T-mobile has come out of the gate with a wireless phone intended to replace its aging Sidekick series. The Mytouch slide leads the family of new MyTouch series phones created by HTC. It has a full QWERTY keyboard, a large touchscreen, and the Google Android operating system.

The top features of the MyTouch Slide are in the design and hardware. The handset comes with a reusable, sturdy plastic case instead of the zippered pouch of previous models. It will not acquire any awards, though, so nearly all users will still be looking for MyTouch 3G Slide Cases soon after purchase. The Slide is available in three color choices: black, white, and dark red. The phone is shipped with the standard USB/wall charger and a USB data cable. This model also comes with headset.

The 3G Slide is a little bigger than its brothers because it houses the full qwerty keyboard. It measures 4.55” long x 2.37” wide x .6” thick. There has been very few complaints on the size as consumers prefer the easy-to-use keyboard with plenty of space between each key. For those few who do not like the keyboard, the touchscreen Android keyboard can also be used.

The display on the T-mobile mytouch slide is 3.4” and features multi-touch functionality. This is a draw back, as nearly all Android-based phones have at least a 3.7” display. However, it is an increase over the old models of MyTouch 3G cellular phone. The upside is that the colors are crisp and clear, and it can be viewed in direct sunlight. A MyTouch Slide screen protector is recommended to keep the LCD from getting scratched.

Beneath the display are the hardware buttons. The T-mobile mytouch slide features 4 buttons: Home, Menu, Back, and the new “Genius” button. On the right side of the phone also has a camera button, and there is a volume control on the left. The power button and headphone jack (3.5mm) are at the top, whereas the USB cable connects to the bottom.

In the software side, the slide comes equiped with android 2.1 with a promise of a free upgrade to 2.2 sometime in the future. The user interface is custom-designed for the phone and is similar to the HTC Sense. The phone is great for using with social networking web sites. It automatically updates contact information from the networks and provides a Friend Stream for new status updates and links posted by friends.

The MyModes feature of the phone allows users to customize their homepage for work or for play with all-different widgets, apps, and wallpapers for each. The Genius button, mentioned earlier, is used with Android to turn it into a voice-command system. The system is buggy at first, but as it learns your voice, it improves over time.

The phone also features a 5-megapixel camera. The camera works best outdoors. Indoor photos are noisy and dark.

Overall, the performance of the Slide 3G is very impressive. Application lag is at a minimal and internet speed is fast. The price is right, too, at less than $200. This will leave plenty of money for extra myTouch 3G Slide accessories.