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The Q, and the A. Part 2: Moto Q Usability May 25, 2006 [MS Smartphone] | By anonymous 6. Previous: Part One We established that the MotoQ has many new and innovative features for the Windows Mobile Smartphone platform. Now we will take a look at the device usability from a users standpoint. Does the device work well? Is it cumbersome to use? Are there deficiencies with the included applications? How well does the voice work? What about games?  How well does the QWERTY Keyboard Stack up? One of the most useful features of the new MotoQ is the integrated QWERTY thumb board. Popularized by devices like the RIM BlackBerry and the Palm Treo, the thumb board offers a familiar experience to a desktop keyboard in a very small form factor. The Palm Treo and BlackBerry thumb boards are very well designed and allow for very easy one-handed operation, or faster input with both hands and the use of thumbs. The MotoQ is no exception when it comes to one-handed usage, and a great tactile feel to the thumb board.  When typing an email, or editing a note or document with Notepad Mobile, it is possible for the keyboard to miss a character. This has never happened with the production release of the device, which runs much faster that the pre-release versions of the device. The production release of the device has always been able to keep up with the fastest typing we can throw at it. The keyboard does not have a dedicated backspace key, which is not a problem, after just a few minutes of use, it is very comfortable to use the backspace next to the directional pad. The thumb board has two modifier key, a shift and a ALT key, with extensive use it feels like the two are misplaced, sometimes it feels natural to hit the ALT key for a capital letter instead of the Shift key. To place the device in Caps-Lock or Alt-Lock, you simply press the key twice, it is very intuitive and easy to do. The keyboard also has quick launch keys for Camera, email and voice recognition. One-handed typing is easy to do, but will undoubtedly be slower than the two hand approach. The entire thumb-board is easily accessible while held in the hand. The keys are spaced far enough apart that even larger thumbs wont accidentally press the wrong key, or two keys at the same time. For special characters, you must use two hands to press the shift and alt keys simultaneously. Using the included iTap text entry helper, typing speed can be drastically improved. iTap will use the letters that have been entered to suggest full words. It works amazingly well and can decrease the amount of time needed to write an email by more than half. The suggested words are not only based upon the included dictionary, but on words that you type. If you use a word more often, that word will be suggested more often. In real-life testing the suggested word are correct most of the time. The QWERTY keyboard of the MotoQ is certain to be considered one of the best thumb boards for a phone, and will certainly be loved by many. What about Voice and Media? Voice is loud and clear, and radio reception for the device is superb. When using the device in speaker phone mode, the caller comes through amazingly loud, the device could easily be used for conference call simply by setting the phone into the speaker phone mode. When using Bluetooth for calls, the device has great Bluetooth distance, and includes Bluetooth 1.2 support as well as support for not only Bluetooth hands free devices, but Bluetooth Stereo Headsets, Bluetooth Keyboards, and Bluetooth Personal Networks. The Bluetooth is so good it can even use a Hands Free device for standard audio. Bluetooth is amazingly easy to setup, and just as easy to access with the Bluetooth link from the home screen. 
 The MotoQ has undoubtedly the best support for Bluetooth we have seen from a phone, with one of the easiest setup's we have been lucky enough to use. It support most of the Bluetooth profiles that users are going to need. With older phones, Bluetooth support is spotty and may be too hard for a non technical person to setup. The MotoQ is going to change this and set a new bar for ease of use and functionality. 
 
 The device shines with its support for Music with the included Windows Media Player Mobile. The MotoQ is adept with or without headphones, supports Bluetooth Stereo Headsets with or without media buttons, and can also play back music thru a mono Bluetooth hands-free device. With the included external MiniSD slot, consumers will undoubtedly be using the MotoQ for its music capabilities, and ditching their iPods in favor of one small easy to carry full function device. Windows Media Player for the desktop will even automatically sync music and video to the device from your media collection on your desktop computer.  Are the Included Applications sufficient? The included Help and QuickStart Guide included on the device makes learning the device easy and simple. It explains and shows you how to use the main features of the phone including E-Mail, Synchronization with a computer, Usage of Internet Explorer Mobile, Setting up Bluetooth connections, and an overview of the phones functionality.  The MotoQ has the standard array of Windows Mobile 5.0 Smartphone applications, including Internet Explorer Mobile, Windows Media Mobile, Calendar Mobile, ActiveSync Mobile, Call History, Contacts Mobile, Messaging, Solitaire, Bubble Breaker, Pocket MSN, Pictures and Videos, Voice Recognition, Tasks Mobile, Speed Dial, Voice Notes. Download Agent, and Calculator. In addition to the standard Windows Mobile applications it also has a File Manager, Media Center, Audio Enhancements (Bass, Surround, Clarity) for the phones included speakers, or even a headset, Master Reset, Memory Manager, and a Task Manager, and Goodlink Wireless Sync included.  The included applications are sufficient for any user, with a few noticeable deficiencies with regards to support for Adobe PDF and Microsoft Offices viewers. The amount of 3rd party applications will possibly increase quickly, with the amount of MotoQ enhanced applications already available for release from Orneta, Handmark, and ALK. Orneta already offers a PDF Viewer for the MotoQ, that reformats the text of PDF documents to make them readable on the device. We expect to see a slew of announcements of Independent Software Vendors adding support for the MotoQ before May 31st, and even more after the commercial availability of the MotoQ. The device has a lot of free memory on the device, so much that we were able to install all of the Orneta applications and games, as well as Handmark's Pocket Express which requires .Net CF 2.0 into the device memory and still have space left over for PDF documents, notes, and images, all without a Storage Card. Unfortunately, the version of Pocket Express we downloaded from the Handmark site did not run on the Motorola Q. We received the Orneta applications directly from Orneta, and are to be available directly via OTA installations for the Motorola Q by May 31st from the Orneta Mobile site. What about the Games? The MotoQ performed much better than we expected with the slew of older Windows Mobile Smartphone titles we threw at it. Many of the games which were designed for Smartphone devices with Portrait displays, actually displayed well on the Motorola Q, despite the installation warnings noting the applications were not designed for the devices screen. The MotoQ seems to have an additional means for compatibility with older game titles, that displays games that were designed for Portrait games in the middle of the screen, with a full black background. This makes the support for older games very good. 
 
 Some of the games even supported the hi-resolution screen of the Motorola Q, like Fast Future Race, by Pocket New. The controls were awkward because the screen was turned and the controls stayed the same, so pressing left and right would navigate as up and down on the screen, and vice versa, but the actual game play has an option to set the buttons to control the game. 
 Games that were Motorola Q enabled looked quite good as we expected. While there are not many announced titles designed for the MotoQ, or MotoQ enabled that causal entertainment titles from Orneta looked and operated well. 
 Very few games had serious problems with the landscape screen of the MotoQ. Notably Jewel Hunter, by Pocket Napalm and some Omega One titles like Dominoes. Certainly there will be more games that fall into this category, so we recommend you check with the vendor to see if their entertainment titles are enabled for the Motorola Q before you purchase. 
 Summary: After months of use our opinion is the same, the Moto Q shines as a very useful, sleek and innovative Windows Mobile Smartphone. It is sure to be the best Windows Mobile 5.0 Smartphone of 2006. Its support for 3rd party applications, despite its new landscape display is much better than anticipated, especially with regards to entertainment titles. The included applications should be adequate for beginners, and the amount of applications available for special purposes, and even functional gaps in the product line are either available, or should be announced soon. - by Adam Stay tuned for Part 3  Post your comment (free registration is required to post, but if you register you can edit your posts later) [ 9 Comments ]
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