Archive for the 'Rumors' Category

Sidekick LX (and Slide?) Video confirmed by T-Mobile

Thursday, May 15th, 2008
Sidekick LX Pictures and Videos

For all those that were doubting us when we said that video was coming to the Sidekick LX via an OTA, we present you with a page straight from T-Mobile.com. The text reads:

Viewing available memory for pictures and videos
To view available memory for pictures and videos, perform the following steps:
1. At the Jump screen, roll to and select Camera.
2. The available space for new pictures appears in the upper left-hand corner of the screen.

The original page for the Sidekick LX can be found here (if they haven’t pulled it yet). There’s also the same page for the Sidekick Slide, although we haven’t heard any details on an OTA for you Slide owners yet and there’s also this page which says: “The Sidekick Slide does not support sending video messages.” So we’re going to stick with saying to expect the video OTA for the LX, but not for the Slide. Sorry Sliders.

Pictures and videos man. Pictures AND videos.

-Thanks to Ryan for catching this.

Gecko browser is not the Sidekick Gekko

Wednesday, May 14th, 2008

A screenshot of a Javascript error was posted on the PBD forums. It says nothing about a Sidekick Gekko. It just happens that the engine that Danger uses for the Sidekick browser (on all their devices) back-end web proxy (to be exact) is based on the Gecko layout engine, just like Firefox and Netscape. So, nope this doesn’t confirm anything about the Gekko sadly. Not to mention that this sort of screenshot is easily faked with literally 1 line of code on a webpage. The original screenshot below:

Post on Boy Genius Report

No Windows Mobile Sidekick Edition

Wednesday, May 14th, 2008

Or at least not planned yet… Joel Evans over at Geek.com is saying that a little birdy told him that there is no plan in the near future for a Windows Mobile Sidekick. He was told this at a pre-Mobius event. Mobius is an invite only community run by Microsoft that apparently hasn’t found our address to send us an invite yet. Actually what he quotes is “no new phone” is in the works. We already know that Danger is working on new devices, but this confirms that Microsoft isn’t working on new hardware and we highly doubt Danger has made any efforts to get Windows Mobile running on their current platforms.

Read more

Sidekick ZunePhone?

Saturday, May 10th, 2008

Everyone and their brother has been sending in links about how there was a comment made by Chris Stephenson, the GM of Marketing for Zune, that mentioned that they are trying to find ways to mesh Danger and the Zune team. As of now it’s just a comment, and there’s no confirmation or discussion of a Zune Phone. Our guess is that Danger is being tapped for their UI experience because their operating systems have always been super intuitive and easy to use. But there’s always the possibility of a Zune Phone, but the question is “Would anyone buy one?”

via

Sidekick LX to get A2DP

Monday, May 5th, 2008

A little birdie told us that with the OTA update, the Sidekick LX will finally get support for A2DP Bluetooth devices. What does this mean? In short, you’ll be able to listen to phone calls, MP3s, videos, games, etc. in high quality stereo sound using bluetooth headphones.

(image via)

Sidekick Gekko/Aspen Screenshot

Friday, May 2nd, 2008

That’s right, a Hiptop3.com exclusive where we bring you the first screenshots from the Sidekick Aspen/Gekko. Everything we’ve been hearing points to the Aspen and Gekko being one and the same. We’re not 100% sure which name T-Mobile is going to market this as, but we’d put our money on the SK Gekko. It’s catchy and plays on the ability for the device to change colors. It’s safe to assume that those yellow sides are going to be replaceable with your choice of colors. This device is going to be the followup to the Sidekick iD for sure, as it’s code name is Style 2 (the SKiD was codenamed “Style”). We’ve also been told it’s going to have the same screen as the LX and similar features. The phone icon in this screenshot matches up with what we were seeing in the catalog earlier. We’ve also heard this was supposed to be a cheaper model phone since not everyone can plunk down several hundred dollars for the Sidekick LX. We have yet to hear what it’s missing in relation to the LX though. My guess would be that it’ll be bigger than the LX because a lot of the time cheaper parts = bigger.

Video on the Sidekick LX

Friday, May 2nd, 2008

We’ve been saying it for months and months, but now we’ve actually got some picture proof for you guys. Yes, the Sidekick LX is getting video, as evidenced by the screenshots above. We’re still trying to figure out details on what exactly the Sidekick will support as far as video is concerned. But yes, you will be able to capture and playback video on the Sidekick LX. I’m sure the question on everyone’s mind is “Will I be able to watch YouTube videos?” and as of now we don’t have a firm answer yet. Rumor has it that the H.264 codec will be supported, and YouTube started encoding videos in H.264 for Apple awhile back. So there may be some sort of workaround, but as far as a dedicated YouTube app for the Sidekick LX, we haven’t heard anything yet. We’ve also heard that it might be H.263 instead of H.264. We’ll let you know as soon as we nail it down so you can start converting your videos to be ready.

But for all you Sidekick LX users, look for an OTA coming very soon. And if you’ve been holding off on getting a Sidekick LX because of the lack of video support, it’s time to spend that money you’ve been saving. There was also a recent price drop in the device yesterday, so take advantage of that.

Sidekick 3 getting an OTA

Friday, May 2nd, 2008

Sounds like the Sidekick 3 is getting a Over The Air (OTA) update to upgrade the radio firmware. Doesn’t look like anything significant or major improvements, but all you Sidekick 3 owners may see it popping up on your device soon. I assume it’s rolling out to the pioneer group first, which is basically a small (random) subset of the Sidekick 3 users. As long as that rolls out without significant problems it will start being sent out to everyone.

What does Hank have in his pockets?

Thursday, May 1st, 2008
Yesssss, whats in your pocketsss?

Financial Times has an interview with Hank Nothhaft, the CEO of Danger. Not a whole lot of substance in it other than he mentions his love for horses a lot, and a couple of business mistakes he made. The part that has us interested in is the first question he was asked:

What’s in your pocket?
A prototype of the next Sidekick (mobile-cum-internet device). It’s thinner and less wide but has a bigger keyboard. Now I no longer keep it on a belt, I’m always losing it. I was known as the “absent-minded professor” as a student.

A prototype of the next Sidekick? Could this be the Gekko/Aspen that we’ve been hearing about? I’m trying to wrap my head around how they could be making the keyboard bigger AND make it less wide. But then again, he might be comparing it to a Slide.

thanks for the tip Ricky

Tony Hawk Limited Edition Sidekick LX

Monday, April 28th, 2008

Tony Hawk Limited Edition Sidekick LX
Anyone that keeps tabs on which celebrity uses a Sidekick will know that Tony Hawk loves the Sidekick. The press release for the Sidekick II even quotes him:

“I can’t live without my Sidekick,” said skateboarding icon Tony Hawk. “I take it everywhere with me. It allows me to answer emails as they come in instead of coming home to 100 different messages.”

So it’s not too big of a surprise to hear rumors that he’s going to get his own Limited Edition Sidekick LX. We hope he’s still not stuck on the Sidekick II, but if so, this will be more than enough reason to upgrade.

No official word from T-Mobile on this yet, but rumor has it that the Tony Hawk Limited Edition Sidekick LX will launch on July 16th. This is perfect timing as it is 2 days before the first stop on Tony Hawk’s Boom Boom Huckjam presented by T-Mobile Sidekick. Yes, another event with a name just as long as the 50th Grammy Celebration Concert Tour presented by T-Mobile Sidekick. We’re not even sure of the color of this one yet, but as soon as we find out more info, we’ll let you know. What color do you think it should be?

TmoNews says it so it must be true, right? 🙂