We all like to have our gadgets, but it is also important to make sure that we are getting the right gadgets. It is cool to have the latest smartphone or computer, but if it cannot serve the purpose that is needed for the professional or business person, it is a complete waste of money. With the selections that are available today, just about every mobile Internet need can be served by choosing the right product.

Cell Phones
It is very easy to over or under spend on a cell phone. While it is nice to have the latest and greatest, if the features are not going to be put to use, why spend all of that extra money? iPhone, Blackberry and Android phones are all incredible, but they are also very expensive. Many of the basic smartphone features that these phones have are available on phones that are more affordable. Do a complete inventory of the features and then make the decision as to whether or not one of these phones is actually necessary.

Laptops
In this day and age, it is almost a crime not to have a laptop. Because the technology has come so far and commonplace, the costs of these machines is far below what it was a decade ago. That being the case, a basic laptop can be had for under $500 that is more than adequate for the common user. Again, the speed of the processor, memory needed and video cards are all dictated by what the user is going to be doing on the actual computer. If it is being used mostly for answering emails while on the road, a basic model will more than suffice.

iPad, Tablets and Mini’s
The new toy on the block is the mini laptop, tablet and the iPad. People love them for the sheer fact that they can be put into a backpack or carry bag and taken just about anywhere with little inconvenience. Someone that is looking for the bare basics, is probably best served by getting a mini (commonly known as a netbook). Something that is replacing their reader or that needs access to different apps would be better served by getting an iPad or tablet computer.

The right mobile Internet device can make quite a difference in the way people are able to run their business or perform work tasks on the go. It can be very frustrating to need to be able to do something only to realize that the device that was purchased is incapable of doing what is needed. On the other hand, it is also just as frustrating to have spent $500 on something and never make use of the added features that the device has. Take the time to inventory the features and capabilities of your portable device and you will more than likely come home with the right one.

The popularity of the Laptop has meant that there are now more models out there competing for your attention and your dollars. Some high end Laptops like the Apple Mac are at the top end of the price range, while net books are probably at the lower end of the price scale.

The Toshiba Satellite L305-S5921 Laptop Computer has a two gigabyte internal processor is good value at US $589.99 and has a host of other features with a 15.4inch widescreen display. This Laptop will help you to streamline everything that you do and its WiFi connection means you can hook up to the web wherever you are.

If you want something a bit lighter and at an even more competitive price then you may want to consider the ASUS EEE PC 900HA Netbook this mini laptop is ideal for personal use as well as for business applications. At US $338.99 this notebook is ideal for those on a tight budget who need the convenience of a Laptop with a 1.6 GHZ processor and a Windows XP operating system you just can’t go wrong if you need technology on the move.

Acer Aspire is a popular net book and if you need to watch your budget then you might want to consider a refurbished Acer Aspire One AOA150-1864 Intel Atom processor and a Windows XP operating system with an 8.9 inch screen at US $239.97. Many of the smaller Netbook Laptop Computers do not have a CD drive, but it’s not too difficult to get hold of an external one at a later date. Most of the Notebooks have WiFi and Bluetooth connectivity so you can access the web wherever you are. These mini Laptops are small enough and light enough to carry around with you wherever you go.

These are not usually the best option for your only computer because of limited size and they don’t have a CD drive. Most newer netbooks come with the Atom processor which is faster and has more power than previous versions, but it is still not ideal for resource intensive applications and multi-tasking.

Netbooks are best for accessing the Internet, creating documents, and reading ebooks. If you are a student on the go, you can take notes in class, do Internet research, and create drafts of your papers. You can also download etextbooks on your netbook and you won’t have to lug around heavy books all semester. You can save some green, financially and environmentally, and give your back a break as well.

As the power of computer components continue to increase while the size is decreasing the future of portable computing is looking bright. In the future everyone will be carrying some type of portable computing device. In the same way everyone has a cell phone with them at almost all times of the day.

Netbook operating systems are being developed and improved as well. Early netbooks were Linux based, which created a lightweight and fast operating system, but it was difficult for non techie people to use. The Windows XP version became more popular. Now most new netbooks come with Windows 7 and there are rumors that there is a special netbook edition in the works.

There are other special netbook operating systems in the works as well. There is Moblin developed by Intel which is Fedora based and is said to have faster processing and booting times. There is also Jolicloud. Which is cloud computing which is perfect for an Internet based machine like a netbook. With cloud computing the resources are located on the net and all that is required is a fast sleek interface to access this.

Another promising option for the future of netbooks is the Chrome OS designed by Google. It is not out yet, but it is based on the Chrome browser and I assume it will be cloud based as well. The Google OS could make portable Internet computing fast, convenient, and easy.

Another innovation that is just beginning are the new touch screen displays. The days of everyone walking around with a small lightweight portable computing device, that has a fast, easy to use cloud based OS, and a touch screen, are not far away.

Mobiles nowadays perform more functions than just making voice calls. For many it is becoming their connection to their data on the go. It is their personal computing platform while on the go!

A typical mobile, not even a smartphone, can now play back music and video files, capture images and video and can often even run simple Java applications. All function which a 15 years ago were even computers struggled to do!

Now when you’re on the move you’ll prefer to have some of you music and video collection along in case you get bored, or perhaps you might play a game. You might even like to capture images and video of interesting places or events. All of these need space, and as the capabilities of mobile phones increase, they will only require more and more space to utilize properly.

If you have a feature Mobile Phones, chances are your memory will be quite low and probably insufficient to utilize your phones multimedia capabilities. In this case you might find it useful to install additional memory in the form of an SD or MMC card, which are quite cheap nowadays, can chances are you will be able to expand your phones memory by as much as 2 to 16GB!

What is unified messaging?
It is combining voice features with instant messaging, email, fax, video messaging, etc. Cisco offers a click-to-dial solution that allows users to dial directly from Microsoft Outlook’s contacts list and allows voicemail messages to go directly to the user’s inbox. Salesforce.com has integrated with Skype to offer direct chats and calls from their CRM system. Many other vendors like 3Com and Nortel are offering some type of integrated solutions.

When it comes to email and voice integration, the typical options are to get your voicemail via email and to call directly from your contacts’ list. It can be from Microsoft Outlook or from some CRM application. The other integration option is to get your email read to you on your phone. It converts text to speech. These are “cool” features, but are they really necessary?

As more and more people switch from landlines to mobile phones, and emails are delivered on the mobile phones, the typical office phones will not be needed. Most businesses communicate via email, Skype, or IM and use less landlines. One of the perceived advantages of unified messaging is that employees can leave one voicemail or email, and the recipient will get it in their mail’s inbox. It is supposed to increase productivity among the workers, because they do not need to leave an email and a voicemail. Most workers these days have mobile phones and can be reached anywhere around the world via phone, text or email. All you need is a wi-fi connection which is available just about anywhere.

So, why invest in a unified platform when any collaboration is available on a mobile device?
Collaboration among not only employees but also businesses has become much easier with video conferencing, Skype calls, and email. Partnering with companies from around the world without meeting them in person is normal and does not require travel expenses. Integration of these applications would not increase productivity for a typical employee. There are many tools/applications that increase productivity without unifying the communication applications.

Unified communication is more than just about integrating the applications. Multiple hardware devices and software operating systems must be integrated before the actual applications are added. As these proprietary systems grow, managing and maintaining these products become complex and expensive. If you do not have an in-house team who knows how to implement multiple unified messaging systems, you will need to hire outside experts to implement and maintain the environment on a daily basis. Also, because these systems are proprietary, you will need to invest more resources if you want to change to another system.