aL showdown: Touch vs. Sidekick
In response to Mike Fuji’s recent conundrum, I’m going to do a complete post on this.
SO, as of right now, there are two things (three if you count half of a dSLR), that you should spend $300 on right now:
- iPod Touch
- Sidekick LX
So, which one do you choose? Well, that’s what I’m here to find out. Let’s take the
pros and cons of each item and see what’s good.
iPod Touch:
Pros
- super-thin
- 3.5″ touch display
- part of the iPod eco-system
- built-in wireless internet
- Cover Flow
- iTunes wi-fi store
- scratch resistant glass screen
Cons
- part of the iPod eco-system (a turn off for some)
- Safari doesn’t support flash
- internet/wi-fi store only works on wi-fi connection
- stainless steel back
- software keyboard
Sidekick LX
Pros
- large 3.5″ screen
- full qwerty keyboard
- T-Mobile
- 3G enabled internet speeds
- familiar swivel screen
Cons
- thicker than iPod touch
- earpiece on d-pad (messes with sound quality)
- not the most comfortable or natural-feeling phone experience
- web browsing experience not as rich
- media capabilities dwarfed by iPod Touch
So, in conclusion, what should you get?
Well, it depends on what you need.
If you’re looking for a mobile communication device that can get you connected anywhere at any time with either phone, internet or instant messaging… go with the LX. In all honesty, this should be between the LX and iPhone, but since a lot of people are put off by the at&t, the comparison of features doesn’t really equate up for our purposes.
If you’re looking for a dope media device that will get that “oooh” factor, definitely spring for the Touch. Again, you could almost use the iPhone as the comparison for this one as well, as the capabilities match up perfect on both sides.
In reality, if you have $300 to spend right now… I say go with the Touch. With the mess of problems going on with the Sidekick Slide, you know that thing will be redesigned and ready to bounce into the hands of customers sometime in the near future. I’d actually wait until that came out before jumping on the Sidekick bandwagon.
Also, you know by the time you get your second revision Slide, you’ll be thoroughly enjoying your iPod Touch. In the meantime, find a hotspot and boot up your Touch… just make sure your cell phone is on vibrate so you cans till feel calls come in while listening to music.
Steve Polychronopolous is discussing. 
Steve Polychronopolous 12:49 am on November 20, 2007 Permalink |
After having the Sidekick LX for a couple days I’d like to contribute some first hand experiences:
The size is slighly larger (although thinner) than the T-Mobile Sidekick 3, yet the boxier shape or it hides it well. It really ‘feels’ smaller than the Sidekick 3. The screen appears to be covered by either glass or a much better acrylic than its predecessor, and doesnt appear to scratch as easily – similar to the iPhone/iPod Touch.
The 3.5mm is fantasic. Why don’t more “music” phones have this feature? Also supporting microSDHC, as far as i know, up to 6gb microSD cards have been verified as working on the LX. Leaving room for expansion in the future. The mp3 player is simple and laid out well, allowing for playlists and organization by album/artist/genre/etc. The buttons on the edges of the phone double as music controls, which are fabulous.
Browser speeds are just the same as they were on the 3, EDGE is slow, but totally usable when the internet is trimmed down via Danger’s servers. In a head to head EDGE competition, the LX would spank the iPhone because of this (of course WiFi is a different story). The browser also handles javascript a little better than before, but still takes forever to run some scripts before the page is fully loaded.
The usual problems exist but mainly from T-Mobile. Any sidekick user knows the “dancing dots” or hearing AIM play 10 “sign off” alerts in a row like an assault rifle. MSN and Yahoo Messengers don’t seem to be able to maintain a connection like AIM does. The hardware can’t be blamed for this. But we can blame Sharp for the trackball that seems to get filthy like nobody’s business.
New features include the mood lights around the housing, which are stylish but a bit too flashy at times – luckily you have the option to disable and enable this feature whenever you want. MMS is now standard, but I could count on one hand the number of people I know who actually use MMS (Picture Messaging).
What they shoud’ve and could’ve added for it’s $399 retail price:
-full Bluetooth support. A2DP and OBEX PLEASE!
-higher resolution camera and video support. sure we dont need it, but that doesn’t mean we dont want it
-WiFi antenna. reduce the load on your servers and make some consumers happy? who wouldnt want this in the phone?
And now the iPod touch…
I don’t own one, but I’ve had a lot of time to spend with the iPod touch. Very impressive, but the best iPod ever? I think not. Some people don’t consider it fair to compare the iPod Touch to the iPhone, but blame it on Apple for making them so similar.
The size is very impressive. Incredibly thin, easy to carry – case or not. Not big on one side being scratch proof and the other side being a scratch magnet, but any former iPod owner should be used to it by now. I kinda think it gives them character. What the iPod Touch could’ve really used are some media player buttons on the side of the device. You know, the things you usually do with an iPod like Skip/Pause, or adjust the volume maybe? Maybe I’m just too accustomed to the iPod Shuffle, but I really dislike having to Look at the device just to turn down the volume a little. Maybe in the next generation.
Personally, i hate coverflow. But it’s mainly my fault for never having updated my itunes library with album art. It’s a flashy feature, yes – and if you are the type to listen to music album by album this is definitely a winner. I’m more of the ’shuffle’ type of person. When will they ever add rewind/skip/shuffle buttons to the coverflow menu…? That’s really all I ask. Again the mystery of the missing controls…
The calender makes for a decent organize if you’re a fan of iCal. Thank’s Mr. Jobs for hearing our cries.
Safari is excellent. WiFi is definitely a winner. Tabbed browsing is a dream. Online apps work just as they do on the iPhone. Very nice. If you’re lucky enough to be a student or work at someplace with their own wireless connection – you’ll always have the internet in your pocket. But i’d imagine there will be times you really wish you could find a free one.
Youtube. Nuff said.
Watching movies is totally doable, the screen is just big enough to stare at for more than 5 minutes at a time (unlike the 5th Gen iPod ‘video’). If you buy your movies from iTunes, you’re all set. If not, once you get your operation setup, you’ll be watching the Italian Job @ work in no time. Just hope you have a few extra gigs of space on your hard drive ready.
And then there’s always room for 3rd party apps, I think this is where the iPod touch takes the cake. The possiblities are endless. Add notes, mail, IM clients, IRC clients, games. Why not? It’s not like it’s an iPhone.
What they shoud’ve and could’ve added for it’s $299-$399 retail price:
-WiFi syncing. I’d love to come home throw my iPod on the charger or speaker set, then maybe get the urge to upload some songs without having to plug it into the computer. It’s there, let us do it.
-Internal speaker, maybe even a little one. ok maybe not, it’s still just an iPod. but it would be great for watching movies or podcasts before bed.
-Again, we need external music player controls. think of the runners, the drivers, and everybody who just cant stare at their 3.5 inch touchscreen all day.
-More standard apps please… if we’re not supposed to jailbreak these things, at least give us a couple more games and useful applications to play with when we’re no where near a WiFi hotspot.
And that’s why I disagree that it’s the best iPod ever. It does a lot of things, and it does them nicely – but it really doesnt play music as easily as an… iPod does. Perhaps in the near future they’ll release something similar to the FM remote and completely change my point of view. Until then, wait til the next revision.