So...my N900 is broken and I have to get a new phone. I have used an Android phone for about two months now, and while it's fun it's not a practical Linux phone for development work. So I want to get a new N900. However, from what I understand the N9 is now (barely) available and has better specs. So what is your take on this: would it make more sense to buy a used N900 or a new N9? (I would prefer a N950, but was not lucky enough to get my hands on one.)

well... hw keyboard is a beatch here, so i think you should probably go for N900

N900 for keyboard and working FM Transmitter.

FM transmitter doesn't work in the N9?

It does, just not on the N950 from what I've read.

Anyway, while I haven't used an N9(50), to be honest, I can't imagine a phone with only an OSK to be a "practical Linux phone for development work" either

Couldnt you just BT a keyboard, or would that not be sufficient?

if it was me i'd get another n900 nothing else compares.

Yeah its not there yet (comparable to the N900, that is). Then again it is pretty much where my N900 was after about two weeks released. N900 got better over time, and I have a hope that the N9 will follow suit.

We actually don't know yet if N9 does.
The post in that thread's wasn't 100% clear.
It does seem obvious now however that FMRX/RDS is def. working.
Will be fine-tuned for GUI use etc over coming mths.

Personally no hw qwerty is not the issue for me that it seems to be for others.
There's portable BT/USB keyb's that'll always be better for serious typing than built-ins.
N9 is better in just about every other respect hardware-wise:

*64GB Storage
*Improved SoC
(mostly a die-shrink & a big clock bump but not as simple as that, plus likely to have good overheard for OC'ing above the default GPU/CPU clocks)
*NFC
*polycarbonate body (likely to have better cellular reception)
*Way better screen (resistive's awesome for some applications, but the N9's screen is far better overall when one carefully analyses both)
*1GB Ram
No doubt I'm forgetting something...

Definitely or possibly coming:
*BT4.0 (coming)
*FMRX/RDS (coming, FMTX not 100% certain yet)
*Flash11 (looking very unlikely, but not ruled-out completely yet)
No doubt I'm forgetting something...

Software is quickly becoming less of an issue now that open mode is a reality w/AEGIS.
If Nokia doesn't open more of the default UI/apps, & if they don't improve/fix them quickly enough over time.
Then users will have the option to switch to bits from: Cordia/MeeGoCE/Plasma or do an entire UX transplant.
All these projects are coalescing around one another nowadays, including one responsible or the core/middle-ware.

This time round there's universal agreement to establish 100% independence, from the Base to the UX.
So as to be free from the whims of large commercial contributors....
So if N9 users aren't happy with how Maemo* (& possibly work from Meltemi later) or Tizen's progressing they'll have options.

*I prefer to call it that instead of meego