Construction & Conclusion
The Q build quality is high and feels sturdy in the hand. The screen is likely going to get scratches fairly easily, so I highly recommend you invest in a screen protector. The mini-SD and 2.5 mm mic inputs are covered by a rubber piece that is difficult to remove, be careful or it’s likely to get scratched. The keys (especially in the first few days) seemed a little stiff and your fingers will get tired with heavy usage but they seemed to lighten up and are fine now. The keys are high quality and spaced and laid out well.
One area of disappoint was the speakerphone: Although you can hear the caller fine, the mic is not strong enough for the Q to be effectively used as a speakerphone unless you are very close to it and there is absolutely no background noise (kind of defeating the purpose of the feature). People complain of not being able to hear clearly. In case you can’t find it, the speakerphone key is the little “pacman” symbol in the lower right keypad.
Because of the slim form factor, and the XScale processor, the Q is a bit power hungry, under light to normal usage, the battery it ships with will last about 24-48 hours, usually making it necessary to recharge every night. This is not a big deal for most users, but if it is a concern for you, I’d recommend you also purchase the expanded battery. The expanded battery is thicker, and therefore comes with a new battery cover for the Q, in my opinion it totally ruins the sleek lines of the phone but for some people having extra juice is going to be more important.
The Motorola Q has excellent reception. When compared to the Treo 700w on the same Verizon network, the Q is able to operate with clear call quality in the same spots where the Treo can’t connect at all. This might be an important consideration for people who live or work in areas with weak Verizon coverage. I have not used other Verizon phones so cannot comment on how the Q compares to others.
Although Motorola is far behind in the Windows Mobile market, they did make a lot of people happy and satisfied with the release of the Q. Motorola’s previous Windows phones were very buggy and were also missing much needed features. The MPX series from Motorola were one of the first Windows phones and turned out to be a big flop. The Motorola mpx 100 and 300 were canceled before production and the mpx 200 was very bulky with a lot of bugs. The Motorola mpx 220 was one of the best flip phones that was released by Motorola and in my opinion they should release a Windows Mobile 5 version of the phone.
The Motorola Q’s release has brought up Motorola’s reputation but at the same time a lot of people are also upset because the GSM version is still not due for a while. In my opinion Motorola will have to step up if they want a piece of the Windows Mobile market. I think their biggest mistake was only releasing the Q with CDMA service providers (Verizon in the US, Telus in Canada). I think Motorola is going to lose a big chunk of money that they would have made if the Q was released for GSM at the same time as it was released on CDMA. Now that Nokia has released the E61 and Samsung is releasing the i320 for GSM means that by the time the GSM version of the Motorola Q will be released, these phones will have been on the market for a while and the Q will not be so intriguing anymore.
Overall the Q is a great phone in a great form factor, if you are a Verizon customer or are thinking of switching, it’s a worthwhile investment. Keep in mind that you can’t roam outside of North America but for most users that’s not a big issue.
Compare prices »
4.5
