Motorola Q9m in the wild

Well, it seems the Motorola Q9m has picked Verizon as its first CDMA home in the States and not Sprint as we had previously suggested -- though we aren't counting out this landing at Sprint yet. Our favorite early adopter The Boy Genius has gotten his mitts all over one of Motorola's newest and it is sporting Verizon livery (replete with lovely red accents) as proof of its new home. He seems pretty enthused about the keyboard on the Q9m and goes as far as calling it "fantastic" -- it adds a scroll wheel sorely missing from its GSM cousin and the rubberized back apparently really helps it stay planted in the hands. Of course, this ain't the final word on the handset previously known as "Nelson," but the moment we have the big picture on release date, pricing and all that other good stuff, we'll post it up here.

[Alex @ Jun 18th 2007 4:08PM]

They need to stop trying to RAZRify everything. That looks hideous.

[Andrew Stone @ Jun 18th 2007 4:20PM]

Wait, so you hate thin, clean looking phones with nice lines and big screens?

[OGHowie @ Jun 18th 2007 4:26PM]

I'd have to agree and say this phone is ugly. GSM version looks a bit better.

[JasonL @ Jun 18th 2007 4:38PM]

YIKES that thing is nasty looking...glad I ordered the HTC Mogul...I was worried I'd regret not getting the Q9M instead. I feel much better now.

Thin is cool...but damn it looks like a prototype design gone wrong! Red accents? Verizon you self absorbed bastards!

[SS @ Jun 18th 2007 5:46PM]

Can motorola quit throwing more and more of the same QVGA phones at us? QVGA just doesn't cut it.
I can't wait for Apple to show all the other vendors how to make a decent browsing experience.

[keovani @ Jun 18th 2007 4:19PM]

..i hope this isnt the iphone killer that was being talked about,...and what happened to this touchscreen..? where is it..? this phone is gargbage...just another motorola Q

[Alex @ Jun 18th 2007 4:25PM]

I think that if they're so gung-ho about consistency (throwing the RAZR look on every phone) then they should be consistent on the actual device as well. The flat function buttons and bulbous letter keys just don't do it for me.

I don't hate it. I just think there are better (and at this point more original) ways to do a thin, clean, large-screened smartphone.

[gibber9583 @ Jun 18th 2007 4:48PM]

Now I dont have any specs in front of me...but is it just me or does this phone look BIGGER than the original Q by a lot? It looks bulky....

However, that keyboard does look awfully nice. too bad I really dont like Moto devices for VZW. I'll stick with my 8830.

[Matt @ Jun 18th 2007 5:05PM]

It could just be the angle, but this phone looks bulky and I really hope the red accents aren't final. I am excited about the addition of the scroll wheel though. Why couldn't they just add a scroll wheel to the q9h, make it CDMA, and call it a day?

[Ari @ Jun 18th 2007 5:06PM]

That phone is so ugly. I think everyone who ever owned a Q (umm..me) knows its lost its appeal, and has moved on to a blackberry or blackjack, or anything else. The phone is so outdated and will most likely bomb.

[Sinhumane @ Jun 18th 2007 5:09PM]

over at qusers.com, it has been speculated that the release date is 7/31/07.... a screenshot of the verizon infocenter was submitted...

[Bob @ Jun 18th 2007 5:09PM]

I have a question Mr. Admin guy...Why should I go to your stupid blog that you are spamming about here?

[brendan Sheehan jnr @ Jun 18th 2007 5:10PM]

"in the wild"

OH DEAR GOD, PLEASE JUST STOP THAT!

[MJGallicchio @ Jun 18th 2007 5:19PM]

Wow, this phone keeps getting worse the more I find out about it. It keeps the 1.3mp camera, is thicker than the q9h because it keeps mini-sd, and did anyone else see the Verizon home page? I really wanted to like this phone, but Motorola is making it kinda hard.

[crescentdavid @ Jun 18th 2007 5:23PM]

Can someone tell me the rationale of applying the "will this be an iPhone killer" to a product yet to be realized which has 0% market share at the moment?

Just curious.

[Constable Odo @ Jun 18th 2007 6:35PM]

What rationale? Apple stock jumped almost $5 today on the news that the iPhone got longer battery life and a glass screen. It hasn't been proven yet, but that doesn't stop a feeding frenzy. It's not logical, but very human. Every new smartphone is going to be called some sort of iPhone killer even though there is no iPhone yet to kill. No Moto phone will ever be an iPhone killer because it's a crappy company that can't see any further than Ed Zander's crooked nose.

The F-22 Raptor is considered the ultimate jet fighter yet it has never been used in battle. It's just barroom BS, my man, based on some specs and a lot of hype.

[Firebird @ Jun 18th 2007 6:04PM]

The phone is ugly. But I'll get the 9h for the 3.6mb hdspa.

[submang @ Jun 18th 2007 6:24PM]

I love it, now what's with the vagueness as far as release goes? I want one yesterday, when will this be out? None of thise Q3 crap, what month, day, time, etc.??

[Jon @ Jun 18th 2007 7:34PM]

and I just bought the Q black. Lovin it.

[Sinhumane @ Jun 18th 2007 8:10PM]

i mentioned earlier.. a (almost) confirmed release date, according to infocenter is 7/31/07.. i ahvent seen anything come my way yet (what do i know, i'm just a lowly sales rep) but this WILL be my next phone.

[justmac @ Jun 19th 2007 6:30AM]

I think this phone looks stunning... simple, easy... I hate my blackjack for texting, so if the keyboard is as good as it is rumored to be... then I will be getting one. My BlackJack can't keep up text wise.

[lmw @ Jun 19th 2007 11:42AM]

My BB 8800 is so much nicer and cleaner than this. I'm glad I didn't wait. The circular D-pad in the original q9 at least made the phone look a little better.

[justmac @ Jun 19th 2007 3:36PM]

I think this one will be a tad thinner than the 8800... and it will have a camera, even if it is 1.3