| Danger Sidekick ID Expert Reviews |
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Danger Sidekick ID -- by Joni Blecher Follow me on Twitter--July 5th 2007 |
| Full Review |
| The latest member of the Sidekick family, the Sidekick ID pretty much retains its siblings' look and feel but lacks some of their more high-end features. You won’t find an MP3 player, an integrated camera, or even Bluetooth on the Sidekick ID, but you likely won't miss those specs if you want a fun, customizable messaging phone. This cell phone has all the appeal we’ve come to expect from Sidekicks, and it's even improved the battery life a bit. The only thing we miss is the EDGE high-speed data connectivity. You can connect to the Web and surf all the sites you want, but not as fast. In short, if you’re in the market for a Sidekick Lite that won’t break the bank, check out the Sidekick ID. |
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| Call Quality |
Calls and speakerphone: Though the Sidekick ID might not strike you immediately as the best device for making calls, to its credit, the call quality is acceptable but not stellar. Callers said we were loud and clear. Additionally, we needed to increase the volume using the side volume keys. One quibble: The volume keys are at the top of the device, and when you're on a call, it’s hard to reach them comfortably. That said, we found the phone comfortable for long chats. Though it’s not the best look to be chatting away on a Sidekick as if it’s a standard cell phone, it is quite comfortable cradled between ear and shoulder. The speakerphone quality did not fare as well.  Callers said we sounded distant, and they heard a slight echo. Still, it’s a nice feature to have in a cell phone. |
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| Ease of Use |
Menu/phone book: A quick glance at the Sidekick ID’s screen, and it is clear this cell phone is meant for a younger audience. It’s filled with graphical icons that are friendly and that immediately identify what each icon represents (for example, there’s a picture of a phone book for the address book). Initially, using the Sidekick ID can be a bit daunting because it’s not clear exactly what all the buttons do. But if you play with it for about 10 to 15 minutes, maneuvering through the menus becomes second nature. The best reference we can provide for this phenomenon is a typewriter’s keys. The first time you look at the order of the keys, it doesn’t make much sense, but once you type a bit, you find yourself saying, “Of course, this is how it should be.” Another great way to get accustomed to using this cell phone is to try to play the included PumpJack game. You’ll immediately figure out how to use the trackball and the cell phone’s navigation keys.
Although, a synching cable isn’t included in this model, your data is automatically backed up by T-Mobile via the back-end data service. So if you lose your device, you can still access your contacts via T-Mobile. If you want straight synching with your computer you’ll need to purchase an optional synching kit. One of our favorite usability features is that you can immediately exit any application simply by pressing the button with a bunch of circles on it in the lower-left corner. It takes you right back to the main menu screen. You can store up to 2,000 contacts in the phone book, and each entry can include 5 phone numbers, a street address, an e-mail address, IM info, notes, and a URL (you know, in case you need to quickly check out someone’s MySpace page).
Messaging/Web browser: Above all else, the Sidekick ID is a messaging device, and like its predecessors, this is something the cell phone does extremely well. It’s easy to use any of the three IM clients (AIM, Yahoo, and MSN); just enter you user name and password, hit Connect, and you’re good to go. It also supports most e-mail programs (IMAP4 and POP3), so you can send/receive e-mail as well for up to three accounts. If you’re going to have multiple e-mails delivered directly to your Sidekick ID and don’t want it all to go to the same place, you can set up individual folders (for example, work, personal, and so on) in the Inbox in the Email application for delivery. You’ll still be notified when a new e-mail arrives. However, if you want to automatically receive Web-based e-mail (MSN Hotmail, for example), you’ll need to do this via MSN’s Web site.
One of the biggest differences between the Sidekick ID and the Sidekick 3 is the data network it uses for surfing the Web. The Sidekick ID uses GPRS, while the Sidekick 3 uses the faster EDGE network. So what’s the difference to you? Think a dial-up connection versus DSL Lite; in short, loading pages and surfing the Web on the Sidekick ID will be slower than with the Sidekick 3. However, we should note that it isn’t a bad experience, but you do have to wait a few seconds for some pages to load. You also probably won’t want to watch too many videos on the Web for this reason. |
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| Design |
Look and feel: It’s clear upon first glance that the Sidekick is more about text-driven communication than verbal chat. Design- and style-wise, the Sidekick ID isn’t a lot different than its predecessors, but it is a little lighter. Translation: It’s still going to take up a decent chunk of pocket or purse space, and it will likely feel as if you’re carrying around a second wallet. It does have the same lift-and-swivel display that exposes the cell phone’s keyboard, and the color display is still hard to view in direct sunlight. And, really, why mess with something that works so well? Also new to this model is the ability to customize the exterior of your Sidekick ID with optional faceplates.
Like the Sidekick 3, the Sidekick ID sports the rubberized trackball, not unlike one you'll find on a mouse. When not in use, the trackball flashes bright blue. We found the trackball easy to use and not too sensitive to the touch. It also makes maneuvering through the Sidekick ID’s menus a snap. However, if you’ve never used a Sidekick before, mastering the buttons on the face of the cell phone will take some time.
Keypad: Clearly, the Sidekick ID is all about the full keyboard. You can dial numbers from the keyboard in two ways: via either the numeric keys at the top of the keyboard or on the numbered keys that can be found on the actual letter keys, a la the BlackBerry and Treo keyboards. We should note that occasionally we had a hard time pressing the numbers at the top of the screen, but getting accustomed to hitting them correctly is easy, unless you have long fingernails – then you’ll be constantly hitting the base of the screen, making it difficult to use. The remaining plastic keys are easy to use for just about any finger size. |
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| Battery Life |
| Fortunately, battery life is one improvement we found on the Sidekick ID. Heavy texters, Web surfers, and message addicts will likely need to charge the cell phone every other day. But if you use the cell phone to send/receive a few text messages and e-mails or make a couple of calls, you’ll need to charge it every 3 to 4 days. But when we used the cell phone to occasionally check messages and play a game, the Sidekick ID managed to last close to 5 days before needing more juice. |
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Danger Sidekick ID Expert Rating
