Thread: BlackBerry OS 4.3 Mobile Phone

Pros: BlackBerrys have always been sublime e-mail handlers, but now they're no longer the exclusive province of executives and stockbrokers. RIM's latest models sport attractive styling, quality cameras, built-in GPS, and even 3.5mm headphone jacks that accept high-end stereo earbuds. They offer sleek styling, svelte proportions, and several popular keyboard configurations. Plus, the software platform is finally catching up with the hardware, with lots of top-name vendors pitching everything from mobile TV to social networking clients.

Cons: BlackBerrys still require their own expensive data plans, which are separate from the ones offered on all other smartphones. It also costs more to integrate BlackBerrys into an existing corporate network than other solutions such as Windows Mobile or Symbian devices. Most BlackBerrys still have sub-par Web browsers; the Pearl 8130 is the first version to be competitive in this regard. (For other models, download the free Opera Mini 4.) And even if the third-party software market for BlackBerrys is catching up, it still pales in comparison to the other three platforms-notably in document editing.