I spent some time thinking about desktop computers (and laptops), versus handheld smartphones (iPhone, BlackBerry, Droid, et al).

Will these smartphones one day make desktops and laptops obsolete?

I don't really think so.

The reason is because most people tend to stay home.

When you leave work, your destination is home. And at home, you have a large monitor to view the Internet with.

And the reason you tend to stay home is because you have a spouse, or you have kids, or you have pets to feed. You have to collect your mail, change your clothes, take a shower. There are still things you must be at home to do.

It's only when you're out and about that you rely on that smartphone. And when you're out and about, you're probably not spending that much time browsing the Internet anyways.

If there's a way to plug your smartphone into a large 24 inch monitor at home, along with a full size keyboard, then perhaps smartphones might replace the PC and laptop.

But smartphones still have a long ways to go to replace the computing power of a PC or laptop.

AND, as smartphones become more powerful, PCs and laptops also become more powerful. So, smartphones will never ever catch up.

Certainly they'll become more popular and more a part of our lives.  ✓