| y"> | | | | devices now on the market. |
| In the past few years, a great number of | | | | This has led to a significant decline in demand for |
| businesspeople, professionals, and ordinary consumers | | | | standalone Palm Pilots and Pocket PCs, which are |
| have been purchasing "Personal Digital Assistants," | | | | increasingly being replaced by smartphones, |
| electronic devices designed to organize and simplify | | | | converged devices which integrate mobile computing |
| one's life. | | | | with wireless communication. |
| The first PDAs, which hit the market in the mid 1990s, | | | | Most new smartphones serve as fully functional |
| were little more than glorified notepads, making it | | | | cellular phones, while integrating many of the features |
| possible to store a record of notes, phone numbers, | | | | of a laptop computer. Each device comes equipped |
| calendars, and day-to-day appointments on an | | | | with its own operating system, along with a wide range |
| electronic device. These devices gradually evolved | | | | of software applications specially designed for mobile |
| over the years, and Palm Inc.'s popular Palm Pilot | | | | devices. They are also capable of accessing the |
| devices gained a loyal following of both consumers | | | | internet, usually over a cellular broadband connection, |
| and enterprise-level users. | | | | and can be used to check one's email when on the go. |
| New features, including 3D games, multimedia | | | | Although the cost is somewhat prohibitive for the |
| applications, and even Wi-Fi internet access have | | | | majority of consumers, smartphone PDAs have |
| become commonplace on modern day PDAs, making | | | | become an institution among enterprise users, and are |
| them both practical and entertaining. | | | | now a necessity for many mobile businesspeople. |
| As time goes by, however, the functions performed | | | | All in all, PDA manufacturers are doing a good job of |
| by PDAs are being slowly but surely integrated into the | | | | evolving with new technology, and providing users with |
| many advanced cellular phones and mobile email | | | | an increasingly efficient and functional experience. |