Sharp FX is a cross between the Sharp-made SideKicks

The FX is a cross between the Sharp-made SideKicks and the Motorola-made SideKick Slide. It loses the trick, swing open screen that the SideKicks had, and instead uses a slider form to reveal the QWERTY keyboard underneath. Anyone who's ever held any sort of SideKick will immediately see the family resemblance. Too bad that includes the SideKick's faults, too.

Take the phone's size, for example. The length and width are fine, but the FX's depth makes it a bulky handset. It's also heavy. The sides and back are covered with a soft-touch paint job, which helps it feel smooth in your hand, but that doesn't take away from the girth. Fit and finish were also less fine than I'd like. The slider was very loose, and I noticed a lot of play in the top half of the phone. Loose parts don't inspire much confidence.

There are three physical buttons on the front of the FX, all placed below the display. There are Send, Back/Menu, and End/Power keys.oppo cell phone All three have good travel and feedback, and are offset from the surrounding surface so that it is easy enough to find them.