The term "Smartphone" refers to most cell phones in use today. Early cell phones simply made radio-telephone voice conversations possible, but today we find that phones give us lots of extra features like internet, e-mail, text messaging and even computer applications. "Smart" gadgets in anyone's book.
The Washington Post called Nokia's entry the most popular, that surprised me. The Post says in a recent article that iPhone will swamp Nokia in 2013. I would have put Apple ahead already, but the typically inflated price point on the iPhone is likely a stumbling block.
You can expect a smart phone to:
- take pictures
- use apps (little programs that do something faster and easier, play games, or help you shop)
- text (usually carries an additional cost)
- have PC type functionality - for example, a smart phone often has some type of virtual keyboard so you can take notes
- connect to the Internet, often at additional cost per month
- do tricks, like rotate the screen image as you rotate the phone
Some examples of smart phones
- iPhone by Apple for AT&T
- Pre by Palm for Sprint
- Nokia Surge for AT&T
- T Mobile Dash
- Blackberry for Verizon
Costs for smart phones range between $49 and more than $1.45 million for the Guinness World Records certified most expensive in the world, the GoldVish phone, made of 18-carat white gold with 1800 diamonds totalling 120 carats. If your budget is a bit leaner, other high end smart phones go for around $650.
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Print | posted @ Tuesday, July 14, 2009 8:00 AM