T-Mobile 'Gekko' officially reveals itself as T-Mobile Sidekick

It's so hard to keep a good secret these days. Just ask T-Mobile. Word of its new Sidekick model, code-named Gekko, got out months ago and was all but confirmed about a week ago when the ruthless blogosphere got hold of some internal T-Mobile documents about the upcoming model.

(Credit: Corinne Schulze/CNET Networks)

Well, today, the wraps were officially taken off the new model. Simply called the T-Mobile Sidekick (more on this new, puzzling naming scheme below), it's the first Sidekick to debut since device manufacturer Danger was acquired by Microsoft.

The Sidekick isn't a revolutionary, new product, but we think there's enough there to attract the young, hip messaging fanatics. The big highlight is the new level of personalization, as you can add your own graphics, images, and designs to the outer shell for a one-of-a-kind model. You can read all about this as well as the handheld's other features and performance in our full review. The T-Mobile Sidekick is available in select stores and online today for $149.99 with a two-year contract and after discounts and rebates.

Finally, for those of you who are curious about why T-Mobile has reverted to simply calling the handheld Sidekick, here's the official statement from the carrier: "The T-Mobile Sidekick family is going to have two lines of devices, the T-Mobile Sidekick and the T-Mobile Sidekick LX. Both Sidekick lines will have their own unique set of features so that consumers can choose the one that best fits their lifestyle. The T-Mobile Sidekick will focus on personalization at an affordable price while the T-Mobile Sidekick LX will be a little higher-end and have more of a 'luxury' emphasis; it will also likely include future limited edition models."