It looks like maybe the Project Pink phones are actually going to see the light of day later this year. In an article on CNET, sources are saying that Microsoft will ship Windows Mobile 7 later this year, but CNET is also saying the “next generation of the Sidekick product line” should ship before Windows Mobile hits the market. If this is true, that means the new Pink devices are coming, and they won’t be running Windows Mobile 7.

The good news is that we’ll know more soon. Microsoft’s Head of Entertainment and Devices, Robbie Bach, said they would have more to tell at the Mobile World Congress in a few weeks.

Is this it, the end of the Sidekick era? BoyGeniusReport posted some rumors they received through a tipster that say T-Mobile will slowly be phasing out the Sidekick line as the new MyTouch Slide approaches. Nobody has confirmed this tip yet, but it’s not too far fetched. We’ll let you know as we hear more.

There are a number of tweets on Twitter over the past few months that specify the client as “Danger” and have a mysterious hashtag of #tmdp or #tmd. The posts started showing up with the #tmd tag but later change to the #tmdp tag.

Many of the tweets have “from Danger” listed as the client, which Twitter links to Microsoft. Usually tweets sent from the Sidekick say “from Sidekick” so this seems to indicate that this could be a new Twitter client from Danger. Whether this Twitter client means a new device, new operating system, the continuation of Project Pink, etc is anyone’s guess at this point.

Here’s some of the interesting tweets:

@JohnMatherly: Thanks to Roz for a #tmdp breakfast in Palo Alto
11:56 AM Dec 7th, 2009 from Danger

@JohnMatherly: We’re counting on ProdUS to be #tmdp
4:52 PM Jan 19th from Danger

@darylw: #tmdp Welcome new team members….we are excited to have you join us.
1:38 PM Dec 16th, 2009 from Danger.

@darylw: #tmdp wish i saw more posts from team members on twitter.com that says posted “n hours ago from Danger”
11:55 PM Nov 18th, 2009 from web

@pbernard: i think twitterfall is working #tmdp
4:22 PM Nov 4th, 2009 from DestroyTwitter

@pbernard: digging xbox twitter #tmd
8:44 PM Sep 24th, 2009 from Xbox LIVE

@pbernard: and we have PINK DONUTS for strat review #tmd
7:41 AM Sep 15th, 2009 from DestroyTwitter

@pbernard: #tmd ta-da.
1:42 PM Aug 27th, 2009 from DestroyTwitter

@terminal4: wow. it’s like stuff is kinda workin #tmdp
10:04 PM Dec 9th, 2009 from Danger.

@JRayZor: This is harder to use than binary mode ftp #tmd
12:08 AM Sep 4th, 2009 from web

@cpicoto: 2311 CD INT – Palo Alto, CA
11:46 AM Nov 11th, 2009 from Danger

@danblack: the #tmdp can fix itself sometimes.
11:37 AM Nov 20th, 2009 from Danger

@danblack: The #tmd is tasty today
3:44 PM Oct 15th, 2009 from Danger

@XuNami: Fun bug bash today. I’m so glad it came together 🙂 #tmdp
7:45 PM Jan 8th from Danger.

Chris Pirich is one of those tweeting with the #tmdp hashtag and a “from Danger” client. Chris is the head of engineering for Pink.

Other Microsoft people in on the Twitter fun include:

• Pete Bernard: “involved in a number of initiatives regarding mobile and embedded devices.”
• Daryl Welsh: Director of Test – Premium Mobile Experiences at Microsoft
• Andrew Clinick: Group Program Manager at Microsoft
• Carlos Picoto: Director of Program Management at Microsoft
• Dan Black: is/was the Lead Developer Relation Manager for Xbox
• Namrata Bachwani: Release Manager at Microsoft
• Chris Sorensen: Senior Manager, Community and Social Media at Microsoft

– It seems like a lot of XBox people are now part of the mobile experience team. This may be the one thing that bodes well for Pink.
– #TMD is happening at Microsoft Studio G in Redmond.
– There are a lot of references to 4 digit numbers in #tmdp tweets. Could these be build numbers for an OS or firmware?
– @DarylW made a #tmd list

What do you guys think? What could TMDP stand for? Have you found any interesting tweets with this hash tag?

Wow, Sidekick prices keep dropping. T-Mobile is now offering the following prices on new Sidekicks:
– Sidekick 2008: $49.99
– Sidekick LX 2009: $99.99 (both Orchid and Carbon)

If you don’t want to sign a contract with T-Mobile, then check out Sidekick Shopper, where you can land a Sidekick LX 2009 for around $200, or a Sidekick 2008 for easily under $100

Don’t forget your InvisibleShield from ZAGG! 15% coupon code off for the Sidekick community

Looks like maybe the Sidekick is going to get support for more document types. In a press release put out today from Iseemedia, their President is quoted as saying, “We are excited to be working with Remoba to deliver a complete PC experience on T-Mobile sidekick handsets.” He’s talking about the announcement of T-Mobile’s deployment of their product, iseedocs.

What is iseedocs? Their webpage says: “iseedocs enables mobile users to instantly view and interact with all common email attachments – regardless of file size – as if they were sitting at their desks.” So in short, it will be a way to view all sorts of document types that aren’t natively supported by the Sidekick as long as you have network connectivity. What will it support? Their site says they can handle everything from Office dovuments to PDF, audio, and video. A lot of documents are directly supported on the Sidekick, but iseedocs will take the responsibility off the Sidekick OS and allow for future document types without having to update the Sidekick.

Here’s the full press release:

iseedocs(TM) Goes Live on Major U.S. Carrier Network with Remoba Email Service

TORONTO and SANTA CLARA, CA, Jan. 5 /CNW/ – iseemedia Inc. (TSX-V: IEE), a leading provider of technology and services that allow mobile phones to be experienced like desktop devices today announced that it has begun commercial deployment of iseedocs(TM) on the T-Mobile Network in the U.S. with Remoba. iseedocs enables instant attachment viewing and navigation without having to download content. Handsets provide access to enterprise email, calendar and contacts. The combined offering is now being rolled out to T-Mobile customers as a choice download with affordable email data plans.

“As more people travel and work from multiple locations, mobile phones must perform more complex tasks and access email with sizeable attachments,” said Anthony DeCristofaro, President and CEO, iseemedia. “iseedocs is the ideal solution to perform this task on mobile phones. We are excited to be working with Remoba to deliver a complete PC experience on T-Mobile sidekick handsets.”

Unlike most email attachment handlers, iseedocs delivers a document index which is also the document management system. All pages, images and graphs are accessible on demand. Unlike other attachment viewers, iseedocs does not download the document to the mobile device, but streams pages as they are requested. The user can also zoom and pan the document, providing a higher degree of information than is normally available on mobile devices.

Using a Smart Adaptation Engine, iseedocs maintains virtually all document formatting and content. So if a chart embedded in the Word document is too small to see, the user can zoom in to view more detail. If a 30-page document is being viewed, and the reader needs to view page 21, they can access the page directly through a table of contents or page thumbnail navigation.

“We provide the Smartphone alternative for consumers and business users without the costly data plans, proprietary devices and IT infrastructure modifications,” said Guru Thalapaneni, President and CEO of Remoba. “iseemedia serves as the perfect complement so users can readily manage their everyday activities directly from their mobile phones. More importantly, we help network operators to control their bandwidth costs while allowing them to offer new services on mass market devices. We look forward to expanding our efforts with T-Mobile as we make steady progress with this launch.”

The mobile phone application allows users to access business on their mobile phones. It can securely access email stored on servers and perform almost all the functions through the mobile phone just the way one would do from a home or office computer. The application can be downloaded to the phone like any ring tone or game, and setup by entering username and password.

About Remoba

Remoba is a leading developer of high-value, and affordable mobile phone software that makes “Every Phone a Smart Phone”. Remoba provides Wireless Access to Email, Contacts, and Calendar from the Desktop, Corporate Server, or Hosted Server on most Cell Phones. Remoba is based in Hayward, CA with a development center in Bangalore, India. For more information please visit www.remoba.com.

About iseemedia

iseemedia Inc. is a software development company focused on the commercialization of a Service Delivery Platform (iseemail(TM)) for delivering Blackberry-like email services to the mass market and an advanced Content Delivery Platform (iseedocs(TM)) for rich media adaptation and extremely cost-efficient delivery to mobile devices. The Company maintains a broad portfolio of issued and pending patents that support authoring, streaming and interactive viewing. iseemedia is publicly traded on the TSX Venture Exchange (Symbol: IEE).

Via press release
Thanks Mike!