Why Your Motorola Sidekick Slide Lost Power

Motorola on Wednesday revealed additional details about a defect that caused its Sidekick Slide phones, sold by T-Mobile, to power off.

Earlier this month, T-Mobile and Motorola received complaints from customers about their Sidekick Slide phones powering off when the slide door on the front side of the phones is opened or closed.

Then last week, T-Mobile suspended sales of the Sidekick Slide, issuing a statement that encouraged customers with malfunctioning Sidekick Slides to contact T-Mobile Customer Care or to visit a T-Mobile retail store for assistance.

Motorola, which manufactures the phones, has been working to identify the cause of the power cycle problem. A Motorola spokeswoman told InformationWeek that the phone maker has determined the power cycling was caused by an issue relating to the battery contacts. It wasn't a software issue, she said.

Motorola tested a fix that it will implement in existing and future Sidekick Slide phones. T-Mobile expects to begin offering the Sidekick Slide again next week.

While Motorola said it's taking steps to ensure that the problem doesn't happen again, T-Mobile hopes to take some attention away from the defective Sidekick Slide phones by launching a new promotion this week that gives away free flights to eligible new customers.

"It's T-Mobile's holiday thank you to our customers, and another way we're helping to bring people together in 2008," said Jeff Hopper, T-Mobile's VP of marketing, in a statement.

Beginning November 23 and running through November 25, T-Mobile will issue a free flight to each eligible customer who activates a myFaves service plan for two years with T-Mobile. Those that qualify will receive a booking request form for a free roundtrip flight.