[Jon Robbins]

IMHO it really is a regional thing. I always go with the provider who has the best ability to connect and stay connected (no droppped calls). As an example, I was doing a LOT of traveling between two cities in the South and many of the providers (save ONE) did not provide service...I can say that AT&T does not really have good connect in Raleigh...for me Verizon had the best connect in Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill and have had pretty decent and consistent service...Smart phone is definitely the way to go--had a blackberry and while they are decent and addictive, very limited in what you can do. e-mail is almost obsolete due to spam and social networks anyway...most people I know text.

This link might help

http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/e...smart_ov_1.htm

Ratings for CR are as follows:

ADVANCED
T-Mobile MDA (64) mainly because battery life is better
Palm Treo 680 (61)
Palm Treo 700P (60)
Palm Treo 700WX (59)

BASIC
Samsung Blackjack (61)
Cingular 3125 Smartphone (60)
Blackberry Pearl (58)
T-Mobile Dash (58)
T-Mobile Sidekick 3 (54)

GOOD Luck!