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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."

T-Mobile USA plans to announce Wednesday that its new @Home voice service will be available nationwide starting July 2.

The cell phone operator has been testing the new Internet telephony service since February in Dallas and Seattle. And now the new service, which is meant to replace traditional home phones, will be offered to any T-Mobile cell phone customer.

Subscribers will be able to connect any regular home telephone to a T-Mobile router that will send calls over the Internet much the same way as services like Vonage operate. The service costs $10 a month plus taxes and fees for unlimited domestic local and long-distance calls.

Only T-Mobile wireless customers who subscribe to at least a $39.99 individual calling plan or families subscribing to at least the $49.99 monthly T-Mobile calling plan can get the service. The @Home service also requires that users subscribe to a separate broadband service from a cable operator or telecom provider. And they are required to use a special T-Mobile router, which also provides Wi-Fi Internet access throughout the home.

This router can also be used to provide T-Mobile's HotSpot @Home phone service. This service, launched last year, allows T-Mobile subscribers to use dual-mode cellular and Wi-Fi phones that switch between both networks. When subscribers are near their home Wi-Fi hot spot, they use the broadband network to make unlimited domestic calls. And when they are outside the home, the phone seamlessly switches to T-Mobile's cellular network.

The service, which also costs $10 extra per month, serves two purposes. It helps provide better in-home cell phone coverage and also helps reduce the number of minutes used on the T-Mobile cellular network.

Britt Wehrman, director of product development for T-Mobile says the service, which launched a little over a year ago, has been a big success. The company hasn't disclosed subscriber numbers for the service, but Wehrman said that 45 percent of the hot-spot customers are leaving competitors to get the T-Mobile service. T-Mobile currently has eight dual-mode handsets that work with the service, two of which were announced earlier this week. And it has four more to announce by the end of the year, bringing the total to 12 dual-mode handsets.

The @Home VoIP (voice over Internet Protocol) service is meant to work with the hot-spot phone service, Wehrman said. When the hot-spot service was first introduced, the company found that families were interested in the plan. But they weren't willing to cut the cord on their home phones.

"The hot-spot service offers parents a good way to limit overage charges, because the kids can talk on their cell phones while they're at home without eating up minutes," he said. "But we found that many families didn't want to get rid of their traditional phones. They still wanted one phone in the house for the whole family."

So the @Home VoIP service was created to give families who don't want to get rid of their traditional landlines a low-cost option for retaining that line while still using the hot-spot service. To ensure that E911 service works with the VoIP service, T-Mobile is requiring all users to register their home address before service can be activated.

But because it is an Internet-based phone service that is dependent upon a broadband modem for connectivity, families will still have to consider the risks of power outages and Internet interruptions that will make the VoIP service and E911 unavailable during those outages. But Wehrman said that the fact that T-Mobile requires that subscribers of the @Home service also have a T-Mobile cell phone subscription limits the safety concerns.

T-Mobile USA is the latest mobile operator to make it easier to get out of those dreaded cell phone contracts.

On Monday the company said that it will pro-rate or reduce the cost over time of its early termination fees for contract customers. This means that customers will pay less to terminate their subscription as the end of their contract nears.

Beginning on June 28, customers with a one-year or two-year contract with T-Mobile will see their early termination fee drop from $200 to $100 if they end their contract with 91 to 180 days remaining on their agreement. If they end a contract with fewer than 91 days left on it, they will pay a termination of fee of $50. For customers who terminate their service in the last 30 days of their contract they will either pay the $50 fee or their standard monthly charge, depending on which one is cheaper.

The new policy only applies to new T-Mobile subscribers and subscribers who are renewing their contracts on or after June 28.

The battle over early termination fees has heated up recently as wireless operators face multimillion-dollar class action suits from consumers who say these fees are unfair and deter competition. Earlier this month a California state jury ruled that Sprint Nextel's fees were indeed legal in the first of these class action lawsuits.

Now the Federal Communications Commission is looking to get involved, and is considering making rules about early termination fees. Chairman Kevin Martin has included pro-rated contracts in his proposal, which he is hoping the commission will consider later this summer. Congress has also weighed in with proposed legislation.

Cell phone operators seem to have gotten the message. And the major players are starting to make changes. Verizon Wireless was the first major carrier to adopt a pro-rated policy almost two years ago. AT&T also announced it had changed its policy in October. Starting May 25 new AT&T subscribers will have their termination fees pro-rated over the life of their contract. The early termination fee will start at $175 and it will be reduced by $5 every month over the life of the one- and two-year contracts.

Sprint Nextel also said it will change its early termination fees. But the carrier has not implemented the new policy yet.

In addition to the new early termination policy, T-Mobile has also recently announced more options for customers who don't want a contract. The T-Mobile FlexPay plan offers T-Mobile customers its typical cell phone packages that include long-distance calling, roaming, and special rate offerings like MyFaves with no contract. Subscribers simply pay the retail cost of the phone and the regular monthly service charge for the service.

T-Mobile has also added more options for its pre-pay and pay-as-you-go customers. Consumers can choose a Pay By the Day plan. Under this plan, users pay $1 for every day they use their phone. They are given unlimited T-Mobile to T-Mobile calling and unlimited night calling from 7 p.m. to 6:59 a.m. For all other calls, users are charged 10 cents a minute. And they're charged 10 cents a minute for outgoing text messages and 5 cents a minute for incoming text messages.

T-Mobile also offers a Pay As You Go plan, which had previously been called T-Mobile To Go. This plan allows customers to pay for minutes they use. If they top off their account with $100, they get a 15 percent discount.

And finally, T-Mobile renamed its Sidekick To Go plan simply the Sidekick Prepaid plan. This plan offers users unlimited domestic e-mailing, Web surfing, instant messaging, and text messaging for $1 a day. And nationwide calling under this plan is 15 cents per minute.

LAS VEGAS--Mobility will be the key driver of growth for phone companies in the coming years as they expand their businesses to include new services like TV and broadband, AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson told attendees at an industry trade show here Tuesday.

AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson

(Credit: Marguerite Reardon/CNET Networks)

AT&T and the entire telecom industry have been transforming themselves over the past few years as traditional phone business slowly dies. No longer are these companies simply offering telephony, but they also offer TV, high-speed Internet, and wireless services. But it will be the mobilization of new services that will drive growth for companies in the next few years, Stephenson predicted during his keynote speech at the NxtComm trade show.

He used Monday's U.S. Open final as a perfect example of how mobility is changing usage. Stephenson said that he wasn't able to watch Tiger Woods clinch the U.S. Open golf title on his big screen TV at home, so he watched it on his mobile handset that uses the MediaFlo mobile broadcast TV service offered through AT&T.

He also made historical references to the Sony Walkman cassette player that essentially changed the music industry and made LP records obsolete. The same thing has happened to music yet again with devices like the iPod and now the iPhone, which allow people to take their digitized music on the go and even allow them to get their music wirelessly.

When devices and services are mobilized, Stephenson said, usage of all services shoots up. As an example, he said that even as AT&T's traditional phone business declines, voice minutes are growing 10 percent every year.

"As we mobilize services more things accelerate," he said. "We stimulate economic growth and drive prosperity on a global scale."

And as AT&T and other phone companies grow their video and broadband services, mobility will once again accelerate the market.

Today, roughly 2 billion people connect to the Internet. And by 2011 that number is expected to increase by another billion with most of these new broadband users coming from the developing world. But unlike the first 2 billion Internet users, these new users will access the Net from mobile devices, like Apple's new iPhone, Stephenson said.

With about 80 percent of the world's population living within range of a cell phone network, Stephenson believes the industry is poised for tremendous growth that will impact economies throughout the world.

"These are exciting times to be in this business and the industry," he said. "We are on the verge of an innovation explosion."

But he said that the industry must work through the challenges of a complex ecosystem to ensure the industry can deliver on its promise.

"The opportunity is fleeting in this business," he said. "Markets are moving fast. And not one us has the time for misfires or missed deadlines."

T-Mobile is gearing up to offer a 3G iPhone in Germany for only 1 euro, provided users sign up for its monthly 69-euro service plan, according to a Reuters report on Monday.

That translates into an iPhone purchase of roughly $1.55, and a monthly service plan of $107.

Under T-Mobile's offering, the telecom provider will sell the phones with 8GB of memory, while a 16GB phone will go for 19.95 euros, or nearly $31.

T-Mobile's announcement of its 3G iPhone offering comes a week after Apple rolled out the latest version of its popular cell phone.

T-Mobile in Germany is underwriting the deeply discounted phone with the help of a renegotiated contract with Apple, which no longer requires the carrier to share some of the revenues generated via iPhone calls with Apple, according to the report.

This move has yet to be seen in the U.S., where AT&T is the exclusive carrier of the iPhone. However, AT&T no longer has to share its revenue with Apple.

Whether AT&T will eventually drop the current 8GB iPhone price of $199 and 16GB iPhone price of $299 to just a couple bucks has yet to be seen.

U.S. cell phone operators are starting to embrace Wi-Fi in order to extend the reach of their high-speed wireless networks without breaking the bank, but some are being more cautious than others.

T-Mobile USA was the first major U.S. wireless carrier to see the merits of using Wi-Fi. Last year, the German-owned phone company, which is the fourth largest mobile operator in the U.S., launched its Hotspot @Home service that automatically switches between subscribers' home Wi-Fi networks and its cellular network. For $10 more a month, subscribers are able to talk as much as they like while on the Wi-Fi network.

Now it looks like other carriers are jumping on the Wi-Fi bandwagon. But operators, such as AT&T, are hesitating when it comes to offering Wi-Fi services for handsets. Recently AT&T, the largest mobile operator in the U.S., said it would allow its broadband subscribers and 3G, or third-generation, laptop data users to have free access to its 17,000 Wi-Fi hot spots around the country. The company also has launched a promotion with Starbucks coffee shops to give users two hours of free Wi-Fi access with the purchase of a Starbucks reward card.

AT&T primarily sees Wi-Fi as a way to fill in coverage gaps for its 3G wireless data service.

"Wi-Fi offers us a way to provide high-speed access in an area where we don't have 3G, like in a rural setting," said Mike Woodward, vice president of business mobility for AT&T. "There might be a coffee shop or some other hot spot in that area that offers our Wi-Fi service, and customers can connect that way."

But AT&T hasn't yet opened the free access to its mobile phone customers. Not even users of the iPhone--which has built-in Wi-Fi but doesn't yet allow the download of voice over IP clients like Skype--can get access to the Wi-Fi hot spots for free. What's more, AT&T seems cagey about putting any of its voice traffic over a Wi-Fi network.

"What we're offering today is about connecting laptop computers to a high-speed wireless network," Woodward added. "Right now, we don't do seamless hand-off from one network to another. And I have a hard time envisioning where that might happen."

Indeed, for Wi-Fi to be truly useful on mobile devices like handsets a seamless hand-off between the cellular and Wi-Fi networks is necessary. But carriers like AT&T do hand-offs between cellular technologies all the time. When AT&T subscribers travel between its 2.5G EDGE network and the 3G HSPA network, the device switches from one network to another and callers on either end have no idea.

Switching among networks
The same thing needs to happen between Wi-Fi networks and cellular networks. And while the technology for this hand-off is somewhat more complicated between Wi-Fi and cellular than it is between two cellular technologies, it already exists. T-Mobile uses a technology called UMA (Unlicensed Mobile Access), which detects when one signal fades and another comes into range.

Joe Sims, vice president and general manager of T-Mobile USA's Broadband and New Business Division, claims the hand-off between the two networks works very well.

"It's seamless," he said. "You can't tell that the call is switching from one network to another."

Cisco Systems also recently introduced a network-based hand-off technology that it's selling to its corporate customers. The software, which runs on its new mobility appliance, keeps track of devices and phones on the network. When it detects a device is leaving the Wi-Fi network , it automatically switches the connection to the cellular network and vice versa.

Even though the technology has been developed for large companies, Pat Calhoun, CTO for Cisco's wireless networking business, said carriers could eventually adapt the technology for use on their own networks.

Once seamless hand-offs between Wi-Fi and cellular are mastered, there are essentially no technical barriers that would keep a cell phone operator from using Wi-Fi technology. And, in fact, carriers could reap many benefits from using Wi-Fi to offload voice traffic, especially as the price for voice minutes continues to decline.

Better coverage, less cost
For one, Wi-Fi is an inexpensive way to improve in-home coverage. And as carriers migrate to 3G services, it's likely to get harder for them to provide in-home coverage because 3G service operates at higher frequencies, which don't penetrate walls as well. So if customers weren't getting good cell phone reception in their homes or offices with current cellular technology, the situation won't be much improved with 3G. But Wi-Fi could help because it allows operators to leverage a high-speed wireless network that already exists in consumers' homes to achieve full, "five bar" coverage.

What's more, because Wi-Fi mobile services are delivered over a consumer's own broadband connection, it reduces the transport cost that the carrier has to pay to get the traffic from the cell tower to its wired backbone network. Some experts say that Wi-Fi can actually help reduce this so-called backhaul expense by a factor of about 10.

And finally, Wi-Fi allows cellular operators to compete more aggressively on price. If the voice traffic is carried over a low-cost IP network instead of over a more costly cellular network, they can offer more aggressive prices and still make decent profit margins.

So why aren't more mobile operators jumping on the Wi-Fi bandwagon? The reason is simple: They're scared. Specifically, they are worried about cannibalizing their existing voice services and making their networks so open that subscribers can bypass their own services and applications completely.

When asked if its Hotspot @Home users could use a mobile version of Skype, T-Mobile's Sims said they could, but he added, "We're not necessarily going to advertise that."

This is a legitimate concern. Phone companies have already seen the same scenario play out on the broadband side of their businesses. Today, broadband providers compete on speeds and feeds. They have tried offering Web portals and content directly to consumers, but the reality is that consumers can bypass their traditional phone service with services like Skype or Vonage. And they can get content directly from the likes of Google or YouTube. Essentially, the broadband providers have been reduced to dumb pipe providers.

And their biggest fear is that the same thing will happen in their mobile businesses. Still, dual mode wireless devices are coming whether cell phone operators like it or not. In-Stat forecasts that the global supply of dual mode voice and data Wi-Fi handsets will increase by nearly 360 percent this year.

Popular devices such as Research In Motion's BlackBerry and Apple's iPhone already have Wi-Fi built in. Still some carriers, such as Verizon Wireless, say they don't need Wi-Fi. Instead, Verizon is focused on deploying a faster 4G wireless network. But in the meantime, there are already millions of Wi-Fi hot spots throughout the country, and with or without their mobile carrier, consumers will soon figure out ways to use them.

T-Mobile USA is suing Starbucks, accusing the coffee behemoth of a breach of contract by allowing AT&T to provide customers with free Wi-Fi access in its cafes.

In a complaint filed Thursday in New York State Supreme Court in Manhattan, T-Mobile says Starbucks "secretly" developed a plan with AT&T to provide Wi-Fi at its cafes, despite an exclusive partnership with T-Mobile. T-Mobile, which is seeking unspecified damages, alleges the companies broke an agreement over how Starbucks should transition the service from T-Mobile to AT&T, according to Reuters.

T-Mobile said that, under the agreement, it had the exclusive right to "sell, market, and promote" its services in Starbucks up until the stores were completely transitioned to AT&T's system, according to the lawsuit. T-Mobile says it is currently bearing the brunt of the cost of the service because it is providing the technology and equipment in all but two of Starbucks' U.S. markets--the San Antonio, Texas, and Bakersfield, Calif., markets.

In February, Starbucks ended its seven-year partnership with T-Mobile in favor of an agreement with AT&T. Under the old partnership with T-Mobile, customers would sign up for Wi-Fi for hourly and daily rates.

Under the new partnership, Starbucks in June began offering two hours of free Wi-Fi Internet service via AT&T to customers who purchase a Starbucks Reward Card with a minimum $5 credit on it. To keep the card active, customers must use their Starbucks Card at least once a month. New members of the service also get a voucher for a free drink.

AT&T's free Wi-Fi access for Starbucks coffee shops is finally here.

Starbucks on 29th Street and Park Aveneue in New York City.

(Credit: Marguerite Reardon/CNET Networks)

Starting Tuesday, Starbucks coffee shops across the country are offering two hours of free Wi-Fi Internet service through AT&T. In order to get the free service, customers must buy a Starbucks Reward Card with a minimum of $5 credit on it. Customers also must sign up for the free Wi-Fi online at Starbucks.com. To keep the card active, customers must also use their Starbucks Card at least once a month.

The free service is only for two hours and must be used in a single session. New members will also get a voucher for a free drink.

The free AT&T Wi-Fi offer comes as Starbucks phases out a seven-year relationship with T-Mobile, which had provided its customers Wi-Fi under hourly and daily rates. While existing T-Mobile account holders will still be able to sign on and use the T-Mobile service, AT&T has officially taken over all of Starbucks' hot spots.

Free Wi-Fi in Starbucks is part of AT&T's broader effort to give customers more choices using Wi-Fi. The company is also enabling its broadband and wireless data users to get free Wi-Fi at any of AT&T's 17,000 hot spots around the country. Under this program, subscribers aren't limited to the amount of time they can access a hot spot. These AT&T broadband and wireless data subscribers can also use their existing AT&T account information in the Starbucks hot spots. But unlike non-AT&T customers, they don't need to purchase a Starbucks Rewards Card and there is no time limit.

"Our philosophy is that we want broadband to be on demand," said Mike Woodward, vice president of business mobility for AT&T. "People don't think that they want to connect to the network using DSL or 3G cellular or Wi-Fi. And now we've lined up our assets to deliver all these various flavors of broadband."

The free service is part of Starbucks Reward card program, which started in April. Under this program, members can get free syrup and milk options with drinks as well as free refills of hot and iced brewed coffees. They can also get a free drink when they buy a pound of coffee beans. And now they'll be getting two hours of free Wi-Fi Internet connectivity courtesy of AT&T.

Adding free Wi-Fi to the mix is supposed to help lure customers, who may be forgoing their tall lattes in an effort to save money. While the idea is certainly a nice one, it seems like Starbucks and AT&T haven't done a great job promoting it.

I went to the Starbucks right around the corner from the CNET office on 29th Street and Park Avenue in Manhattan on Tuesday expecting to see a packed house of free Internet users. But instead, the patrons I spoke to sipping coffee and tapping away on their laptops weren't even aware that they could get free Wi-Fi.

Laptop users at Starbucks in New York City.

(Credit: Marguerite Reardon/CNET Networks)

Even the Starbucks employees didn't know or understand the ins and outs of the new program. When I asked how I could get online, the Starbucks employee who was helping me said she thought I could just sign up for the free service on the Starbucks Web site from a connection at my home or office. She wasn't aware that I needed a Starbucks Reward Card. And she was unaware of the two-hour time limit on the free service. Still, as an employee who was given access to the service with no strings attached, she said she is excited to have free Internet access. Previously, Starbucks employees were only offered discounted T-Mobile access.

"The discounted service just wasn't worth it to me," she said. "And it certainly is about time that we offered free Wi-Fi. Every other cafe and coffee shop around here seems to offer complimentary Internet."

Update 3 p.m. PT: T-Mobile confirmed its Android phone is still on track, too.

Google denied a report Monday that phones using its Android software have been delayed to 2009.

The Street reported the delay, citing an unnamed source. But Google denied the report.

A view of Google's Android mobile-phone software, demonstrated at Google I/O.

(Credit: Stephen Shankland/CNET News.com)

"We're still on track to announce Android-powered phones this year. Some of our partners are publicly stating that they plan to ship Android phones in the fourth quarter," Google said in a statement.

That's little surprise, given that Android leader Andy Rubin last week said phones using the soon-to-be-mostly-open-source software will be "available in the second half of this year" just last week at the Google I/O conference.

T-Mobile plans to ship an Android phone later in 2008, Chief Executive Hamid Akhavan said in February.

T-Mobile confirmed on Monday that its Android-based phone is still on track to arrive in the fourth quarter.

One source of possible Android confusion could be that although Google and various partners are collectively writing the Android software, Google isn't the only one supporting it.

Android software overseen by Google will appear in the first Android phones, but Android software overseen by partner Wind River Systems will appear in later models expected in the first quarter of 2009, said John Bruggeman, chief marketing officer of Linux seller and Android partner Wind River.

"They (Google) did the first phone. They carefully handheld it all the way through," Bruggeman said. "We've got the rest."

Wind River supports Linux in embedded computing devices but will support the full Android software "stack," which extends to higher-level software as well.

"When Android is open-sourced, we will support the entire stack," Bruggeman said. "We've ramped up our infrastructure. We are resourced to be able to support Android and not just Linux--the messaging and telephony and e-mail and browsing."