2.5 by 0.9 inches and weighs 6.2 ounces. If you've never kicked it sideways before, the Sidekick is a super-easy-to-use handheld that used to look more like a brick than a cell phone. The $99 iD takes the basic e-mailing, instant-messaging (IMing), and phoning capabilities of the Sidekick 2, puts them in a sleeker body with a cute trackball (much like the Sidekick 3's,) and adds the Sidekick 3's operating-system improvements. Best Hosted Endpoint Protection and Security Software.
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