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Danger Updates the Sidekick

Techstination feature for Tuesday, August 31, 2004

Danger updates the Sidekick. Bloomberg Boot Camp, a report on today's technology. It's 25 percent slimmer than the original and boasts better battery life. T-Mobile will begin selling the Sidekick II this fall. It's an updated version of the cell phone with a screen that swivels around to reveal a thumb keyboard. The device was created by three and a half year old start up Danger, inc., where CEO Hank Nothhaft says….the Japanese consumer electronics company Sharp has signed on as the manufacturer of the device…

"This is very important to Danger because it provides us with a partner that has huge scale, a tremendous reputation for manufacturing quality and will be able to meet the increased demand for our products. "

The new Hiptop…or Sidekick as T-Mobile calls it has a better design overall…with more functions available without having to swivel the screen. It also…includes a built in camera…but the resolution is only VGA. It also lacks Bluetooth wireless connectivity, a memory expansion card slot and an infrared port. The strong point remains…email and messaging…

"We did retain the full size keyboard which we believe is one of the big attractions for the device as well. We've gotten a lot of feedback that said keep that keyboard in tact, it's the largest full size keyboard of its type for this type of device."

You won't find it this time around, but Nothhaft tell us there are plans to add WiFi capability in the future. The Sidekick II will list for about three hundred dollars. Bloomberg Boot Camp, I'm Fred Fishkin.