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"Excellent phone quality, good calendar functions, useful navigation" on by rdferriss
Pros: Phone audio quite good, additional features work well.
Cons: Is there a way to open email?
Summary: I have used a few PDA's and prefer the Z9, as it is smaller, lighter, and I would rather have a useful numeric pad than a keyboard. The cost for internet access is also half the monthly cost than that of a PDA.
The phone has very good audio quality and volume (a plus if you are in a noisy environment, or you have some high frequency hearing loss). I really like the ability in the calendar to do relative scheduling (i.e. a recurring appointment on the second Tuesday of the month, etc.).
The navigator function (Telenav) is a tad slow to initialize, but quite usable and useful.
I don't use the music features, and don't do much texting, so I can't comment on those aspects.
Unlike some phones, the alarm function works even if the phone is turned off. - Useful in traveling!
I highly recommend this phone if you primarily use it as a phone, as a calendar, to read email (not to write lengthy emails) and for navigation.Updated
Under "Cons" I meant to say "Is there a way to open email attachments?" The email itself works well. -
"Alternative to iPhone" on by Arnie Warren
Pros: Great sound, one hand operation, incredible voice commands, large bright screen, excellent camera, and more.
Cons: None thus far.
Summary: I had a Motorola 555 that I upgraded with a Razr V3xx. Loved the look of the V3, but the window on the front was tiny and hard to read. Forty eight hours later, I bought the Z9, and am very pleased. (See the Pros above.) We know the iPhone is in a different league than the average, even above average, cell phone; however, if you don't use the features the iPhone has such as iPod usage, and frequent trips to the web, then maybe the Z9 is exactly what you need. It's solid, with many automatic features. One small example: when your caller has hung up, so has your phone . . .no need to fiddle with it. Check your battery level? Say: "Check battery," and a pleasant female voice tells you the status. For calling anyone in your address book, say: "Call (person's name) bingo your call goes through. Yes, it has the web, camera, music, and GPS if you need 'em. The sound quality always attracted me to Motorola, and the Z9 has outstanding quality and volume. CNET says a 10 rating is utter perfection. Well, if the Z9 does everything I desire, and I have no negatives, then . . .why not. Z9 is a 10!
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"Excellent all around phone. Solid, easy to use, great sound quailty. And most important, shiny!" on by mysterieagain
Pros: Sound quality is excellent. Phone feels solid to hold, use and touch. Beautiful 2.4" screen. Great Bluetooth syncing. Easy to use. Slides smoothly and easily for a slider.
Cons: Fingerprint attracting. Battery Life is ify (but I was using the phone with video playback so it may hurt). Lousy Alarm and photo reviewing applications.
Summary: Received and began using 4/14/08
I have used many phones and this has to be one of my favorites, up there with the Sony Ericsson T616. Previous phones used: Samsung Sync (SGH-A707), Motorola RAZR V3, Sony Ericsson S710a, Sony Ericsson T616, Sony Ericsson T68i
Now on to what I like about this phone:
The sound quality is excellent. Wonderful either to the ear or on speakerphone. I hear no crackles or echoes like in my previous phones. Now I'm not sure why the Editor reported the sound on the speakerphone as "soft" unless close to the phone. I had the phone on a desk and stood a few feet away while talking to a co-worker and he came in loud and clear. He also seemed to hear me fine too, of course I'm sure in a noisy environment it would be a bit harder to hear or speak via speakerphone. The speaker seems rather large and the back plate has two little bumps raising the back of the phone up on a flat surface for sounds to go out.
I love the way the phone feels in my hand. It's solid not flimsy (the LG shine came off as such even thru it is a solid looking phone). When it slides out or pops back in, it doesn't feel like it will fall apart. It also slides easily and can be operated with the thumb. I really didn't like the little buttons ("silver bumps" in lieu of regular buttons) at first on the phone but after of week of using the phone it's really not bad. Once you are used to it it's not that hard to use and very tactile for me. I don't really care for the haptic feedback since when I press it all it does is just vibrate the phone. Now the only thing that is kind of annoying is that the section behind the charging port is kind of creaky. When I have the phone slid out and I brace my index finger on the right side of the camera behind the charging port and press buttons it creaks. Not sure if anything can be done about that because well the port is right there.
Now the screen, what is not to like about the large 2.4" screen with 262,144 colors. It's crisp and bright. Watching video on the screen is nice.
My Bluetooth headset, Jabra BT8010, synced up easily and smoothly. Music sounded clear and loud. Now when I was waiting on hold to call up AT&T the sound seemed a little fragmented but I'm unsure if that was the cell signal causing that or the headset connection. Straight music to headset was clear and crisp.
Out of the box the phone was easy to use and quick for setup. admittity I did have a RAZR before so I'm familiar with the interface, but even through it is very straight forward and everything is where I expect it. Menus moved smoothly so the interface was not slow (like my s710a).
The phone uses micro USB, now not as good as using a mini USB as I would like to consolidate my chargers (my car looks like a switch room with cat-5 running everywhere) but it comes with a Micro to mini USB adapter which is a pro. I tried using the packaged adapter on a mini USB charger I have with my Tom Tom and it did not seem to work and charge (and the brief time I got it to charge it turned the phone on when I had it off). I'll investigate it further but thought it was was odd. Cool minor thing is I can hook up the phone to a Pictbridge printer and print from it. Thru allowing it to do that requires navigating the phone's menu to change the connection type (Media Sync makes it appear as a hard drive, data connection for communication with Phone Tools, Memory card to make it a card reader and USB printing for Pictbridge).
Now on to what I dislike about the phone:
Well the above mentioned creaking behind the charging port.
Fingerprint magnet with all that metal and glass. I am worried about scratches on the glass but I always stick only some sort of protectors on my screens anyways. I kinda dislike that rubberized backing because I worry over time and use it'll rub off (especially on the two bumps on the back plate for the speaker I previously mentioned). My friends KRZR had this and she mistreats her phone and neither the glass or the "rubber" seemed to be worse for wear. If you are as picky about keeping your phone as new as me then I suggest investing in a case.
Now the first day after I charged it and with minimal use I had no loss of bars up to the third day. But I began using the phone the third day more and began playing around with putting video on the phone and it seemed to fade rather quickly. Now when I started playing full on videos (converted to the 3gp format) it seems to drain battery like crazy (1 day).
I also dislike support via Motorola's website and the book that was provided. I wanted to find more specifications on the phone along with details like type of video, applications supported and it's kinda bare from both. The manual seemed show more importance on how to use the multimedia features like Cellular Video, AT&T mobile music and such (guess it's the way it's gonna work, since these are probably huge money makers for AT&T and so they are more important than understanding how to use the phone).
Now the one thing that irritates me and which I loved about my Samsung Sync is the alarm feature. Like many people I know I use my phone for an alarm. The Z9's alarm app is no different than my RAZR, no planning for the week, weekends, different times, etc. It's turn on/turn off, what time and tone.
I also have a gripe on the photo viewing on the phone. It takes pretty decent pictures and has a nice (and extremely strong) flash but viewing photos is awful. You can't zoom or rotate. -
"Impressive, slick designed phone." on by kreed1228
Pros: Great 2.0 megapixle camera, easy navigation, slick design, secure slider.
Cons: There's way too many AT&T additional feature buttons throughout the phones menus. It's easy to get a Micro SD memory stick in, but a real fight to get it out.
Summary: Years ago, I used a Motorola V400 when it was first introduced to Cingular. That phone had its good points, but this one puts those earlier Motorolas to shame. I had since moved on to the Cingular 8125 PDA smart phone.
It has been a rather interesting transition from the PDA phone to this one, namely in the available features and manipulation of phone programs. I didn't utilize the 8125 as it should, which is a work-oriented, email writing/checking machine. From what I've seen, the Z9 is great for reading and accessing emails but obviously isn't designed to be its chief operation.
I like slider phones, and this one has got to have one of the best sliding features on any of the AT&T phones. I didn't like the small size of the Samsung A737. The LG Shine is a nice phone, but my wife has the Red one and I prefer not to have the same phone as she does (we both used the V400 for a year or two before she migrated to the RAZR and I the NGAGE QD). The shine is also somewhat annoying when trying to slide it open, as it doesn't have a lip like the Z9 does to push it up and have it snap into place. I personally was going to get the Shine until I saw this phone.
As a music player, this phone is better than most I've seen. It definitely exceeds any of the default programs on my 8125. I've only put a few songs on the phone, but the sound quality is very nice and I enjoy prowling the menus and still being able to listen to music.
It is definitely thinner than the 8125 but still has some weight to it, though it's not terrible.
The camera takes great pictures, and the video is nice as well, though I don't use video that often.
I think the biggest change in the two phones is the call quality. I couldn't believe how crisp and vibrant my wife’s voice was over the phone. Even with her headset on, I could understand her clearly and not be bothered by the background noise as I was with the 8125. What's more, my wife quickly noticed the sound of my voice being more crisp and louder. I didn't slur words together anymore, or fade out at the end of my sentences (I honestly have no idea what was wrong with the person who ranked this phone with an abysmal. They obviously never used an 8125)
My only real complaint is that I'm tired of the endless features these phones are starting to come with where you're automatically connected to the internet. I don't use the internet on my phone, nor do I want to dish out the extra 20 or 30 bucks for unlimited data transfer. I have a big thank you to AT&T for sneaking in buttons easily mistaken for other programs to push a few additional charges for my carelessness.
The memory card is also a pain to get out once it's been pushed into the reader. Either my fingers are too fat to really get a good grip and push it out, or they didn't make it easy enough to get a finger on the card to pull it out. I tried, and it's not a spring loaded click in click out setup.
Overall, I'm very pleased with this upgrade in phones and I recommend this phone to anyone looking for a nice, sleek phone with great call quality and excellent pictures.
Oh yeah, it doesn't feel like it will break in your hand or drop it either. You don't find many phones with this feel anymore. -
"Pretty Good Phone" on by PAC-FL
Pros: Decent Sound, Looks Nice, Same Old Familiar Motorola Interface
Cons: Same Old Motorola Interface, Constant switching from 3G to 2G(edge)
Summary: The Z9 is an OK phone, Not bad but not anything New or inovative from Motorola (think V3 RAZR) The "new" Crystal Sound from Moto dosen't seen to be that noticable, the volume is better than My V3 Razr, Motorola (for some unexplained reason) decided that you can only download MP3's for ringtones that are 300KB or less, this equates to about a 14-16 second clip. I have no Idea why they did this but it limits what you can use for ringtones a lot. The usual supplied ringtones are pretty bad. They also couldn't leave well enough alone with the USB connector, they went with a micro instead of a mini, not a big deal, and the phone comes with an adapter from micro to mini, but the micro usb connector cover on the phone is very cheap plastic that looks like it will most likely break off quickly. The Slide works very nicely, and feels sturdy, AT&T Navagation is a little iffy, and I am not sure it's worth $10.00 a month. Overall the phone is pretty nice, camera quality is OK the flash is not an automatic flash it is just a light you can turn on or off manually, kind of a dissapointment there.
If the Z9 were priced any higher than it is it would not be a good buy, a little high priced for basiclly a slider version of a RAZR.
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