You can stick them in your pocket or you can hold them in your hand. Six smartphones and phone PDAs reviewed

PDAs are all well and good when you just need a PDA, but when you need mobile connectivity as well you usually end up with two devices: a mobile phone and a PDA. For years there have been devices that bridged the gap, and aside from the PalmOne Treo 600 none have really done it successfully.

You usually end up with a PDA/phone hybrid that is skewed toward one functionality over the other. Some make for great PDAs but the phone functionality is awful, whereas the others make for excellent phones but the PDA functionality is secondary.

Today's devices are getting better at marrying the two halves. These feature the functionality of a good PDA (calendaring and appointments, phone, email and contact book) plus everything you need from a phone.
There has been a lot of emphasis on the camera aspects of mobile phones, but at the end of the day, while the resolutions are low, camera phones are still little more than a gimmick. A popular gimmick for sure, but until 3-, 4- and 5-megapixel camera phones are prevalent they still won't take off as true hybrids.

Keen to find out how the smartphone landscape has evolved, we took six of the latest devices and tested them for their phone and PDA prowess.