Last Friday, (RED)/(PRODUCT) RED launched in the U.S. In case you missed the announcement or Bono and Oprah’s shopping spree,
“(RED) was created by Bono and Bobby Shriver, Chairman of DATA to raise awareness and money for The Global Fund by teaming up with the world’s most iconic brands to produce (PRODUCT)RED branded products. A percentage of each (PRODUCT)RED product sold is given to The Global Fund. The money helps women and children affected by HIV/AIDS in Africa.
What’s the meaning of the parentheses or brackets? Well, we call them “the embrace.” Each company that becomes (RED) places its logo in this embrace and is then elevated to the power of red. Thus the name – (PRODUCT)RED.
You, the consumer, can take your purchase to the power of (RED) simply by upgrading your choice. Thus the proposition: (YOU)RED. Be embraced, take your own fine self to the power of (RED). What better way to become a good-looking samaritan?!” 
There has been debate whether (RED) is a good idea or simply another way for corporations to sell more products, as seen on Read/WriteWeb and MetaFilter blogs. I can understand why some people are cynical about (RED) and large brands perpetuating consumerism.
For better or worse, we do live in a consumer-centric culture driven by large brands. As a complete gearhead, I am guilty of contributing to the consumerism issue. However, when I do buy products, I am conscience of purchasing from stores and brands that are socially or environmentally responsible, for example, REI, Patagonia, and 1% for the Planet.
Getting back to (RED), I think it’s a great awareness building campaign for the AIDS epidemic and poverty issues in Africa. Consumers are going to buy products in our society. If (RED) can capitalize on our consumer-centric culture and divert money to The Global Fund, I say more power to (RED), Bono and Bobby Shriver. I would rather see $10 go to The Global Fund from a purchase of an iPod Nano (PRODUCT) RED, then no money and no awareness raised from a purchase of a normal iPod Nano.
If you want to Shop (RED), the current (PRODUCT) RED partners are:
To learn more about (RED) and Bono’s One Campaign, I recommend reading Bono’s note. Also, the (BLOG) RED is a good way to stay abreast of (RED) news. I have been to Tanzania and have seen first hand the extreme poverty, lack of educational services and lack of infrastructure. So personally, (RED) is a very important cause, which I plan on supporting, as well as donating directly to The Global Fund.
The Motorola Q smartphone was one of the most anticipated and hyped smartphones to go to market. After three months of using the Q, does it live up to the hype? For me the answer is yes, but I never had “Blackberry killer” expectations.
My previous phone was a Samsung i730 Pocket PC phone. The i730 is a great PDA device but it was terrible phone. There weren’t enough notifications for missed calls and voicemails out of the box. And the voice quality was awful. No one I talked to could hear me clearly or loud enough.
So I decided to sacrifice the great PDA features of the i730 for the Motorola Q and its better calling features, RF and voice quality. I’m very happy with the Q as a phone. Voice quality both listening and talking is excellent and I can have an actual conversation without hearing… What did you say?
I don’t think it’s fair comparing the Q with the Treo, i730 or Blackberries. Windows Mobile 5.0 is not robust enough to make it a fair comparison. Comparing a Smartphone OS to a Pocket PC OS, Palm OS or Blackberry/RIM OS is an apple to oranges comparison. They are different tools for different people. Granted, it’s Verizon/Motorola’s fault for hyping the phone as the Treo/Blackberry killer.
If you are looking for great phone with adequate PDA/productivity features get the Q. However if you are looking for a great PDA/productivity phone get a Pocket PC, Treo or Blackberry device.
For my needs, the Q is the perfect phone. It’s a great phone first and a PDA/PIM second. The features that I love about the Q are:
The misses for the Q are:
Geek.com wrote the best Motorola Q review that I have seen to date. Over the last month, ZDNet’s Between the Lines blog has written a series on the Q after everyday usage. David Berlind disses the Q pretty hard but I don’t agree with most of his issues, particularly his second post that dogs the Q for missing the dial by directory feature. The issue is valid but the fix takes 10 seconds to install.
Software Update
I’m happy with my Q because I updated the software yesterday and did some hacks to improve the functionality. I’ll start out with the new Motorola Q Software Update. The new software update provides the following enhancements:
First off, it’s an easy update if you follow the instructions exactly. Second, all of your personal data (pictures, music, ringtones, background images, etc.) will be deleted and you will have to reinstall any 3rd party apps that are on your Q.
Before beginning the update process, I would think diligently about the need to update your Q. If you really need direct push email or DUN, then go for it, but be warned that you could run into issues as demonstrated by this 18+ page thread on Qusers.com forum. If you are not comfortable with troubleshooting your phone and are currently happy with its performance I recommend holding off on the update.
Best case scenario the update takes 15 - 20 minutes and additional time to reinstall your 3rd party apps and personal data. Worst case scenario, your phone may get hosed. If you are a glutton for punishment, here are additional directions for the software update.
At this point, I hope your phone is successfully updated. If you run into any issues, search the following forums Qusers.com forum or PDAPhone.com forum for troubleshooting tips. Again, I want to re-emphasize that the software update process should go smoothly if you follow the instructions. However, the process is not for someone who is uncomfortable troubleshooting issues.
Hacks
There is a ton of great information on the Qusers.com forums and the PDAPhone.com Q forum. I’ll point out a couple of registry hacks from these forums that have improved performance and functionality of my Q.
Before you begin, download the Resco Explorer 2005, which is a registry editor and file explorer. If you are not comfortable with editing registry settings don’t attempt any of these hacks because you could damage your phone. So proceed at your own risk.
Dial by Directory
This is an easy hack because a forum user packaged the install files into a self-installing CAB file. This hack will display the alphabet mapping for the number keys.
The directions are simple for this hack. Just click on one of the four dialing images that you like and download the appropriate CAB file. Then transfer the file to your Q using ActiveSync and remember the location. On your Q, use Resco Explorer and navigate to the CAB file location and click on it. The file should self-install. Power cycle your Q and you should be good to go.
To find out more details about this hack, go to this Qusers.com forum topic. Thanks to tonyxcom, gadget, isayx3, Ben74 and blue rocket for contributing to this great fix.
Remove Sent Message Confirmation with SMS
If you hate the sent message confirmation that is displayed after you send an SMS message, use the following registry hack to disable the confirmation message.
There are several other registry hacks for changing the startup sound, increasing call history, changing the start menu from grid view to list view and several others on this Qusers.com registry hack thread.
Motorola Q Accessories
If you are not interested in hacking your Q, then check out these Q accessories.
Finally, if you are looking for the next “Blackberry killer”, check out the Nokia E62.
