Sidekick vs. Chocolate

It’s a given that kids going back to school need to be well equipped. It’s not just about clothes or school supplies, or even cars (though that’s always a plus). Technology figures as prominently as ever in back to school necessities.

With more parents allowing their kids to have cell phones, it’s time to take a look at two of the more popular brands on the market and see how they fare — the T-Mobile Sidekick 3 and the LG Chocolate.

For students, like in everything else, they want their techie accessories to be fashionable and functional. But if it’s a choice between flashy and functional, they’ll probably go for the functional.

That doesn’t mean the functional is going to hit all the marks wanted by the typical student. Wireless companies are vying for this demographic, thinking the best thing must be to cram everything into it and make it an all-in-one. That does and doesn’t work for a couple of reasons — mostly because iPods are the dominant music player and the music players featured on most phones won’t come close to usurping it’s dominance.

In high school, all you care about is connecting with your friends, and this generation has found new ways to do it — IM, MySpace, texting — generally non-verbal communication since it gives them more opportunities.

And if that’s the most important thing to your student, then go for the T-Mobile Sidekick 3. For sheer ease of keyboard tapping and sending IM’s, text messages and e-mails, it’s the hands-down winner. The thing about the Sidekick that works fairly well — especially if you have smaller hands — is the keyboard. Your thumbs go to town almost as well as a regular keyboard. IM’ing is a breeze.

And besides, everyone on “The Hills” has a Sidekick. Isn’t that reason enough? It is one phone that’s definitely made the rounds of the paparazzi’s favorite victims, though their Sidekicks tend to be more blinged (maybe they have the Juicy Couture version) like Paris Hilton’s or Lindsay Lohan’s.

NBC VIDEO Back-to-school gadgets Aug. 22: The "Today" show's David Gregory talks with Cat Schwartz, a.k.a. "The Hi-Tech Mommy," about some super gear for the super kid in your house. Today Show Parenting

It’s also chock full of other useful applications that you’ll probably find standard on most phones nowadays: an address book, calendar and games. But it also comes with a 1.3 megapixel camera (not so great for indoor photos), a music player and a Web browser.

The screen for the browser is actually quite clear, with pictures that download on Web sites coming in clearly. And it has a mini scroll ball that actually makes it quick to navigate through pages. Nice.

It packs all of these bells and whistles into a not-quite-so-sleek design that feels a lot heavier than its 6.7 ounces. This is the Sidekick’s only real drawback: its heft. It’s kinda like carrying a mini laptop. When it’s open and you’re rolling on the IM’s and texting, it’s great. Then comes hauling it around.

While the fashion trend goes toward big bags, this won’t be a problem. But try slipping one of these babies in an evening clutch, and it’s gonna be clunky. But how often will your typical high school or college student be stepping out so formally?

It’s a little frustrating as a phone — unless you use your Bluetooth wireless. But even then, that technology drops off. So as a phone, not so great. But it’s got a speakerphone, and if you plan on mostly texting, it’s the one.

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