T-Mobile is playing by "IGBYGB" rules?

I am sorry and this is not directly Sidekick (4G or any other model) relate but in an indirect way it is!

If you have been a long time Sidekick user you are surely frustrated at MS' move to buy Danger Inc. and now the fact that T-Mobile is (forced to?) discontinuing your Sidekick specific services.

At the same time for many of us "SK users" there seemed to be "light at the end of the tunnel" when the Sidekick 4G Android based phone was announced. Many of us thought wow, there is something we can move on to after all. We pretty much "knew" after some time that our so precious $19.99 all-you-can-eat DATA & TEXT packages were doomed, as they have been for years now, for new "signup-ees". Yet we it seemed maybe there is hope as various blog sites including my own calls to 611 (numerous of times) indicated that long time SK users would be eligible for special promotions and discounts.

Well having talked to customer service (611) and loyalty department now about 4 hours total in the past 2 weeks, and having purchased two SKs in my local corporate store on two different numbers, I can say there is ZERO consistency within T-Mobile right now. Not only does not one department have any clue what the other department is offering/promoting. One prime example is the screen-shot (and link by clicking on it) above. This was tweeted on April 28th no-one within T-Mobile sales was able to located such a package and insisted that I had misunderstood something! 

Now if you start looking at the numbers you will soon realize that T-Mobile is just shuffling figures around to distort the true picture! For instance if you take a look at T-Mobile current Family Plans you will notice that all and any plans that have DATA included also have UNLIMITED TEXTing included. Including the "low end" ones I chose to include in the screen-shot below (clickable picture takes you to their site):

So why is this important? Well remember the $19.99 all-you-can-eat DATA and text plan mentioned above? Well it appears that T-Mobile is CLAIMING to be grandfathering these to some Sidekick 4G users. However with a twist they charge for TEXT. For instance long time Sidekick user Mike Chapman  /ncmacsl was one that got treated to such a "deal" and while he seems to be perfectly content with it, to me it is just added proof how T-Mobile is joggling numbers around to their benefit and to create a vast smoke screen to the users!

When I called in to check what my options are for some cheaper monthly plan from the $80+ I originally signed on for with 500 minutes and 5GB ($30) data plan, I too was presented with a $10 option where they would "give" me the data not for $30 but for $20 however after he talked about a number of other things he at the end added "there will be a $10 fee for unlimited texting"bringing the end total to the exact same figure! At this point I finally then got the information about the VB (voice barred) package for $49.99 (after pushing for alternatives or&informing him I would "have to leave" T-Mobile if not) and this is what I am on currently as of the past five days. But now I run into this information:

This (if accurate?) would not only indicate that they in fact do allow for $19.99 data packages for the SK 4G (as was 100% denied to me over at TMo Loyalty Department, indicating "If I could do it for you I would") but even that they are allowing DATA ONLY packages not even at the 2004 price rate of $29.99 but even lower!?

T-Mobile at this point I feel you need to do some explanations as to what is up with you UP FRONT PUBLIC plans & rates and the ones you offer "behind closed doors" (read when people call in and really threaten to leave you!)

I am sure this all has to do with the AT&T acquisition pending and the half a million customers having left T-Mobile the first quarter of this year:

But frankly that should be of no concern to the consumer / user (not at this time nor frankly at any point). These HIDDEN PLANS and offerings are just creating a jungle that it appears not even T-Mobile internally has any clue what they are up to. To me it just seems like everyone there is running in their own direction prior to the ship sinking!? Seems to be a case of IBGYBG if you ask me!

Take screenshots with your Sidekick 4G

One of the first things I started looking for when I got my Sidekick 4G was a way to take screenshots with it. After some research I found this app that can do so without having to root your Sidekick. It is called Screen Capture Shortcut Free and works just fine with your Sidekick 4G. It works a little bit different than other solutions. You can reach the "shutter button" from the notification bar, and set the delay to these various settings (in seconds) 0s, 0.5s, 0.75s, 1s, 3s, 5s, 10s. 

T-Mobile Sidekick 4G shares battery with other Samsung models.

I was pleasantly surprised a few days ago when I noticed that eBay was "full of" affordable battery options for the Sidekick 4G especially since many of them even came with stand alone chargers.

I could only assume that the SK4G was sharing the battery with other Samsung models, and it appears to be confirmed by at least one eBay seller if this information is any reliable and without promoting one seller over any other on eBay the one with this information listed has 40.000+ positive feedback at a higher than 99% so it should be somewhat reliable.

According to this particular seller the Sidekick 4G by Samsung uses the same battery as the following Samsung models:

i8910 Omnia HD

Omnia 3G

Omnia Pro B7610

Giorgio Armani B7620

Omnia Pro B7300

Omnia Pro B7320

i6410

S8500

  

My T-Mobile & Sidekick 4G escapades!

As the long time Sidekick user I am I went to my corporate T-Mobile store (less than 2 miles from where I live) to pickup a new Sidekick 4G on April 20th.

As you maybe already know the Sidekick is being advertised as being $99.99 as seen in the above picture, however part of that price is a $50 MIR (Mail In Rebate), and in the state I am in I have to pay sales tax on top of the full "suggested retail price" ($379.99) which was $35.14 then you have the upgrade or/and activation fees etc etc. So before you are "out-the-door" it is just under $200. 

I was however pleased and felt I got away with not too much when I (on April the 20th) paid $100.12 "out-the-door" and the rest split up over monthly (interest free) payments of $33.33 (which were to start after my 30-day remorse period was over). However since I am the only one of my family members who is with TMo still I was now on an individual plan (with a 2nd phone on another carrier in my other pocket for a number of reasons one being private vs business line & calls). So my $30 (data) & $39.99 (500 min voice) and insurance and other small taxes, fees, services made my monthly total to be in the $80-90 range (since insurance will be going up to $7.99 shortly). 

So since the new Sidekick was giving me a little shorter than I wanted/needed battery time. The Android ecosystem and OS was growing on me but yet had far from become "my own" and the monthly fees seemed to be a tad high for my needs. I started to consider other alternatives, and returned my Sidekick 4G on May 5th 2011.  T-Mobile's restocking fee policy is $10 and I feel that is more than fair. So my SK4G 2 year contract was reversed and my $90.12 ($100.12-$10 restocking fee) was refunded to me instantly.

I had in fact prior to this already ordered online a Samsung Galaxy Tab (refurbished) for $149.99 on T-Mobile website with two year contract and their then just released new $39.99 (2GB) "unlimited" data package (I should add that I bought a Tab also when it was released back in late 2010 on Amazon for $599.99 with no contract, only to sell it 4 days later much due to the price, to try and test it). Maybe this "new generation" communication and media device (Tablet) could fill my needs, I was anyhow already carrying another (sometimes called "magical" :)) smartphone in my other pocket in the same under 4" range size as the SK4G. Well after (once again) having tried to "haul" this 7" device around for a week or so, I do realize two things. First for me personally Android is easier to "get along with" when I have many physical buttons. Especially buttons I can customize and make do what I want. Also I must say that the Launcher Pro helps a lot. Secondly a 7" device is still a huge device and while it is fantastic size for viewing some types of media, it is a very large device for hauling with you always. So I decided I will be returning it (have yet to do so!).

So when I found that Sidekick 4G batteries (that on the Galaxy Tab is non removable but 4000 mAh and thereby over 2.5 times the SK4G battery capacity) are affordable and readily available on eBay for the Sidekick 4G with even stand alone chargers included it opened new doors of possibilities for me to have a Sidekick 4G after all. Then when I (as a last hope of staying with TMo and/or the SK platform) called TMo loyalty department and explained my needs and wants, and the person I spoke to told me about the $49.99 DATA ONLY (voice barred) hearing impaired plan then it was pretty clear that this would most likely work out for me.

This is when I called up my corporate store again to see if "my" Sidekick 4G was still there, I mean I felt it was only appropriate for me to take it back and use "it" since I had become this "wishy washy" person who didn't know what he wanted (in my own eyes!). Well long story short I was given a totally new phone. But not only that to my surprise (and joy) I was this time around treated to a $50 INSTANT REBATE in opposite to the MIR version on April 20th. Yet I was still able to split up the payments into monthly installments (interest free). So now I enjoy a $49.99/month plan, and this time I paid $55.49 "out-the-door" with sales tax of $30.50 (on a $329.77 "retail price"!?) and with another two payments of $24.99 that will appear on my monthly bills in the future.

While I am now pleased with my "out-the-door" and total purchase price for the Sidekick 4G and also the $49.99 data only package, I must say it puzzles me why after have "wasted" the (very same) rep's time now three times (1. Buying the SK4G 2. Returning the SK4G 3. Buying the SK4G again!) and being on a less expensive plan with TMo, why did I get a much better deal on the purchase price? It is ironic but that's how it turned out. In reality it is only a matter of an instant rebate vs. a MIR (mail in rebate). But still it makes a difference at the time of purchase. 

The new T-Mobile Sidekick 4G with their "VB" (voice barred) data only package.

If you are like me and use your Sidekick mainly as what I sometimes refer to it as a "Email, text & IM pager" maybe you are not so interested in paying for a voice plan. Perhaps you are hearing impaired and therefore the voice plans would just be a "waste of money" for you.

Whatever the case might be, T-Mobile offers something they do not advertise much (if any) they call these plans "VB" (stands for voice barred). They have been around for a long time with TMo, in fact back when I got my first Sidekick I had such a package for $29.99 a month. 

After having had my Sidekick 4G on a $30 (data) & $39.99 (500 min voice) plan for around 2 weeks, I have changed my mind and gone with this "VB" plan for my SK 4G, that now goes for $49.99. Why do I chose this option? Well for me (using an individual plan & having a "second line & phone" with another carrier) it just made no sense to pay close to $100/month for my SK4G.

So how does this work in reality? Well you have zero minutes on your account and in fact you can not call out nor can anyone reach you at the number that is assigned to the Sidekick. If someone calls your number they will get the message "At the subscribers request this phone does not accept incoming calls". So how can one still keep on using your phone and maybe (as with me) long time phone number in a more normal way? Well recently Google Voice has started to allow for porting of numbers the Google voice service as such is free (for domestic calls and texting/SMS) but the port itself costs a one time fee of $20 and takes around 24 hours to be completed (exactly to the hour for me!). The completion of the port of the texting/SMS feature takes longer (still pending for me for incoming but works for outgoing).

Since the new Sidekick 4G is Android based it works very well with the Google voice app from the the Android market (also available for iOS devices btw). So I can continue to send and receive text messages/SMS' to my "old" number and (uniquely to Google voice for now as far as I know) you can even forward your texts/SMS to another number as SMS (or/and to emails if you want!). So the SK voice barred (but with included unlimited text/SMS) can be set up to receive the SMS as a real SMS which can be handy if/when you happen to be in poor reception where there is no data coverage but maybe voice (whereby text/SMS also works) coverage is available.

I can also place and receive calls within my Gmail account in my browser. However since the Google Voice app for the mobile phone wants to use the voice line to place a call I am NOT able to use my Google Voice app for placing or receiving calls. Now while the mobile data coverage and speeds are somewhat lacking still in North America it is possible (though at times limited) to use VOIP over 3G/4G data. So I am able to use the Skype app for unlimited calling in the US & Canada for $2.99/month (with $13.99-19.99 for worldwide unlimited packages as optional). Once Google Voice completes the full port and thereby activates my incoming texts/SMS I can add my old (now ported to Google Voice) number with Skype and thereby have it to show up as the caller ID number when I use Skype to call out.

This all might sound somewhat complex, but I must say once it is all setup it works fantastically smooth and gives me full control of what, where, to where, from where I get calls texts/SMS and how I can access them. Unlike "traditional" texts/SMS since I now get an email with them I have them archived for as long as I chose to, something that has at times been an issue in the past, especially with the old Sidekicks that had a maximum of 100 messages.

All I can say is I am NOW HAPPY with my Sidekick 4G setup at $10 more a month than I was paying for my very first Sidekick soon to be a decade ago! 

The only little silly thing is I have no way of calling 611 to reach T-Mobile! :) 

  

T-Mobile Sidekick 4G Software Review

If you for some reason still haven't gotten the new Sidekick 4G but yet are interested in it (why else would you be reading this? ;))

Here is a nice review a little deeper than your average "hands-on" video:

Includes overview of the LED settings.

Sidekick 4G extra batteries on eBay

Out of curiosity I checked on eBay to see if batteries for the Sidekick 4G 

were available yet, and to my surprise there are plenty of them there.

I can only presume the Sidekick 4G shares the battery with some other already existing Samsung models?

 

You can click on the image to check for yourself.