T-Mobile Sidekick 4G Boasting Group Text, 21Mbps HSPA+

T-Mobile and Samsung today announced the Sidekick 4G, a new generation of the Sidekick family that retains the Sidekick's defining characteristics while also breaking new ground. The Sidekick 4G keeps the familiar hardware design with pop-up 3.5-inch touch screen and five-row QWERTY keyboard, but it runs Android 2.2 Froyo with a number of customizations by Samsung and T-Mobile. First, the Sidekick 4G will have Group Text, a new T-Mobile service offering that lets Sidekick 4G users conduct reply-all group text conversations. Cloud Text, another new feature, will allow Sidekick 4G users to to conduct text conversations from their platform of choice (PC, phone, etc.). The new Jump key can be used for faster multitasking, and lets users jump from app to app quickly. The Sidekick 4G has a 1GHz A8 Hummingbird processor, and a user-facing VGA camera for video chats with the included Qik application. The Sidekick 4G is loaded with a bevy of entertainment features, including Samsung's Media Hub, T-Mobile's Media Room, and pre-installed Facebook, Twitter and social networking applications. The Sidekick 4G will have access to T-Mobile's HSPA+ network at 21Mbps. The Sidekick 4G will first be offered to existing T-Mobile customers later this spring.