#TBT: Moto Q9

We really love throwbacks, and since today is #TBT, I thought it would be cool to write about one of the classics, the Moto Q9. The original Moto Q was the first smartphone in history to sell over a million devices. Launched in 2006, it was an instant hit in the USA. But Motorola wanted to have the same success in Europe, so it tweaked its Q to launch a whole new smartphone.

The Q9 was announced during Mobile World Congress 2007 (3GSM was the show's name at the time) and captured everyone's attention thanks to its polished design. Smartphones at the time were bulky and ugly, but the Q9 looked really good.

Thin, sleek, classy.

The Moto Q9 came with a 2.4" QVGA screen, Windows Mobile 6.0, 96MB of RAM, and a 325MHz processor. Sounds really low for today's standards, but remember this was 10 years ago. The Q9 offered 3G HSDPA connectivity and featured a 2MP camera. 

Its main selling point was its OS. Microsoft Windows Mobile was the leading smartphone OS at the time, and having Outlook and Office in your phone is what made smartphones smart back in the day.

The Moto Q9 got released in the US through AT&T and was then re-released in 2008 with Windows Mobile 6.1 and a new silver housing. Moto also launched a Q9e in late 2007. It didn't come with 3G but it featured a GPS. Throughout 2008, a Wi-Fi version of this device kept leaking online, though it never came to light.

Here you can check the official advertisement for the Q9: