T-Mobile Offering Sidekick Users Handset Discounts or Contract Out (Updated)

Preceding the expected official announcement from T-Mobile regarding the Sidekick debacle today, the following options are being offered to customers affected by the situation according to T-Mobile customer service reps:

• Release from agreement with no ETF.
• T-Mobile G1 for $129.
• Blackberries and other similar handsets at unspecified pricepoints.

It’s well known that Sidekick users are extremely dedicated to their devices and the above alternatives have yet to appease the majority of customers, with many blaming T-Mobile for the entire situation.

Update: T-Mobile has offered the following statement regarding the situation today:

“All impacted Sidekick users will receive credit for one month of Sidekick data service. We recognize the magnitude of this inconvenience. Our primary efforts have been focused on restoring our customers’ personal content. We also are considering additional measures for those who have lost your content to help reinforce how valuable you are as a T-Mobile customer.”

Update 2: T-Mobile has released an additional statement:

Dear valued T-Mobile Sidekick customers:

We are thankful for your continued patience as Microsoft/Danger continues to work on preserving platform stability and restoring all services for our Sidekick customers.  We have made significant progress this past weekend, restoring services to virtually every customer.  Microsoft/Danger has teams of experts in place who are working around-the-clock to ensure this stability is maintained.
Regarding those of you who have lost personal content, T-Mobile and Microsoft/Danger continue to do all we can to recover and return any lost information.  Recent efforts indicate the prospects of recovering some lost content may now be possible.  We will continue to keep you updated on this front; we know how important this is to you.

In the event certain customers have experienced a significant and permanent loss of personal content, T-Mobile will be sending these customers a $100 customer appreciation card.  This will be in addition to the free month of data service that already went to Sidekick data customers.  This card can be used towards T-Mobile products and services, or a customer’s T-Mobile bill.  For those who fall into this category, details will be sent out in the next 14 days – there is no action needed on the part of these customers.  We however remain hopeful that for the majority of our customers, personal content can be recovered.

Sidekick customers can continue to visit T-Mobile Sidekick Forums (http://www.t-mobile.com/sidekick) on a regular basis to access the latest updates, as well as FAQs regarding this service disruption.  The Forums also offers tips and suggestions for rebuilding content on your device.”