Desktops have become a thing of the past, it seems. With increased expectations and an ardent need to be “in touch” with everyone, all the time and to be able to access information wherever you are, no matter the time, people need the most capable and technologically advanced devices to meet their needs.

Desktops chain you to the desk – smartphones offer you the mobility no laptop has yet managed to provide users. The Blackberry, for instance, has become the trademark of business men and corporate employees. Is it alienating the users from the real world? Is it crossing that very important border between work and leisure time? Maybe – but now you can check your stocks even if you’re on vacation in Bora Bora.

The 3G iPhone, one of Blackberry’s most fierce competitors, offers the same mobility, but also entertainment-oriented services. It seems that people today choose to access the Internet from a smartphone rather than a laptop or desktop, and the numbers are increasing daily.

The demand is making phone companies and wireless Internet providers even more competitive than before. They struggle to offer better speeds at lower prices, more coverage than their competition and smaller yet more efficient devices.

Companies are also jumping on the smartphone wagon, creating applications and services that fit their employees’ needs.
The applications offered not only exceed one’s imaginations, but are destined to fit the specific needs of various categories of users. Companies have learned that making a wide range of devices with their own specifications is a much better policy than creating a big, bulky, battery-consuming device with thousands of services, of which people might need 4 or 5 on a frequent basis.

AT&T, for example, has offered users the possibility to chat while streaming live videos. Google’s G1 offers a full GPS service, complete with live street view, for a better and more time and cost-efficient driving experience. One question has not yet been answered – “what will they think of next?”