Sidekick Slide Smart Phone User Tips

I upgraded my T-Mobile cell phone on Sunday, from a basic Samsung to a Sidekick Slide smart phone. Upon activation of my phone (transfer of SIM card and signing of papers), I was greeted with the following message:

...Waiting for Activation...
A Welcome screen will appear within 48 hours after purchase. If it does not, call Customer Care to check your account status. Until then, press = to place emergency calls.

I gave it back to the Sales Associate and she turned to her co-worker. "Hey! Do you remember how we do this?" A little button-pushing later, and she handed it back to me, screen cleared. And I thought that was the end of it.

A day later, I turned my phone off. Ten minutes later, I turned it back on and was greeted with the same message:

...Waiting for Activation...
A Welcome screen will appear within 48 hours after purchase. If it does not, call Customer Care to check your account status. Until then, press = to place emergency calls.

After much Internet searching (with limited results) and a second trip to T-Mobile, I found out the following information.

...How to bypass the "Waiting for Activation" screen...
Simple enough, really. Upon turning on the Sidekick Slide and receiving the message, press [Menu] + [L].

On the left module, top left corner, is a button with three horizontal lines [ = ]; that is the menu button. Slide the screen up, so that the QWERTY keyboard is visible. Press the [Menu] button and the [L] button at the same time to go to the main screen.

Now, why didn't the Sales Associate tell that to me when I bought the phone? Why didn't she tell me that the screen may come back? Why? Because she probably didn't know why herself. While the "Waiting for Activation" screen seemed to be a common enough problem online (as evidenced on the tech forums), there was no explanation as to why it occurred. That, I found out on my second visit to T-Mobile.

...Why the "Waiting for Activation" screen may last longer than 48 hours...
Internet. For those of you (including me) who have never had a smart phone, the "Waiting for Activation" screen may remain permanent. Why? In order to use the Web Browser feature (and other Internet-related features), you must also pay a monthly Internet service fee. Now, do you really want to view websites on your phone? If yes, visit your local T-Mobile store and have Internet service added to your account (Unlimited Data Plan ~ $29.99). The "Waiting for Activation" screen should now be gone permanently. If no, not really, just remember to push [Menu] + [L] every time you turn your phone off/on. It's not as troublesome as you may think; after all, how often do you turn your phone off when you can just put it on silent?

...What to do when the "Waiting for Activation" screen remains after purchasing Internet service...
One: call Customer Care (dial 611) and explain the problem. However, the few forums that discussed this issue complained that Customer Care had no idea how to fix the problem. Of course, it may be the result of not having purchased Internet Service, incorrect settings, or anything else that might be difficult to explain when you have no idea what's wrong to someone who has no idea what you did.

Two: visit your local T-Mobile store. It is far easier for a Customer Care Associate to figure out what's wrong with the phone, if they can handle the phone.

Three: mess with the settings. Turn off the Sidekick Slide; remove the SIM card; turn it back on. Press the [Menu] button; select [Settings]; scroll down to [Network Options]. Scroll down to the Roaming box; check the box by "Allow GPRS/EDGE data roaming". Press the [ok] button (bottom, far right) to save changes and return to the main screen. Press the [Menu] button; scroll down to "Airplane Mode"; select "Turn Wireless Off"; repeat; select "Turn Wireless On". Leave the phone alone for 10 seconds. Turn off the Sidekick Slide; re-insert the SIM card; turn it back on. The "Waiting for Activation" screen will return; leave the phone alone until it asks you to register the phone.

(WARNING: If you decide to take the phone apart in order to figure out what's wrong, you may have voided the warranty. Always be aware that if you take something apart in order to fix it and realize that you can't, the company is no longer obligated to do so.)

And if that doesn't work/explain things, you should still be well within the warranty/return policy.