T-Mobile's wildly popular Sidekick defined the text-centric device category, but it's no longer the only game in town. Until recently, compulsive texters could either opt for a Sidekick in one of its numerous iterations, or go for any number of difficult-to-use smartphones—many of which were priced too dearly for the average consumer. These days, cell phone vendors are jumping in with both feet, offering a slew of messaging handsets with a wide range of prices and feature sets.

If you want a phone that excels at text messaging—regardless of which carrier you're shackled to—take a look at the devices below, which offer some of the best-feeling QWERTY keyboards on the market. While no phone will be as comfortable to type on as a PC, no laptop we know of weighs less than five ounces—or doubles as a phone, either.

T-Mobile Sidekick LX (T-Mobile)
It may be large and heavy, but many consider the Sidekick LX the premier texting phone. The latest LX model (at $299 with a two-year contract) features plenty of enhancements, including a high-resolution 400x240 swivel screen, a dedicated MySpace client, and the Sidekick's trademark roomy keyboard. It's not the world's greatest sounding voice phone, however.

Sprint LG Rumor (Sprint)
Sprint tosses budget-minded texters a bone with the LG Rumor, a quality dual-screen handset with a numeric keypad on the outside and a roomy QWERTY keyboard inside. The Rumor is just $49 with a two-year contract; Facebook users will appreciate one-button access to the mobile version of the famed social networking site, while anyone will be grateful for its solid voice quality.

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Kyocera Wild Card (Virgin Mobile)
Looking for a prepaid option? Despite its pedestrian looks and low-resolution screens, the Wild Card is a surprisingly capable phone. Like the Rumor, it also offers dual numeric and QWERTY keyboards—split ergonomic style with a control pad down the center—and it sounds good, too. You get all of this for a flat fee of just $99. And Virgin offers a range of prepaid and monthly plans, including data options for accessing the Web.

BlackBerry Curve 8310 (AT&T)
BlackBerrys have always been solid messaging devices. But a recent push into the consumer market has yielded a series of handsets with powerful multimedia features. Take the $199 (with two-year contract) Curve 8310; aside from the usual vast array of e-mail options and sublime QWERTY keyboard, it's great for sending text messages and also packs in TeleNav GPS, a great-sounding music player with a standard 3.5mm headphone jack, and a 2-megapixel camera. The Curve 8310 is probably the smallest slab-style cell phone on the market that still offers a comfortable typing experience.

Motorola Q9m (Verizon)
Verizon sells a number of QWERTY keyboard models, including the LG Voyager VX10000, which vaguely resembles a Sidekick but does much more. But the Q9m is an excellent value, offering a very comfortable keyboard in a powerful Windows Mobile smart device. It also sounds great as a plain phone, too—all for $199 with a two-year contract.

Nokia E61i (Unlocked)
This one may seem like a bit of an offbeat choice, due to its obvious business focus. But at $449, the E61i is a sweet deal for a loaded unlocked handset, and it has one of the best feeling keyboards we've ever tested. It also comes with built-in Wi-Fi and a zoom-capable Web browser, not to mention the ability to run thousands of third-party Symbian applications. (Unlocked phones work with AT&T, T-Mobile, and prepaid SIM cards, and can also be used overseas with other GSM carriers.)