Q It Up

Motorola smartens up the smart phone

March 27, 2006—Smart phones like the Treo and BlackBerry are a lot of things—feature-packed, indispensable for business travelers—but cool ain't one of them. Which is why Motorola's Q has been so anticipated (including by us—in December we named it one of 2006's most wanted gadgets). Now comes the announcement that the Q is finally ready to hit stores (look for it beginning next month at Verizon, and possibly others). And the good news is you won't have to give up functionality for the sake of design. Though only 4 ounces and 11.5 millimeters thick (that's slimmer than a RAZR), the Q's specs should impress even the most jaded road warrior: 2.4-inch, 65-K color screen; 1.3-megapixel MPEG camera; MP3 player with 512-MB expansion slot; Bluetooth; stereo speakerphone for those interminable conference calls; backlit QWERTY keyboard; and five-way thumb wheel for one-hand Web surfing. Better yet, its Windows Mobile 5.0 software allows the Q to sync with Sling Media's mobile service, which connects your Slingbox with your handheld. Rather than the paltry sports highlights and news segments offered by your average wireless-video provider, the new service transfers anything that's on your home DVR directly to your Q. Nothing better than last night's Simpsons to while away a long cab ride—or put off answering those e-mails from the inquisitors in accounting.
Motorola Q, price not yet set, available in April at www.motorola.com; Slingbox, $250, available at www.slingmedia.com; SlingPlayer Mobile, $30, available April 26.