All-In-One Handheld Device Dream Features

What are the must-have features of the all-in-one handheld gizmo of your dreams?

That what the AvantGo 2004 Mobile Lifestyle survey asked 3,260 early technology adopters in a user survey conducted entirely via PDAs and smartphones over a two-week period this month.

In addition to standard PDA capabilities, messaging, wireless features and music functionalities rank higher on user wishlists than does having an integrated phone. The study also reveals tenacious brand loyalty. Eighty-five percent of Pocket PC owners and 82 percent of Palm owners say they’ll stick with the same OS when they purchase a new device.

Nearly two out of three respondents said they planned to purchase a regular PDA, as opposed to one with phone capabilities, next time they buy. Thirty-one percent say they would buy a phone/PDA hybrid; a mere 3 percent would switch to a Symbian smartphone and 4.5 percent would migrate to a RIM Blackberry.

“Our findings seem to run counter to reports that the PDA is declining in popularity or that people are abandoning early platforms such as Palm for newer handheld platforms such as Pocket PC or Symbian,” said Neil Versen, senior director of AvantGo at iAnywhere. “Survey results indicate that location-based applications are likely to fuel the next wave of handheld functionality, while feeding users’ seemingly never-ending appetite for applications and add-ons to enhance their handheld experience. [This is] especially useful information for both handheld manufacturers and marketers interested in reaching that particular target audience.”