As expected, Verizon Wireless today introduced the follow up to the Motorola Q. Instead of calling the smartphone the MOTO Q9m, as rumored, the operator has chosen to highlight compatibility with its VCast music service by christening the new Q model the MOTO Q Music 9m.

The Q Music 9m can be had for $470 or $350 with a two-year service agreement. Buy it online and Verizon will chop off an additional $100, dropping the price to $250.

Though modeled on its predecessor (tablet design with a QWERTY thumb-keyboard), the Q Music 9m sports a slightly updated, more modern look, and is red and black rather than silver. At 4.6 x 2.6 x 0.5 inches and 4.76 ounces, it is about the same size and weight as the original Q model.

Although the Q Music 9m runs on the Standard version of Windows Mobile 6—so no touch screen like the Q—the OS is an upgrade from the first Q's Windows Mobile 5 platform. It's got the same 312MHz processor, 1.3 megapixel camera, and 320 x 240 resolution display, however.

There's also 64MB of RAM, 128MB of ROM, a 1170 mAh battery, Bluetooth 2.0 with support wireless stereo headsets, and a miniSD card slot, which currently supports up to 4GB cards.

Although it doesn't offer Wi-Fi connectivity, the Q Music 9m does support Verizon's fast third-generation EV-DO Rev 0 data network. So accessing the Web, downloading songs from VCast, and receiving e-mail, for example, shouldn't take long at all. You can also use the Q Music 9m as a modem to access the Internet or enterprise from your laptop. This is very convenient for when there's no Wi-Fi connection available.

The Q Music 9m sports a new multimedia-orientated horseshoe-shaped home screen and user interface with shortcuts to applications and features on two sides of the shoe. In addition to accepting music downloads over the air through VCast, you can synchronize music and video from a PC. Both types of media are played through the smartphone's Windows Media Player.

Sprint is expected to deliver a variation on this smartphone before the end of the year. Perhaps that edition will be called the MOTO Q9m.