In part 1 of a four part review, Rafe examines the new Motorola RIZR Z8 in detail, looking at the hardware, the overall form factor and the new non-touchscreen version of UIQ 3. What about that hinged keypad, and what about handling those on-screen 'softkeys'?

The Motorola RIZR Z8, termed the ‘multimedia monster’ by Ed Zander (CEO of Motorola), is one of this year's stand out handsets. The Z8 is an intriguing mix of high style and high tech, marrying good, though not top end, specifications with a stand-out design.

Running on UIQ 3.1 on top of Symbian 9.2, it has a state of the art smartphone software platform and is the first ever non-touchscreen UIQ phone. However, this is only part of its appeal, since in its positioning and marketing the Z8 moves away from the traditional smartphone offering and instead attempts to create a compelling, consumer focused, multimedia experience, led by stellar video features.