BY MICHAEL ANTONIAK

Get smart!

Are you ready to step up to an all-in-one wireless communicator? Cell phone users now have a selection of multifunction phone-PDA-Web–enabled devices, known as smart phones, to choose from. And with the service networks to empower these devices in place, expect your wireless provider to push the advantages of trading in your mobile equipment arsenal for one device that does it all.

Your choices depend on whose equipment your wireless vendor supports. When you compare options, you’ll discover that quite a range of products carry the smart phone label. All offer some combination of features and functions that makes them much more than a mere phone.

Since the intent is to offer one indispensable piece of hardware for mobile workers, there’s a lot packed into each smart phone. That can make them somewhat bulkier than other cellular handsets, and greedier consumers of batteries. But you may find those are minor sacrifices for the convenience of a multifunction unit.

Each smart phone’s roots may be evident in what it does best, as well as how it feels in your hand. Products that evolved from PDAs, like the Audiovox Thera or Handspring Treo, feel more like a PDA and boast a PDA interface with a touch screen and electronic stylus. Blackberry’s 6710, heir to the tradition of always-on e-mail messagers, sports a tiny QWERTY keypad for composing messages and a built-in mike and speakerphone for voice communications. Models like the Sony P800 or Samsung I300 look and feel like a simple mobile phone until you start exploring their features.

The right smart phone for you is the one that addresses your primary needs best. For some that means traditional calling features; others want a versatile PDA and consider the phone functions a bonus. If you’ll spend a lot of time on the Web, or reviewing images, the size and clarity of the screen may be your guiding consideration.

Try out the models you like. Smart phones are engineering marvels, but designers had to make sacrifices to fit so much performance into one package. Test the screen under a range of lighting situations. Use the keypad or screen pad to compose messages and move around the Web. If you’re all thumbs, a smart phone could be an expensive inconvenience.

That’s right, expensive. As leading-edge technology, first-generation smart phones command top dollar. Most start in the $500 range. And that just gets you started. The calling plan, support services for wireless Web and e-mail, and amount of data you send and receive will affect the real cost.

Don’t be dazzled by all these phones can do. Take time to investigate your options—then make a choice that’ll empower you to do more, with less equipment, when you’re out and about.

What makes a phone smart?

Several features combine to make a smart phone, including any or all of the following:

THE SCREEN. High-resolution color—for displaying text, pictures, and Web content—reigns on the best smart phones.

PHONE FUNCTIONS. These include the latest calling options, such as voice-activated dialing, call logs, caller ID, and the ability to make calls from contact records.

OPERATING SYSTEM. PDA functions—especially software compatibility and wireless Web access—depend on the operating system. Current models are built around the Palm, Symbian, and Pocket PC OSs.

INFORMATION MANAGEMENT. This provides contact, calendar, and activity management functions, essential for working in the field.

PROCESSOR. Some models boast the same powerful processors that drive the latest stand-alone PDAs.

DATA ENTRY. Since these phones are tools for composing and sending as well as receiving data, users require some form of minikeypad, real or on-screen, or a stylus.

E-MAIL. More essential than Web browsing and instant messaging is the ability to send and receive e-mail anywhere, anytime.

DIGITAL CAMERA. Either built in or as an add-on, the option to capture images means one less piece of equipment you have to carry.

EXPANDABILITY. Expansion slots allow you to add memory or functions, such as digital photography.

A new front in the battle for PDA share

Since many smart phones are also full-function PDAs, the category is rapidly developing as a new front in the battle for PDA market share.

Microsoft’s latest volley is Windows Pocket PC Smartphone, a new and specialized version of its operating system for handhelds. It was developed specifically for products that are phones first, with PDA features. The first Pocket PC Smartphones should be arriving as you read this.

They’re not to be confused with products like the Audiovox Thera, already out, built around the Pocket PC Phone Edition OS. This earlier version of the OS was designed for PDAs bolstered with wireless voice and data capabilities, as opposed to true smart phones.

As if that isn’t enough operating systems to keep track of, there’s also the Symbian OS, an open-standards OS delivering PDA functions to Nokia’s line of Communicator smart phones.

Whatever their strengths, the contenders face an uphill battle as they try to overcome the appeal of smart phones running Palm OS and compatible software. Palm-compatible smart phones got a bit of a head start, and may be considered a natural progression from the Palm-based PDAs already used by legions of real estate professionals.

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