Have you ever dropped your Sidekick? Chances are your answer is “yes” as you gaze sadly at the scratch on your screen. I know, I did it just the other week and now I have a big ding in my Sidekick LX‘s screen. I’ve been hearing my friends talk about the InvisibleSHIELD screen protectors for awhile, but didn’t get one myself until recently. I’m pretty impressed with them. They brag that they’re “military grade protection” and I don’t doubt it. Apparently this stuff was designed for use on helicopter blades or something. Pretty crazy. Anyways, just wanted to let you guys know that these things are pretty cheap and totally worth every penny. If you ever want to resell your Sidekick to get the latest version, you’ll get a lot more $$$ if it’s scratch free. Unfortunately they don’t have screen protectors for the Sidekick 2008 yet, but we’ll let you know when they come in. If you’ve got a Sidekick II, 3, LX, Slide, or iD you’re in luck now though. Check them out:

invisibleSHIELD for the T-Mobile Sidekick 3 (Front)

invisibleSHIELD for the T-Mobile Sidekick 3 (Screen)

invisibleSHIELD for the T-Mobile Sidekick II (Screen)

invisibleSHIELD for the T-Mobile Sidekick iD (Full Body)

invisibleSHIELD for the T-Mobile Sidekick iD (Screen)


invisibleSHIELD for the T-Mobile Sidekick LX (Screen)

invisibleSHIELD for the T-Mobile Sidekick Slide (Full Body)

invisibleSHIELD for the T-Mobile Sidekick Slide (Screen)

Think you’ve got the most damaged Sidekick? Are you still using it? We want to see. Post a link to a photo in the comments or email them in to admin [at] hiptop3.com.

Tired of loading the website every day to get the latest news? Want it delivered directly into your email? Well now you can. Just subscribe below:

Or if you’re RSS savvy, then you can subscribe to our RSS feed through MyNewsRoom or your feed reader of choice.

Update: We’ve also got a twitter account that will send you updates whenever we post.

Any other ways you want to get your Sidekick news? Let us know!

Want to own the one-of-a-kind Sidekick LX (brown) with green moodlights we posted about awhile back? Then you might be in luck. The owner has put it up on the auction block for a lucky bidder. Right now it’s sitting at a cheap $99.98. Here’s the auction: Sidekick LX CUSTOM W/ GREEN MOODLIGHTS

What did you do tonight? Sat at home, watched some TV, browsed the web, or something pretty ordinary right? Well some lucky people were partying it up in New York at the Sidekick 2008 release party listening to the tunes spun by Treasure Fingers and Sammy Bananas! Unfortunately we couldn’t make it to the party either this time. (We’re totally booking our flights the day we get the invite next time!) Word has it that attendees could create their own Sidekick 2008 shells and pick them up at the party. We’re still waiting on pictures because we’re sure there were a lot of famous faces there. If the Grammy Tour was any indication, T-Mobile knows how to throw a party, and this was one was probably just as much fun.

UPDATE: Looks like the DJs got their very own Sidekick 2008s according to Treasure Fingers’ Twitter

What if a PSP got together with a Sidekick? Well, design student Samuel Lau thinks they’d go together perfectly. He’s come up with a design for a PSP with a screen similar to the Sidekick Slide, and a keyboard hidden underneath.

Some words from the designer, Samuel:
-Hope to have 50,000 views and 1000 comments.
-Then i will send this video directly to Sony for consideration.
-Once i reach the target, i will make another official proposal video to Sony.
-I am also raising fund for my education which cost about C$50,000. Hope if Sony like my idea and uses it, they pay half of my education fee.
-Hope i can see the real thing before Christmas 2009 (Fingers cross)!
-So be fast, spread the words!
-Last of all: YOU can make it happen!!!

Here’s his video for Sony to take a look at:

via yanko

Don’t have the cash to shell out for one of the Limited Edition Tony Hawk Sidekick LX devices? Well, are you a skater? No? Well even if you’re a poser, you can still enter the contest to win a Tony Hawk LX. It’s being held over on the Sidekick Wiki. It runs until July 21st, so you better hurry! Here’s some more info:

HOW TO ENTER
1. Sign up for a free user name and create your profile on the Sidekick Wiki. If you are already a member of this site, you do not need to register again; use your existing username and profile.

2. Upload a skate photo to this Skate Photo Album (To upload an image to the photo album, sign in to the site, navigate to the album, click the “Add photo” option, and then select the Upload New Photo or Search Yahoo! Images option to add your photo.)

3. To complete your entry, post a comment on this page that says: “Enter me in the Sidekick LX Tony Hawk Edition Sweepstakes.”
One winner will be randomly chosen from all eligible entries received. A maximum of one (1) entry per day for each individual and email address is permitted for each entry method. One winner will be chosen on or about August 1, 2008, and notified via private message through the Sidekick wiki, the email address associated with his/her account, U.S. Mail or overnight courier. If we cannot contact an individual winner within a reasonable time period, another winner will be chosen randomly. No anonymous users will be eligible to win. Comments posted on any other page of the wiki will not be eligible. The winners will be announced as soon as we get confirming replies via e-mail. See full Rules for complete details.

SWEEPSTAKES DATES
Sweepstakes begins: July 9, 2008
Sweepstakes ends: July 21, 2008
Mail-in entries must be postmarked by: July 21, 2008
Mail-in entries must be received by: July 28, 2008
Drawing: Around August 1, 2008
THE PRIZE
One user will be randomly chosen to receive one (1) T-Mobile Sidekick LX Tony Hawk Edition. The prize constitutes the device only; phone service is not included and is the sole responsibility of the winner. Approximate retail value of the T-Mobile Sidekick LX Tony Hawk Edition phone is $449.99.

Enter the Sweepstakes

There’s also a contest running to win a chance to hang out with Tony Hawk himself, more info on that here.

For all you non-T-Mobile customers, now is the time to get your Tony Hawk LE Sidekick LX. They’re going for $299 right now, but they’re a limited edition, so if you don’t hurry, you’ll be forced to scour eBay for one before too long. Along with the full launch of the Tony Hawk Limited Edition Sidekick LX, T-Mobile has also redesigned the sidekick.com site to turn it into “Tony’s World”. It’s a pretty rad interactive flash site with Tony, his new Sidekick, multiple locations, and a couple Easter eggs. Let us know what you find with your eagle eyes on the site, and keep an eye out for that Yeti!

Here at Hiptop3.com we get quite a bit of email, a lot (Ok, most) of the emails we get are the same questions over and over. So we’re going to cover them all in this post rather than answer each one individually.

Is the ota a new sidekick or is it something that’s on the sidekick lx

Hey, I was wondering, what really is a ota update? Will it benifit me or my sidekick lx

The OTA is a Software update for the Sidekick LX. You don’t have to buy a new sidekick for the OTA. Yes, your sidekick will benefit from the update of course. Read our previous posts on the new features.

How can I get the OTA update in my sidekick lx

how do you get the ota update for the lx? through an email or something

U probably are tired ?F hearin this bu I jus wanted 2 ??? how I would ??? when I get my ota

For the sidekick lx ota update does the update come in from your email. Like can u send me a screen shoot of what it would like when the ota comes and I would know that, that is the ota and I need to upgrade it.

That’s the hidden beauty in the OTA process. You do nothing. Just continue using your Sidekick as usual. When the update is ready a box will popup on your phone letting you know that a system update has been downloaded. You can choose to install now, or install later. If you choose later, it will prompt you again later or you can press Menu from the Jump Screen and select the Update menu item.

This is what the box looks like.

It sucks, I can’t go on myspace using my phone’s web browser anymore because of the new myspace layout. Do you think they did it on purpose to force people to buy the myspace application?

No. MySpace is notorious for being very poor on the Sidekick. Every time they change something the site breaks on the Sidekick. It’s just a coincidence that there is a full Application and MySpace has web developers that occasionally screw things up. You can take the foil hats off now.

So are THE ota updates coming on THE 26 of june

On the 25th is the OTA for everyone gonna be rolled out

We don’t know when the OTA rollout will start. Everything now is a rumor. What we do know is just because the roll out starts on say the 25th of June, that does NOT mean everyone gets it that day. It can still take weeks for you to get your update.

How can I get my update faster?

You’ll get your OTA when it’s ready. Just wait. This might be Tomorrow, this might be weeks. The only thing you can do to make the OTA come faster is slip into a coma until around Mid-July (The OTA should (by our estimations) be fully rolled out by then.)

Will the sidekick slide get the OTA update too?

No, the Slide will not be getting this OTA from all that we have heard. If this changes, we will certainly report on it.

Want to change the color of your Sidekick LX but don’t want to ship it off to Colorware and spend a ton of ca$h? There are some auctions up on eBay selling “Sidekick Lens Frames”. These will replace the plastic pieces of your Sidekick, changing the color to whatever you want. Several people in the past have dismantled their Sidekicks and then painted the pieces. You can skip that messy painting step with these. Here’s a auto-updating list of the auctions available on eBay:

Looking to pick up a new Jeep Wrangler? Don’t want one of those lame stock Jeep Wranglers? Better hurry over to eBay and check out this auction. Not only will you get a tricked out Jeep Wrangler, but you’ll also get one of the new Tony Hawk Limited Edition Sidekick LXs with your new ride. On top of that you’ll get 4 VIP tickets to the HuckJam tour and a chance to hang out with Tony Hawk himself. All the proceeds from this auction are also going to a good cause, the Tony Hawk Foundation. No, that doesn’t buy Tony new skateboards, it’s a foundation that helps build skateparks in low income neighborhoods and promote skating. The bids are up to $46,200, so you better break out that high limit credit card if you want to bid!

Here’s the description straight from the auction:

Here’s your chance to bid on this one-of-a-kind 2007 Jeep Wrangler Rubicon Unlimited, “Hawkized” by DUB® magazine! The Wrangler Unlimited Rubicon 4×4 has been tricked-out with 24” TIS™ 09 Toyo off-road tires, custom Skyjacker 9″ body lift, Borla performance exhaust, tinted windows, DUB satin black emblems, and Birdhouse Skateboards mounted on custom skateboard racks! In the interior, you will find 7” Alpine monitors in the headrests, embroidered Tony Hawk logo on the seats, an Alpine DVD HEADUNIT SYSTEM and a Custom Fiberglass Subwoofer Box, plus much more!

The winner will also receive the new T-Mobile Sidekick LX Tony Hawk Edition, designed by Tony Hawk! A long-time user since the first Sidekick debuted, Tony puts his personal design on the iconic device by giving it a true skateboard look. This limited edition Sidekick will be the first Sidekick to ship with video record, play and share. It also includes other enhancements such as a more personalized Web browsing experience, stereo Bluetooth support, easier downloads and more options for theme and background personalization. The device features a slate-grey shell, accented with blue and white designs, and Tony’s well-known hawk graphic. A customized Tony Hawk theme will be included on the device featuring an exclusive video of Tony performing tricks, a Tony-inspired background, and skate-themed swivel screen open and close sounds. For more information, please visit www.sidekick.com.

In addition to the Jeep and Sidekick LX Tony Hawk Edition, the winning bidder will receive 4 VIP Tickets to Tony Hawk’s Boom Boom HuckJam tour and meet Tony before the show! Winning bidder will get to choose which show they would like to attend. Hotel and transportation not included. Click to see HuckJam tour schedule , visit www.boomboomhuckjam.com

Also, the winning bidder will be featured with the Tony Hawk DUB Edition Jeep in an upcoming DUB magazine issue.