Good news! As we posted on our Twitter account (@hiptop3), the Download Catalog came back online this weekend. There was much rejoicing.

Also, we heard from T-Mobile directly and they were very happy I’m sure to be announcing that Sidekicks were no longer “Temporarily Out Of Stock” and were up for sale on T-Mobile.com again! You can snag a Sidekick LX 2009 for $149.99 or a Sidekick 2008 for $49.99. And if that’s not cheap enough, you can even get an open box Sidekick 2008 for $34.99. (All with 2 year contracts of course)

Life as a Sidekick user is starting to return to normal as T-Mobile/Microsoft/Danger slowly announce each piece of data that is restorable as they make progress. We’ve gotten back Address Books, Calendars, To Do Lists, Notes, and most recently Photos. I know a lot of people are still waiting on Bookmarks and I imagine that will be next in line. However one of the hallmarks of the Sidekick is still missing and we haven’t heard any word on when it will return.

I’m of course talking about the Download Catalog, aka the first App Store. The Catalog has been down for over a month and this sucks both for Sidekick users as well as Sidekick Developers. I’m sure T-Mobile is feeling the hurt too as a large source of their income from Sidekick users comes from selling applications, ringtones and themes.

While there are no other ways to get applications (save having a developer key), it is possible to get ringtones and themes while the catalog is down from unofficial sites. Themes for most Sidekicks can be found at Sidekick Themes and if you have a Sidekick LX 2009 you can get free ringtones at Skringers.com.

UPDATE (2009-11-11): We’re hearing through the grapevine that the Download Catalog may be up by Saturday if things go well! Keep your fingers crossed.

Microsoft/Danger has started rolling out an OTA (Over-The-Air) update to all Sidekick users. This update will not make any changes to your device that you’ll be able to see. It’s intended to fix some behind the scenes stuff so that “all Catalog application data will now be more securely backed up in the Microsoft / Danger systems.” This is NOT the Sidekick LX 2009 OTA I posted about earlier, which I assume is on indefinite hold until everything gets sorted out. It’s assumed that this OTA is rolling out to all Sidekick devices. Let us know in the comments if you received the OTA, which device you’ve got, and when you got the update.

T-Mobile posted an update over on their forums and we’ve archived a copy over on skfail.com since the forum updates aren’t permanent.

Don’t have a Sidekick LX 2009 yet and you’re stuck with an older device? Well if you’re a Twitter or Facebook addict, you’re in luck! T-Mobile has released the Twitter and Facebooks apps in the Download Catalog for the Sidekick 2008, the original LX, and the Sidekick Slide. The Facebook app is totally free, but the Twitter app will set you back $1.99 every month. Both of these apps will remain free for the Sidekick LX 2009 users though.

Are you on Twitter? Follow us! @hiptop3

If you’ve been to your local T-Mobile store recently then you probably already know that Tokidoki shells for the Sidekick LX 2009 and Sidekick 2008 are out. There are 4 different shells for the LX 2009 and 3 different ones for the Sidekick 2008. You can pick them up for $14.99-19.99 from T-Mobile stores along with a bunch of other Tokidoki accessories or you can score them online as well via sidekick.com. If you’re cheap, you might have luck finding Sidekick LX shells on SidekickShopper too. You can also pick up some themes in the Download Catalog that match your new Tokidoki shells!

If you’re wondering what the heck Tokidoki is, check them out at www.tokidoki.it.

The age-old debate on whether cell-phones cause brain cancer continues. This time at least it’s good news for Sidekick 2008 users. A study ranked the cell phones with the lowest radiation on the market and the Sidekick is in the top ten! The study was done by the non-profit organization Environmental Working Group and analyzed emissions from 1,268 cellphones. Here’s the report on the Sidekick and you can check out all the available phones on the market too.

If history is any indication, the new Sidekick 2009 is going to be expensive. Hopefully not as expensive as previous models though. If you’re the budget concerned Sidekick user, now is the time to pick up a Sidekick 2008 while they’re cheap and still in stock. T-Mobile is running a web-only promotion that will score you a Sidekick 2008 for only $49.99. Head on over to T-Mobile to check it out.

If you’ve been hesitant to download the Photobucket application because of the price or the recurring fee (or both), the option to try the app out for free has come! If you download the application by 4/30, you have a 30 day free trial period to test it out. This means you can use the full version of the application, risk free for 30 days and then decide if you like it or not. This is a great option and may be what changes people’s opinions about the product. Remember that the application is free only for 30 days from the time that you have downloaded it. After the 30 day free trial period is over, you will be charged a monthly subscription fee of $1.99, which will be billed to you each month until the item is discarded. Check out the information in the Download Catalog for more in-depth information. Download and try it out from the Catalog now!

Do you use Photobucket to share photos? You’ll be happy to hear that there is now a Photobucket application for the Sidekick that will let you send photos directly to the service and manage your account from your device. Rumors about the Sidekick Blade said that this app would be available, and here it is for existing devices (Slide, LX, and 2008).

The application will set you back $1.99 to purchase, and then a recurring fee of $1.99 each month thereafter. So it looks like this is geared more towards hevy users of Photobucket. To get it, just check out the Download Catalog. Here are some screenshots of the app:

More info on Photobucket’s blog post. Screenshots are via PoweredByDanger’s post.
Thanks to everyone that sent this one in

If a Sidekick 2008 for $0.01 is too expensive for you, or you already have a T-Mobile account, there’s another way for you to snag a Sidekick for free. KevJumba is running a video contest where you can win a Sidekick plus a $500 American Express gift card. You’ll have to get your creative juices flowing and make a video in response to his video and he’ll choose a winner on Jan 26th. Let us know in the comments if you’ve posted an entry so we can check it out.