Motorola Q - Treo 650 Killer?
As a self-proclaimed Treo 650 Junkie, I am always making sure
there is no competing device that I should be lusting after...
A few weeks ago I started to see reports about the Motorola Q.
This phone seems to be Motorola's answer to the Treo 650 (or
maybe even the Treo 700!). It's a thin somewhat attractive PDA
phone running windows. What makes it more like a Treo (or the
upcoming Blackberry 8300c) is its form factor including the
compact QWERTY keyboard.
My test for the true usefulness of a QWERTY keyboard is whether
I can write an email comfortably with one hand while stopped at
a traffic light. Usually to add to this test I need to do so
without my wife noticing ("could you please stop emailing while
you're driving!?") and all this over the noise of our 6 kids, 4
of whom are under the age of 4.
So if I were deciding which PDA to get in the next 3-5 months it
would be between: Treo 650/700 Blackberry 8300c and the Motorola
Q.
My criteria - Assuming excellent reception, Bluetooth, and basic
feautures... - Ease of use (Palm Treo 650 might beat the others
because of Palm OS here) - Weight and Coolness (Motorola Q might
be the winner on this one - but I need to see it to be sure) -
Durability (The Bklackberry 8300c might win on this count -
Blackberries are famously durable) - Price (not sure which one
will be the best value - usually switching carriers is the best
plan to get lower equipment costs.)
So why the excitement over the Motorola Q?
I think the main reason is because of how Motorola is changing
how people view their cell phones. Look at the runaway success
of the Motorola Razr V3 for Cingular and T-Mobile. Look also at
the upcoming Magenta (can you say 'pink'?) and Baby Blue (uh, it
looks grey to me!) phones. Motorola is doing a great job in
branding as well as advertising while also giving a great
feature set at a low price.
The one drawback I can find - the one that might keep me from
getting the Motorola Q? No touchscreen. I am not sure why they
would have designed this device without one... I think the main
problem with no touch screen will be getting Treo faithful to
switch over. So if you are into the touch this may not be for
you.
If Motorola Can do for the Motorola Q what it did for Razor
phone - we may see a virtual explosion in sales of PDAs past the
corporate Blackberry zone.