Should I get a smart phone?

Smart phones offer the functions of a mobile phone and a PDA in one device, but they are not for everyone. Here's what you need to know before buying one.

Some smart phones have a candy bar-style design.

What are they?
Smart phones essentially eliminate the need for two separate devices by combining cell phone and PDA functions in one unit. While prices have gone down slightly in recent months, they are are generally more expensive than standard handsets and you can expect to pay anywhere between AU$700 to AU$1200 for a decent unit. Smart phones these days come in almost all the popular form factors, from the conventional handheld and candy-bar shape to sliders and clamshells. They are available in Symbian, Windows Mobile and Linux operating systems, each of which has unique characteristics (see below).

Smart phones should, however, not be confused with PDA-phones. They generally offer strong PDA-like features but are primarily still mobile phones. Data is entered either via a normal number pad or QWERTY keypad, though a handful of smart phones do offer touchscreen displays. Comparatively, smart phones also tend to be smaller in size than PDA-phones. On the other hand, PDA-phones offer full PDA functionalities and typically use touchscreen displays (as well as number and QWERTY keypads) for data entry. In most cases, PDA-phones sport larger displays (than smart phones) and are almost impossible to distinguish from a dedicated PDA.

Why do I want one?
They're most appropriate if you spend most of your time away from the office and need to sync or have access to your e-mails, contacts and appointments. They also come packed with tons of useful features, including a speakerphone, a keyboard, Bluetooth, an infrared port and a camera. With increasingly more onboard multimedia features and cheaper flash memory cards, smart phones have become great companions for mobile entertainment, from picture and music playback to games and video.

Others look no different to most slider phones.

Can I live without it?
The average user can live with the more rudimentary contact features within their cell phones or continue to use a separate PDA if they've already purchased one. If you are looking at phones with more than just the standard PIM features, a smart phone's probably the way to go.

What else should I know?
Keep in mind that in addition to the expense and size off the device, if you go the smart phone route, you'll need a plan that can accommodate the extra data usage involved in sending e-mail and surfing the Web. All the major carriers should provide various data plans for mobile users. Also, if your smart phone supports Wi-Fi access, check to see if your carrier offers monthly Wi-Fi plans. Otherwise, you can take advantage of free Wi-Fi hot spots.

Some smart phones have integrated keyboards.

Operating systems

Windows Mobile 5.0 Pros: Persistent storage means no data loss when the battery drains; Bluetooth and Wi-Fi support; mobile versions of Microsoft Office applications; USB 2.0 and hard drive support. Cons: Steeper learning curve than Palm OS. Major handset brands: O2, HP, I-mate

Symbian
Pros: Lots of available devices; works well with Bluetooth and IrDA; tight mobile Java integration.
Cons: No uniform interface across different devices; few software applications. 
Major handset brands: Nokia, Sony Ericsson.

And others have only a touch screen for typing.

Linux
Pros: Easy to customise and relatively inexpensive.
Cons: Not as popular.
Major handset brands: Motorola

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