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Above, an unboxing and first look at the Velocity 103, the Windows Mobile smartphone we just told you will be available in an unlocked from in the very near future. We took a slightly closer look at the Odyssey interface than we did with the Velocity 83. More importantly, though, that interface will likely see some improvements -- heck, the entire device will -- based on the Velocity over the Air (VOTA) service they've drummed up. Expect a full review of the 103 in the coming weeks, but so far we're digging the 640x480 screen, find the overall form factor a bit brick-y, and are rushing to install a 3rd party soft-keyboard.

For now, though, we're going to get into the VOTA stuff a bit more after the break, plus take a gander at the QWERTY Velocity 111 and an upcoming device from the upstart startup. Read on!

Velocity Over the Air (VOTA)

So here's the short version of VOTA: It's what Windows Update ought to be. Your device and the VOTA server speak to each other on a regular basis (which you can customize) and find out whether or not your device has the latest and greatest software updates for various pieces of the OS. If there are updates, Velocity sends them out to you, they get installed, and that's that.

Now, if you do a hard reset and lose all your data (and updates), what happens is VOTA talks to the server, the server notices that you're missing a whole lot of software updates it thought you had, and then it packages them all up in a single download and sends them out to you.

At first we assumed this referred only to the Odyssey interface, but in truth it pretty much can apply to whatever Velocity wants to track on your device -- from a (painful) lack of a custom software keyboard to 3rd party companies they decide to partner with. You will eventually be able to go into the app and decide which custom software updates you're interested in (keyboard) and which you're not.

In all, it's a very elegant solution and one that we'd love to see expanded a bit to include support for all sorts of 3rd party programs. Velocity -- sell this to Microsoft, kay?

Velocity 111

When we first saw the Velocity 111 back in April we were impressed and said as much:

We know that people throw the term “Treo Killer” around a lot, but the Velocity 111 just might do the trick. It's a Windows Mobile 6.1 Pro device with a flush touchscreen at 240x320 screen resolution and all the other trimmings of the 103.

Well, folks, that was then and this is now. The Velocity 111 is solid enough with a flush 240x320 screen, WiFi, GPS, and so on, but the form factor feels awfully boxy and stale next to the Treo Pro. On the other hand, the Velocity 111's keyboard approaches Q9h levels of usability -- it's capacious.

Velocity 83 (redux)

We already showed you a hands-on and a video of the Velocity 83, but there's a bit more to the story here. First up: it rocks two (count 'em) microSD card slots primarily because it's looking to be positioned as a good consumer-level GPS smartphone. It'll ship with GPS software (cross your fingers for CoPilot!) included on the SD card that's located underneath the battery. Clever, that.

Velocity 301

One more Velocity handset, the 301. Well, actually it's just a mock-up of what they're working on, a replacement for the 103 that will sport a higher resolution screen and a slightly thinner form factor. Since the “device” below is just a mockup, we thought it appropriate to leave you with slightly blurry images. Fitting, no?

One last hands-on for the day (We'll bring you a couple more tomorrow): the Techfaith Vista 850. Spec-wise, it's not especially impressive and hasn't changed a whit since we first saw it in March. Well, this version is a nice black as opposed to the earlier white. Also unchanged, the “Vista” moniker, which we're going on record as calling “a bad idea.”

• Windows Mobile 6.1 Stnadard
• Quad-band EDGE
• 200 MHz OMAP processor
• 64MB RAM, 2 Gigs of ROM
• 3.3 hours of talk time.

The only real new bit here is Techfaith is joining every other Windows Mobile maker in adding their own customizations on top of Windows Mobile. The transitions above are nice, but in terms of functionality the above doesn't hold a candle to the standard WinMo Sliding Panels in 6.1.

We'd say we're still intrigued by the 2 gigs of onboard memory, but we'd be liars -- the Diamond has stolen that thunder quite handily. What's left is a respectable low-end WinMo smartphone for Techfaith, one we don't really expect to get much play beyond this here post you're reading right now.

Now, we're not going to apologize for our previous, ah, reservations about the Motorola Q9h Global in silver pinstripes (Rule #1: never be sorry about snark). However, it turns out there's slightly more to this Q9h story than meets the eye. The silver pinstripes really do look pretty slick and on the back of the device they're actually textured to add grip and, yes, a bit of class to the device. So that's fine and, dare we say, dandy (ahem).

But there are actually a couple new, hard-to-find features on this Q9h that we weren't aware of. We detail those and give you a handful of images after the break!

This Q9h Global earns the “global” part by supporting 3G worldwide. Additionally, it is AT&T's first WinMo phone to ship with 6.1 out of the box. Another first: it's the first to fully utilize AT&T's newly launched, full-on Assisted GPS sysem -- Moto claims they can get hotfixes in as little as 10 seconds with the device. Helllooo Nurse!

One last interesting bit, Moto tells us that there's a new Over-the-Air update system they've put into place with this Q9h -- something that isn't the under never-utilized Windows Mobile Update utility in Settings but about which the details are as-yet unclear. Things being slightly unclear with the Q9h line ain't exactly new, but we'll try to get the full deets on what exactly may be new here for ya as soon as we can.

We wouldn't recommend current Q9h-owners make the switch to Silver, but if you're in the market for a Q9h the Silver-edition looks to be the right choice. A few more shots for those of you on the fence:

It's announced, it's coming in a matter of days, but until then, the best you can get is our hands-on gallery and impressions.

Those impressions now: Yeah, it's not as shockingly small as the GSM Touch Diamond, but it's still plenty wee. We prefer the finger-print-friendly paint on Sprint's Touch Diamond and are also digging the red color (seriously!). TouchFLO 3D seems ever-so-slightly snappier than we've seen it in the past, but without a full-on review don't take that as gospel.

One other note -- although I like the fancy zoom-in / zoom-out touchy-feely features of the d-pad (towards the end of the video), the standard up/down/left/right feel of it is a little sub-optimal -- a bit hard to distinguish from the surrounding area.

After the break -- some more images as well and a quick comparison to the current generation Touch.

One bit that was lost in all the CTIA Hoopla, but did appear during our Keynote LiveBlog, is that we can expect an update to the Live Search application on Windows Mobile in the relatively near future -- hopefully well before Windows Mobile 6.1 updates are rolled out.

We got to see a firsthand demo of the new features. There's a weather info pane (finally!) as well as a “Web Search” panel (as though the difference between Live Search and Windows Live on Mobile wasn't muddy enough). There's also this new feature called “Collections” that a sort of mashup between your standard local searches and a mini-RSS reader. Mainly it is a place to save your most common searches. Sadly, a feature like Google Maps' “location” based on towers isn't going to be included.

We've always been sweet on Live Search what with the free, the ability to speak direction requests [edit: fixed], the GPS integration, the Movie times, the Gas prices, and the Traffic. The new version looks to be a nice upgrade.

In any case, it's en route and just another data point for folks trying to figure out just what Microsoft's mobile services strategy is going to be.

Just had a quick look at the Jabra BT3030 Bluetooth Stereo Headset ($79.95) and color me impressed. It's a little thicker than I'd like, but it will do 7 hours of music (8 of talk), can be worn around the neck like the Dogtag is resembles, or just be clipped to your shirt. This is very likely the first A2DP pendant that I wouldn't be mortified to be seen in public wearing. We have it in the WMExperts store, which means you can expect a full review from us on Monday -- I'm that excited to play around with this headset.

The Velocity 103, ladies and gents, is a sweet device. Windows Mobile 6.1 Pro, Quad-band 3G on GSM, 128 meg RAM, 256 ROM, 4 Hour Talks Time, AGPS, TV-out, WiFi, and a 480x640 Touch screen.

We know that people throw the term “Treo Killer” around a lot, but the Velocity 111 just might do the trick. It's a Windows Mobile 6.1 Pro device with a flush touchscreen at 240x320 screen resolution and all the other trimmings of the 103.

It also sports a decent-enough QWERTY Keyboard that has a design that's ripped off directly inspired by the BlackBerry 8800 keyboard. The BlackBerry “inspiration” doesn't stop there, though, check out the white scroll ball in the center. Tell you what - that scroll ball works darn well on a Windows Mobile Device. We approve.

Velocity doesn't have any carrier deals set up, so if you're hankering for either on of these you'll need to a) wait and b) try to find it unlocked somewheres.

Full Gallery after the break!

Sneaking into the show floor before the show starts is a time honored tradition. Popular enough that, thus far anyway, the folks here know enough not to put their secret stuff out yet.

Still, we managed to sneak this pic of the Moto Q9c in green. It actually looks very nice and glossy in person.

Otherwise it's just a ton of set up, a couple of places chatting up their booth employees, and enough forklifts to move a small down in less than an hour.