Here’s my first look at the hot Motorola Q smartphone. I showed it to anchor Fred Langan on the CBC NewsWorld Business News last Friday evening. If you didn’t see this TV interview, where I compared the Motorola Q to the competing Palm Treo and Research in Motion (RIM) Blackberry smartphones, here’s the scoop.
The Motorola Q is the thinnest smartphone I have seen with a full QWERTY keyboard. It’s a tad slimmer (0.45 inches) than even Moto’s original RAZR phone that impressed me when I first saw and wrote about it here and here in Sept. 2004. The Q can easily slip into a man’s shirt pocket, unlike the thicker and heavier Blackberry and Treo.
The Q unabashedly adopts the best from the competition. It uses two navigation devices, a 5-way rocker set just above the keyboard, similar to the Treo, and a roll-and-click thumbwheel on the right side, like the Blackberry. Motorola licensed technology from RIM and the wheel feels the same to my thumb as the original.
The Q’s keyboard is eminently usable, a little larger than the Treo’s and a bit smaller than the Blackberry. It uses the same electro-luminescent display that was a such a hit with the RAZR. However, the Q’s domed keys are raised, unlike the surface-mounted RAZR numeric pad, which makes it easier to thumb text messages.
The display is bright and easy to read, even in sunlight. The screen is 2.4 inches, 320 by 240 pixels, not quite up to the Treo’s resolution, but certainly adequate. The screen is not touch-sensitive, unlike the Treo. I also found the display susceptible to smudging, probably because it’s flush with the surface, unlike the Blackberry and Treo screens which are slightly recessed. That’s one minor drawback to the Q’s ultra-slim design.
The sound quality on voice calls is impeccable, loud and clear. There’s a built-in speakerphone and stereo speakers on the back you can crank up to a fairly loud level, along with a headphone jack up top. The stereo is for playback of music and video files, which makes the Q a capable, highly portable, multimedia device. On the left side there’s an infra-red port, mini-USB port and a slot for a mini-SD memory card. My Q had just over 40 MB of its 64 MB memory available, so you’ll probably need to add a memory card if you want to store a reasonable amount of multimedia files and other documents.
While browsing the Web, I didn’t notice the snappy response on the data side I would expect from connecting to the Ev-DO (Evolution-Data Optimized) high speed network. I was using an engineering prototype, so this may change with the released product.
The Q has a 1.3 megapixel camera, which delivers adequate photos, along with a tiny LED flash. It also has Bluetooth along with the infra-red for short distance communications. No Wi-Fi, though. The software platform is Microsoft’s Windows Mobile 5.0 for smartphones, which is getting more usable. It appears Motorola isn’t using the Blackberry’s push e-mail, but Goodlink push e-mail support was announced in the U.S. The Q does support TTY and VPN, useful for corporate users. There may be other interesting features, but without a manual, I was hard-pressed to find them. Â
Canada’s Telus Mobility confirms it will ship the Motorola Q in a few weeks, which would make it the second carrier in the world, after Verizon Wireless in the U.S., to support this smartphone. Telus would not confirm pricing nor the accessories it will include.
With its stereo speakers and camera with flash, the Motorola Q is a more consumer-oriented smartphone than either the Blackberry or Treo. Assuming Telus prices it reasonably, under $250 Cdn. with contract, I see the Motorola Q expanding the overall smartphone market by appealing to new users who value a handy camera and mobile access to multimedia as much as e-mail and phone service. It will also interest current Blackberry and Treo users who want a thinner, more pocket-friendly device.
Update June 16: Telus Mobility announced immediate availability of the Motorola Q for $249.99 on a three-year contract or $599.99 with no contract.
Technorati Tags: Motorola Q, Motorola, Palm, Treo, Research in Motion, RIM, Blackberry, smartphone, RAZR, mini-SD, Ev-DO, Bluetooth, infra-red, Microsoft, Windows Mobile 5.0, TTY, VPN, Telus Mobility, Verizon Wireless
How can you smoothly transfer programs and applications data to another, larger hard drive? That’s where the new, ultra-portable version of Disk Jockey ($349) from Diskology rides to the rescue. This compact device is an all-purpose tool loaded with useful capabilities that make it easy to copy data from one drive to another, wipe data from drives you are retiring from use, and more.
I have a lot of respect for Ray Ozzie, the software veteran who will fill Gates’ shoes as Microsoft’s chief software architect. Ozzie was the key talent behind a number of software hits, including Lotus Notes, Lotus Symphony and Software Arts’ VisiCalc. Will new frontman Ray Ozzie play the sweet music that will rejuvenate Microsoft’s stagnating fortunes? He’ll need to pull together a winning creative team to ensure yesterday’s software company remains relevant tomorrow.
