Oops, looks like the FCC posted some docs they shouldn’t have!  Remember those FCC docs from Option N.V. that I posted awhile back?  Well it’s been confirmed that they were part of the new Sidekick.  The FCC has posted some additional documents today that confirm it’s part of the Sidekick 2009.  They even include some tasty illustrations of the assembly of a new Sidekick.  In addition there’s also info on the chipset they’re using, Qualcomm’s MSM7200A and/or MSM7201A.  These are the same chipsets that a bunch of recent phones run on including the G1, HTC Magic, and the upcoming HTC Touch Diamond2.  Looks like at least hardware wise MSDanger is going to drop a phone that competes directly with the new Android devices.  If you want the nitty gritty details straight from the FCC filings, here you go:

OS: Danger OS
CPU: QUALCOMM MSM7200A (MSM7201A)
Memory: 128MB SDRAM / 256MB NAND Flash
Input: QWERTY keyboard
RF: UMTS/HSDPA, GSM/GPRS/EDGE
Camera: 2M AF or 3M AF or 3M
I/F: µSD card slot x 1, microphone, speaker, Stereo headset port, USB port, A-GPS, Bluetooth
RF: UMTS/HSDPA Band I, Band IV, Band V GSM/GPRS/EDGE 850, 900, 1800, 1900

The documents posted contain the photo up top as well as the following:

There are a bunch of other computer generated images and photos of the radio for the Sidekick 2009 in the docs.  You can check out the FCC filing (FCC ID NCMOCU1407), or check out the cached PDFs below:

Integration Manual (contains breakdown of Sidekick 2009)

External Photos

Test Photos

When it rains, it pours.  We’ve got a release date, we’ve got in the wild pics, and now we have FCC docs.  Is there any belief that the Sidekick 2009 is not on its way?  The FCC docs have some external photos and whatnot withheld from the public under the typical confidentiality rules, but it’s easy to tell that this is the Sidekick 2009, aka the Blade, aka the PV300.  The confidentiality expires on June 13th, a month after release date, May 13th, which makes sense too.  There’s not a whole lot of actual info in the FCC docs that we didn’t already know other than the battery is 1250mAh (a touch more than the 2008) and that the FCC had the devices for testing as far back as December 2008.  But if you want to go through the incredibly boring FCC tests yourself, go right ahead.  The FCC Id for the Sidekick 2009 is ‘APYNAR0065′.

FCC Docs

Michael left a comment on one of my previous posts about the Sidekick 2009 FCC Filings? about an additional filing for the same device from Option N.V. with two more photos, and a bit more info. Here’s what he had to say:

On that list is a document called Modular Approval Letter which has a couple more pictures (to show the location of the Bluetooth antenna and antenna connector), and which states that the device consists of:

‘Modem OS: AMSS
CPU: Qualcomm MSM7201A
Display interface: MDDI interface
Memory: 128MB SDRAM / 256MB NAND Flash
Keyboard Input: Digital interface supporting full QWERTY keyboard
RF Technology: UMTS/HSDPA/HSUPA, GSM/GPRS/EDGE
Camera interface: digital interface to camera sensor
Other I/F: microSD card slot x1, microphone, speaker, vibrator, trackball interface, Stereo headset port, USB port, A-GPS, Bluetooth
RF: UMTS/HSDPA Band I, Band IV, Band V
GSM/GPRS/EDGE 850, 900, 1800, 1900
GPS
Bluetooth’

If a bit of online research I did is accurate:
The HSDPA Bands I (2100MHz), IV (1700MHz), and V (850MHz) are used by T-Mobile.
The Qualcomm MSM7201A integrated chipset has been used in existing mobile devices including the G1.

Certainly seems that this is to be part of a smartphone type of mobile device for the T-Mobile network…

Great detective work Michael! The Qualcomm MSM7201A is a pretty common CPU and is used in many devices, including the G1. All the features seem to line up with the expected Sidekick 2009 too. If you want to take a peek at the PDF that lists all this, it’s on the FCC site and we’ve mirrored it here: Option Wireless FCC Modular Approval Doc.

What do you guys think? Sidekick 2009 or not?

With the mention of FCC filings, we’ve gotten several messages about a filing from Option Wireless in mid-January. We took a look at this originally, and were not really sure whether this could be the Sidekick. The more we look at it and research, the more it looks like it just might be. First off, the filing itself is _not_ for a Sidekick, but for a “GSM/UMTS/GPS Module CU1407″. Basically just the radio and GPS (not the cpu, circuit board, keyboard, etc).

The photo, as you can see with our added markups (click for full size), really looks like it could be the right side of a Sidekick 2009, with the 4 buttons, and space for a trackball, not to mention the port in the lower right that could very well be a mini-usb port. We can’t think of anything else that would look like a Sidekick 2009 so much.

So why aren’t we calling this one 100% for sure?

A minor point is that the last two Sidekicks (LX and 2008) have both used Enfora radios. Since the Sidekick 2009 is a 3G phone, it’s very possible that MSDanger would be switching to a different manufacturer.

Also, in the filings there’s this bit:

The antenna(s) used for this transmitter must be installed to provide a separation distance of at least 20 cm from all the persons and must not be co-located or operating in conjunction with any other antenna or transmitter.

This is fine for cards that are meant to go in laptops (Option’s normal product), but totally unacceptable for mobile phones that are held against your head. We’re hoping that this is just Option covering their butts and putting the responsibility of brain-tumor-testing on Sharp/MSDanger because they do also say “If the final product after integration is intended for portable use, a new application and FCC is required.”

And finally, this is not technically a filing for the Sidekick 2009. It’s just for the radio module that might be used in the Sidekick 2009, but has the potential to be used in any other devices. So while the confidentiality agreements say an expiration of April 13th, 2009 don’t get your hopes up for an April 1st release just yet. We still need to see the Sidekick 2009 show up.

Can you tell that we really want this to be the Sidekick 2009? If you want to take a peak at the FCC filings for yourself here they are: FCC ID: NCMOCU1407

* Releasing new products at CTIA isn’t great from a marketing standpoint. Your announcement can get lost in all the press about everything else.
* BUT we did however see the Sidekick iD info leak out accidentally via CTIA. It wasn’t an official announcement, but still something.

* An April 1st release does mean that the Grammy Tour could be used for some excellent marketing opportunities and increase the hype around this long-awaited upgrade to the Sidekick line.
* BUT last year’s Grammy Tour (also around April) saw the Sidekick LX as the showcase device, even though the Sidekick 2008 dropped 3 months later in July.

* We know the device is in the hands of some trial users and is being tested in the wild.
* We haven’t found a filing on the FCC for this device yet. With the Sidekick 2008 we saw FCC docs around May 2008, with the device releasing about 3 months later at the end of July. With the Sidekick LX we found FCC docs in the beginning of August 2007, device was released mid-October, again in the 2-3 month range. This FCC filing is legally required for the device to hit the market in the US, but companies don’t want to file early otherwise us rumor sites get some indisputable proof. Even if we find an FCC filing today, April 1st gives them only a month. Not impossible, but cutting it pretty close. Anyone found the FCC filing yet?

So, like I said, we want to believe, but every day that goes by without seeing any promotional material or FCC filings makes us less and less hopeful.

[Show as slideshow]

Original FCC Docs

The confidentiality on the filed documents expires on August 16th, so unless the FCC screws up then we won’t be seeing the FCC filed pictures of the device until after the rumored July release date. We’ll just have to find some other way to get pictures of the device in the wild. But this date means we’ll definitely be seeing a new Sidekick by August!

FCC Docs

Confidentiality Request
Exhibit 1 FCC ID Label and Location
Exhibit 2 Attestation Statements
Exhibit 3 External Photos
Exhibit 6A1 Bluetooth Report
Exhibit 6A2 UL Test Report
Exhibit 7 Test Setup Photos
Exhibit 7A UL Test Setup Photos
Exhibit 8 Users Manual
Exhibit 8A Supplemental Users Manual
Exhibit 9 Internal Photos
Supplemental Response to IHD7621

Thanks to EngadgetMobile for the find and for pulling out the images

- The model number is PV250 (FCC ID: APYNAR0063). The Sidekick 2 was PV100, the Sidekick ID was PV150, and the Sidekick 3 was PV200. It worries us a little bit that this may not be that big of a jump in version or maybe we’re just speculating too much based on version numbers.
- The “engineering prototype” was received for testing on May 26th, 2007. This means that a working sample of the Shuriken has been around for close to 3 months!
- This prototype is “equivalent to mass-produced items” so basically that means the hardware is done as far as design.
- It’s GSM/EGPRS (EDGE), so no 3G for us yet.
- Battery is a Li-Ion 3.7Vdc 1540mAh, a small bump up from the Sidekick 3’s battery. Hopefully there has been some redesign and tweaking to help get the battery life increased since this device will have a bigger and better screen
- The short term confidentiality ends on September 16th, 2007, but Sharp has preemptively filed for a 45 day extension until October 31, 2007. So no external photos from the FCC until after the Halloween Hunt unless the FCC slips on Sept. 16th. For what it’s worth, the Sidekick ID docs hit the FCC in January, and the device was released in April. The Sidekick 3 docs hit the fcc in April, and the device was released in June. Let the speculation begin. We’re guessing October.

FCCID: IHDT56HU1

FCCID: IHDT56HZ1

But this could all be barking up the wrong tree as the information on the new Sidekick Slide may not even be in the hands of the FCC at this time. The above phones may just be some new thin device from Motorola with lots of Zs or Vs in the name.

Looking back at the Sidekick 3, all the FCC docs were released around April 22nd, with the device hitting stores (for upgrading customers) on June 28th, about 9 weeks. These docs put the guesstimated release date around Aug 30th or Sept 30th. The last leaked docs were talking about August 22nd. Just some food for thought.