Samsung BlackJack II vs. Motorola Q9: smartphones to the death!
We’ve been using the BlackJack II since yesterday, and we have mixed feelings about it. We love the Motorola Q9, and spec-wise, the BJII and Q9 are almost identical. Both have UMTS/HSDPA radios (the BlackJack actually has a tri-band UMTS radio for world-roaming), 2 megapixel cameras, integrated GPS, full QWERTY keyboards, both run Windows Mobile 6 Standard, and well, you get the point. Size is a difference, with the BlackJack a lot sleeker than the Q9, but oh man, the Q9’s keyboard! We’ve broke down our thoughts comparing the BJII and the Motorola Q9 after the jump, so let us know what you end up picking up!
Signal:
Samsung BlackJack II:
We’re not sure if this might be just our unit, but it has had major issues with data connections. Sometimes it even switches down to GPRS! Our device doesn’t hold a candle to the old BlackJack which was a 3G monster. That thing could pickup a 3G signal 20 stories underground.
Motorola Q9:
Really nothing to complain about. The Motorola Q9 holds a 3G signal like Britney is trying to hold on to her kids…
Q9 wins here.
Keyboard:
Samsung BlackJack II:
Sammy’s keyboards have always disappointed us. No matter what you do, if you’re a real fast typer, the keyboard will skip key presses. It is not a software thing, it is a hardware issue. It’s happened way back from the Verizon Samsung i730 and was definitely an issue on the last BlackJack. We’re pretty sure it is fixed on the BlackJack II, but we need to test some more. Additionally, the keys are really narrow on the BJII, but they are a little improved from the previous version.
Motorola Q9:
The Q9’s keyboard is one of the best in the biz! The trade off is that the device is incredibly wide to accommodate the full QWERTY ‘board, but the layout, buttons, and anything else are top notch.
Q9 wins here again.
Navigation:
Samsung BlackJack II:
Samsung finally ditched that shady "scroll wheel" from the original handset and added a scroll wheel which also functions as a 5-way directional pad. This works really well, even better than the T-Mobile Shadow. It makes navigating the phone, web pages, emails, and anything else you need to zip through a breeze. The back button and home button are adequately placed and sized. We’re not mad at them.
Motorola Q9:
Motorola also ditched the scroll wheel from the first Q and instead added up / down keys, a select key, and back button on the right side of the handset. These are alright, not perfect, sometimes a little hard to reach due to the wideness of the Q9, but do work pretty well. There’s no fancy schmansy navigational wheels or accelerometers here, just a 4-way directional pad and a center select key. The home, back button, and send and end keys are also adequately sized and placed.
We’re giving the BJII the win here!
Screen:
Samsung BlackJack II:
The BJII’s screen is very nice. It’s crisp and bright, but is a little washed out. It doesn’t have an ambient light sensor like the Q9 so the backlight will not automatically adjust based on your lighting conditions.
Motorola Q9:
Both screens are 320×240 but the Q9 provides a richer, brighter, more pleasant display to look at. Add in the ambiant light sensor and we’ve got a winner.
Moto Q9 wins here.
Speaker loudness / quality:
Samsung BlackJack II:
One word describes the BlackJack’s speakers…disappointing. They sound very muffled and are not as loud as we had hoped. Speakerphone volume was pretty low for us and we even missed some email alerts because of the volume. One good part about the tiny, tiny speaker is where it’s placed. It’s made so when you lay the phone on a flat surface like a desk or table, the speaker won’t be covered and you should still hear the majority of what you’re supposed to.
Motorola Q9:
Hate to say it, but best speakers on any Windows Mobile device we’ve ever heard. Period! Volume and sound clarity and quality overshadow anything else. Just Blaze, back me up on this one!
Motorola Q9 wins yet again.
Call quality:
Both made very good calls, and were equally clear, but talking on a Motorola is talking on a Motorola, and we found it offered a better conversational experience (?).
Built-in apps:
Samsung BlackJack II:
The BlackJack comes loaded with a lot of things. From a nice Windows Media Player skin, to a built-in RSS feed reader, to a converter, world clock, and one of the best searching programs, it’s ready to rock out!
Motorola Q9:
The Q9 didn’t come with as many pre-loaded applications, but the stand out one would be the inclusion of the Opera Mobile browser for free.
Samsung takes the win.
Device speed:
If you just want the actual CPU speed, the Samsung runs a TI OMAP CPU at 260MHz, and the Motorola Q9 runs a TI OMAP CPI at 325MHz. If we’re talking about which device feels faster, we’d have to say it really is close, but the Q9 feels faster from our unscientific experiments.
Battery:
Samsung BlackJack II:
Unlike the first BlackJack, Samsung doesn’t give you an extended battery this time. We haven’t had enough time to really test the battery, so we’re going to guess the fact they didn’t include the larger battery was because the standard one should do fine.
Motorola Q9:
The battery in the Q should be called the Energizer Bunny because it keeps going, and going, and going. Sorry. For the extreme hardcore freaks, Moto even includes an extended battery which should last you a couple hot air balloon flights around the globe…
From early impressions, the Moto wins, but we didn’t have enough time to really test the BlackJack. We’ll call it a tie (that’s being more than fair).
Charging cable / USB cable:
Samsung BlackJack II:
Dudez, we don’t live in Korea, and no one uses your messed up charging cables. If Nokia can manage to start transitioning to microUSB ports, so can you. Enough of this crazy nonsense, please!
Motorola Q9:
While it’s not the miniUSB we all know and love, microUSB will do just fine. Thanks for the included adapter too, Moto.
Motorola hands down wins.
Look:
This is totally subjective so we’re not going to declare a winner here. The Motorola Q9 is more of a beast, with a sharp next-gen look. The glowing blue lights when charging are enough to freak out your grandmama. The blue keyboard backlighting is awesome as well. The BlackJack II is completely glossy, less wide, and over all more pocketable. The screen and device keys have a mirrored finish, and we can’t really say anything bad about it.
We won’t declare a final winner because that’s going to be up to you guys. If you do end up going with the BlackJack II or the Motorola Q9 this holiday season, hit us up and let us know which one!
Does the Q9h have media net installed
MediaNet isn’t a software package that’s installed, it’s a service that AT&T offers. And yes, the Q9h works just fine on MediaNet plans. That includes both GPRS/EDGE and UMTS/HSDPA connections (provided you have a 3G SIM).
@confrused: On the Q9h, have you gotten ICS to work with BT PAN? The stock ICS is missing the BT PAN option and I haven’t found a way to enable it yet. BT DUN works fine, but that doesn’t allow simultaneous ActiveSync & 3G access, and it doesn’t provide NAT either.
Telenav is EXTREMELY SLOW even on full signal and 3G.
Even when youtube is watchable telenav is not usable.
The fault is the servers.
The servers are sooooooooooo.
after this review i think i will buy the moto q9 i guess it is worth it to give up some good looks from the blackjack 2 and get a much better phone with has a much better keyboard the keyboard on the blackjack 2 is hard to use becase they are so narrow and i end up hitting the wrong key since there so small thanks for the review i am going to get the moto q9h
I puchased the q9 a month ago and I’m in love with the phone. Fast, not bulky, great keys (considering that i am a heavy text/email user with really long nails!)Love the speakers (usually it gives me a heart attack when the alarms sounds at 7 am), camera. etc.. but there is one little thing, it doesn’t really go “full screen” on the media player. Is there an upgade of the media player or somehting I can do so it will really use the whole screen when watching videos?
i just had the same problem with contacts on my new BJII…last name first can that be fixed?
The buzzing you hear is actually from the charger of the q9. Its nothing new with Motorola. My RAZR did the same thing.
do you still like the Motorola Q9 better than the 8525?
Pyro
Yes, the last name-first name on your contacts can be fixed
Homescreen>Contact>Click on contact>
Now you should see “Contact” at the top.
Click on the contacts name. Scroll down to “File as:” and click left. it should change to the way you want it.
Erik
Buy the damn Samsung Epix and be done with it. Twice as fast. Looks like the BlkJk II, 400MHZ, MEGA RAM, 2-3 times as much, WI-FI, GPS, Touchscreen AND Optical Mouse, WM6.1. WHAT!!! $299 at http://www.newegg.com Go now. ok but read my discussion on this whole misleading crus Ive read here today first
FACTS: ok Im an IT consultant (15 YEARS OF IT)so I know a litle bit about THE “gUts of these phones.” Owned ONE OF the first WM 5.0 PHONES, THE PPC6700 for years. Still use it as a PDSand its hacked beyond hell. Runs slick. Just dial in with it using DUN to a 3G phone and presto EVDO to 3G and I get decent downloads. Plus wifi. Just bought the BLk Jk II 2 days ago. Awesome. Nuf said, no.
Here are some mistakes Ive read:
1. Google Maps word great on the Moto! must have a GPS! NEGATIVE!!! You can run Google APPS ON DAMN NER ANY PHONE! I ran it on my back ATT Nokia 6085 non 3G. You tell it where you are, wher you wantto go and poof! instant GPS. And now it can bounce signals off CELL TOWERS, not SATS, and get you location.
2. The BlkJk II is DUAL CORE, i.e. dual processing and multithreading (simultaneous processing of litle bits of code individually) is spread over 2 (virtually) instead of one proc. drasically inscreasing speed so think of it as 1.5 times or so. BUT! Some apps wont take advantage of them, most will.
3. Picture quaility on the BlkJk II is far superior, Not even a question.
4. BlkJak II has a TRUE GPS. hack it and run Telenav for free or some other app.
5. Load OPERA on the DAMN PHONE. IE for Mobile blows more than Paris on Saturday in LA. Opera will triple the speed of your surfing xperience. So dont compate the Moto with Opera to the BlkJk II with IT suckMob. Load Opera (the free one is fine) and watch it go!
6. Download the tweaks for 6.1 and it flys yet again, true for both phones. HowardForm is good. XMLdevelopers.com, Google it. Oh znd never forget about http://www.download.com Site has every freakin app for Mobiles you can htink of.
7. BENCHMARK BENCHMARK BENCHMARK! Go to est Buy or grab you Blkjk Iiand a buddies Moto and go to http://www.speedtest.net (With the same version of OPERA!!! Guess who will win. WHO CARES, haha. Depends on what city your in! and where you are in that city. Test it FOR YOUR AREA ALONG WITH OTHER BENCHMARK APPS (download.com) dudes.
8. AND FINALLY!!!3G doesnt mean crap, shit squat guys. There are 10-15 versions of “3G” ok? Now Google “3G speeds.” It has 700kbps, 1.4, 3.6, 14.4 blah blah. And 4G isnt far behind. 4G is gonna break Wireless N speeds. The BlkJk IIis HSDPA or 3.5G. Yea you heard me, 3.5G. Google it. 3.5G can hit 14.4Mbps in perfect conditions. yea 14.4Mbps, not kbps, not KBps (yes theirs a difference) and it huge. 1 BYTE = 1024 bits, got me? 1024 kilo bits = 1KB, mmmmk? Alright, im keepin my $79 MF BlackJack II, so, take this review and trash it, its full of bullmalarky
j/k get what you want. One may work better inone city, the other in, well, you get it. Later! happy surfing. Oh and if you like these 2 phones check out the Samsung Epix at ATT. I can bein to tell you. its lile the BlkJk II on Steroids. Its got all the same featureswith more RAM 400MHZ Proc, TOUCHSCREEN AND the optical mouse, 32GB miniSD (I think). PLus: Technical Specifications
Application Platform – Java
Platform / Operating System – Windows Mobile 6.1 Smartphone Edition With 400MHz Processor
Network Compatibility – GSM 850, 900, 1800, 1900; WCDMA 850, 1900, 2100
WI-FI BABY!
Ringtone Types Supported – AAC, AAC+, eAAC, MP3, WMA, WAV, MPEG4, AMR, MIDI
Data Download Speed – HSDPA (Up to 3.6 Mbps), EDGE (Up to 144 Kbps)
Built-In Memory – 134 MB
Expandable Memory Capacity – Yes, microSD Card Format Compatible, Up To 32 GB
Dimensions – 4.6 in x 2.4 in x 0.5 in
Windows Mobile OS – Yes, Windows Mobile Pro
3G Data Speeds – Yes
Weight – 4.4 oz
Compatibility Features
Standard 3.5mm Stereo Headset Jack – Yes
Oh and in case you were born in teh 90’s and missed the greatest cheapest website for ALL ELECTRONIC STUFF http://www.newegg.com YEA THey GOT THE EPIX FOR 299!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
LATER DAYS, AND BETTER LAYS! haHA
The gps on my q9 work significantly better than the god damn, “real” gps that I have. I will tell you the POS info is up to date. If I am lost despite its smaller screen, and it sometimes acting acts up if using data, voice, and GPS simultaneously …
BJ2 can be tricked into creating word documents. Take an already existing one, delete everything in it, save it under a new title and you have a new document.
I am really glad that someone has taken the time to compare these phones. My contract is almost up with Alltel, and my original Moto Q is quite worn, as it is nearly 2 years old. It has stood up well to the test of time, and I have several high capacity batteries that I will use, if I pick up the Q9. The Q9 sports a faster processor than my current Q by almost 30 Mhz. I am also looking forward to using Windows Mobile 6, as I will be able to use Pandora. Part of the reason that the Motorola Q series produces such quality audio, is the inclusion of SRS Wow technology. I found this on the SRSLabs website. I was not sure if it made much of a difference, until I disabled it in the registry. It makes quite a difference with the internal speakers, as well as headphones.
I was looking at the BlackJack II as a possible replacement, however I did not find it to be comparable in build quality. In the time that I had my phone, it has stood up to much abuse. It was dropped, thrown and crushed several times while I was in the Army. Ironically, it didn’t sustain much damage, until I accidentally flung it across the parking lot in my apartment complex. Only the did I damage the glass covering the LCD. My brother got a BJ2 from AT&T, and broke the entire LCD within 2 weeks. Granted, he does enjoy skateboarding.
Well, it’ll probably be another Motorola for me.
P.S. – This was written entirely on my original Motorola Q. The keyboard is nice, until sand and time wear it out.
Just got q9h. It was a beast to setup on the t-mobile network but once I got that done its great. I was having second thought about the bj2 but everything I’ve read tells me I made the best choice in the q9h. I thought it would be too big, coming from a regular cell, but it actually a nice size. The keyboard is great! I think I will really like this phone.