Samsung I300
You can find the Samsung I300 at http://samsungusa.com/I300. The Samsung I300 is a wireless phone with a color screen and the Palm OS built into it, as seen in Figure A.

FIGURE A


The Samsung I300 is a cool little device that makes you believe in the marriage of PDAs and phones. Roll over picture for a larger image.

I tried it out in a store, and the form factor is very nice, especially when compared to the Kyocera QCP 6035, which is much bulkier. This device made me think again about how the ideal solution would be to wirelessly synchronize information with a mobile PDA device, be it running the Palm OS or Pocket PC software.

Handspring Treo
The new Handspring Treo is certainly a compelling device. You can find it at http://www.handspring.com/products/treo/index.jhtml, and it's pictured in Figure B.

FIGURE B


The Treo is surprisingly small and is available with or without a keyboard. Roll over picture for a larger image.

The Treo is surprisingly small and looks to give BlackBerry devices and other PDAs a run for their money. What's also nice about the Treo is that it will include the Handspring Blazer Web browser, which looks promising (I haven't had a chance to test it). After all, without a good wireless browser, the device would just be a paperweight. It's also supposed to be able to dynamically stream Web pages, which should make it much quicker than a device like the BlackBerry.

For more information about the Treo, read the article, "Treo: mobile phone, wireless email, messaging, and Web browsing in one" by Steve Niles in the November 2001 issue of PalmPower at http://palmpower.com/issues/issue200111/newhand001.html.

Compaq iPaq H3800 series with Stinger
I have been a loyal Palm handheld user for many years, but lately I've found myself starting to look more closely at the new Pocket PC devices that are coming out, especially the iPaq H3800 series from Compaq (at http://www.compaq.com/products/handhelds/pocketpc/H3850.html). Yes, I do feel a little bit guilty cheating on my Sony CLIE N710C by lusting after these devices, but hey, let's be honest, I would probably sell my cat if a cool enough device came along. The fact that I'm sitting here right now and wondering whether or not my next device will be a Palm OS or Pocket PC device is telling in itself.

Figure C shows an iPaq H3800 series Pocket PC with a mobile phone sleeve, which is part of Microsoft's smartphone initiative, code-named Stinger.

FIGURE C


The iPaq H3800 series with a mobile phone sleeve makes me tingle, though I imagine it's little bulky in real life. Roll over picture for a larger image.

Simulators
One thing that you'll quickly find when trying to test out wireless devices is that it's often a pain to have to test it out on the actual devices themselves. The good news is that you don't have to. You can use a simulator instead. Here are links to some of the most useful simulators I've found:

Go.Web/RIM Simulator
The Go.Web/RIM Simulator (at http://maui.bitmovers.com/download/#rim) is a simulator to test out the Go.Web browser that comes with service from Go.America. My suggestion is to get this before you get the device to test and see if your application will work properly before you shell out money on any actual devices.