Motorola Q: What a Q-T!

[Kris Kumar]

<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://www.microsoft.com/windowsmobile/articles/motoq.mspx' target='_blank'>http://www.microsoft.com/windowsmobile/articles/motoq.mspx</a><br /><br /></div><i>"With the Motorola Q in your hand, you know you’re holding something special. It’s slender. It’s sleek. And complete strangers come up to you and ask if that’s really the new Motorola Q. I don’t think anyone has ever noticed my phone before. The Motorola Q is one of the most anticipated Windows Mobile powered smartphones. It’s been a hot topic on mobile and technology blogs since last summer. And for good reason: It’s one of the first smartphones to use Windows Mobile 5.0 and it’s the thinnest to have a QWERTY-style thumb keyboard. Motorola describes Q as razor-thin, a nod to its line of super-thin RAZR devices that have come before it. At just under a half-inch thick—er, thin—Motorola says Q is 50 percent thinner that its top competitors. That is quite a difference. Q slides easily into your pocket. The antenna is hidden inside Q’s body, so you won’t even have that jabbing you. You’ll hardly even notice it’s there. Other smartphones feel quite bulky by comparison."</i><br /><br /> <img src="http://www.smartphonethoughts.com/images/Kris-may06-q.jpg" alt="User submitted image" title="User submitted image"/> <br /><br />Kevin Ebi, freelance technology writer and nature photographer, has written up a review for the upcoming Motorola Q on Microsoft's Windows Mobile Web site. Kevin is impressed by the screen and the 1.3 megapixel camera. I am not sure of the latter but if a photographer says it is good, it must be. Folks who are waiting for Bluetooth stereo will be glad that the Q supports it out of the box. The one thing that concerns me is that it seems like from the review that the Q will not support push email and will require an update to enable that functionality, this is contrary to the reports we have been getting. :? On a related note, the Windows Mobile Web site now has <a href="http://www.microsoft.com/windowsmobile/motorolaq/default.mspx">a page</a> dedicated to the Q.

[KTamas]

How qte... :lol:

[Mike Temporale]

I like the Q, but I'm not going to switch to CDMA for it. Too bad. :(

I love this screen. I want to see more landscape Smartphones. :drool:

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsmobile/_assets/images/articles/motoqscreen.jpg

[gmontielh]

Always like the design but Motorola's performance with Smartphones will be a dead weight for the Q. I will not switch to CDMA. And I need something that works. Now. Also, they are very late. HTC beat them into the market with the Wizard. Besides the latter is a PPC phone which I find more capable than a Smartphone. If they were going to launch another one they shoud have worked on WM5 based RZR. So far I am very very satisfied with my Cingular 8125. No performance problems but still wish that it had the same capabilities as my 4705...

[guapoharry]

It's funny how CDMA folks get all excited over the absence of an external or extendable antenna.

Additionally, it's odd that people are enthusiastic about the Q's screen.

You could call the screen landscape, or you could call it much shorter than other PDA phones. Couldn't Moto use less real estate under the keyboard for a useless blank area and provide a larger screen instead?

edit: Oh, it's a smartphone. That's odd. It's roughly the size of a PPC, without the benefit of PPC OS. (No Voice Command support, many developers have hardly begun to support portrait QVGA on smartphone, and now they have another screen format to accomodate in addition to that Blackberry-like wheel.)

It's an oddball. Either a trend setter, or destined for oblivion.

[Rocco Augusto]

yawn.... they're still talking about this device? :roll:

[Kris Kumar]

yawn.... they're still talking about this device? :roll:

:rotfl:

[Tony Rylow]

I'd have bought one of these at Christmas time if they had come out for cingular/tmobile use. Instead I bought an SP3i and soon after switched over to an MDA.

Its a great looking device, but its a shame theyve taken so long to get it out on the market.

[Sven Johannsen]

If they were going to launch another one they shoud have worked on WM5 based RZR. .

I think that would hold some promise. Only real clamshell Smartphone available (sort of) is the startrek. The RAZR is a well known and well liked form factor. My wife loves hers. She carries it with her Axim. She has tried my wizard and just prefers the clamshell phone. She has tried my MPX220, but the screen size and buttons on the RAZR drew her back. I think a WM5 RAZR would find a following. As long as they didn't announce it now and release it in 2008.

[MobileRob]

edit: Oh, it's a smartphone. That's odd. It's roughly the size of a PPC, without the benefit of PPC OS. (No Voice Command support, many developers have hardly begun to support portrait QVGA on smartphone, and now they have another screen format to accomodate in addition to that Blackberry-like wheel.)


I actually prefer the Moto Q to a PPC. It is very light, easy to use and navigate, and the screen is very clear and easy to read. I agree that we are just beginning the development cycle to support landscape, but I think it will give real choices to people who prefer landscape.

By the way, it does have voice command support... :)

Rob.

[Sven Johannsen]

By the way, it does have voice command support... :)

By that I assume you mean it can dial numbers and probably run apps via voice input. I don't believe it runs MS Voice Command, as that is not available for Smartphones.

[MobileRob]

By the way, it does have voice command support... :)

By that I assume you mean it can dial numbers and probably run apps via voice input. I don't believe it runs MS Voice Command, as that is not available for Smartphones.

Yes...that is correct. This is like ...Who's on first...

Rob.

[Rocco Augusto]

Yes...that is correct. This is like ...Who's on first...

i dunno, who is on first? ;)

the idea of the Q was bind blowing. i personally couldnt wait to get one but then time went on, still no Q. moto made a big deal about it, still no Q. pictures showed up online, announcments for release were made and still no Q, then the GSM version was dropped for the CDMA version and yet still no Q and then HTC announced the star trek and microsoft announced photon and i figured there were to many trekie references going around for WM's own good and just like the Q on tv this one just seemed to vanish into thin air and then out of nowhere, once everyone was pretty much over the whole thing, poof! they finally get ready to launch the Q.

like i said before, yawn. now im just wating for someone to release the klingon, enterprise, betazoid or bird-of-prey. now that will get my WM juices flowing ;)

[DaleReeck]

I see they took the review down. This smells of lawyers :D

[robdam]

Does Q have built In WiFi?

[Mike Temporale]

Does Q have built In WiFi?

Nope.

[guapoharry]

I see they took the review down. This smells of lawyers :DNot even. That "review" was embarassing.

Look, If it's not Microsoft Voice Command 1.5 (http://www.microsoft.com/windowsmobile/downloads/voicecommand/default.mspx) (or the product from which MS licensed MVC 1.5) it's junk.

Look at the MVC1.5 demos and reviews. No recording voice tags or training necessary. It just works.

[pacemkr]

Oh god no... motorolla...

tho... ohhh.... tho... oh oh.... acheu!!

[waterning eyes]
I knew I was alergic. Oh look its a "slender, slicker" piece of utter crap...

[Rocco Augusto]

Look, If it's not Microsoft Voice Command 1.5 (http://www.microsoft.com/windowsmobile/downloads/voicecommand/default.mspx) (or the product from which MS licensed MVC 1.5) it's junk

im not sure what motorola is using for their voice command software but one thing i do know is that it was the only feature on my mpx220 that i was sad to let go. it just worked and it worked beautifully. it was easy and intuitive to use and always worked.... i think it was the ONLY thing that always worked on that phone :)

if the same software is in the Q then im sure the Q will do really well. honestly i cant stand voice tags. i think they are the worst feature in my htc made device(s). i cant wait until microsoft puts voice command directly into the os. without it it just makes my phone not look that smart :(

[maxnix]

No WiFi and a constantly deployed QWERTY keyboard? Wow, that's innovative if you are Palm or BlackBerry.

For the me-too TREO lemmings.

Right network, wrong device.

[pacemkr]

Wow, that's innovative if you are Palm or BlackBerry.

I'm not sure about palm, but I actually chose a blackberry over a windows mobile based phone this time around. And I love everything microsoft, but a blackberry is in a whole different league in terms of reliability in my opinion, so its like comparing apples and oranges. Although windows mobile is deffinitely hunting for a chunk of the BB market. This device... I'm not sure what the hell it is. Its not as reliable or seemless as a blackberry and it lacks features that make a windows mobile device great (WiFi!!!).

Looking at the screen... Why isnt it larger?! There is space at the bottom not used for anythign! Oh right I forgot if its not as thing as a RAZR its not worthee of moto now. Everything they make has to follow the RAZR formula now. I'm surprised its not pink, that way they could have charged a little more for it, or does that "exclusivity" come later in the product cycle?