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The risk of brain tumours are still being debated for and against, but there’s new health risks from modern gadgetry.

The first weekend I had a BlackBerry, back in early 2004, I discovered “BlackBerry thumb”, wearing a hole right in my thumb.

Over time I’ve noticed I often feel vibrations in my chest pocket area, or on my waist, even though my handheld hasn’t vibrated or often when I don’t even have it on my person. This is now featured in an article in today’s Sydney Morning Herald on “Phantom vibrations.”

The great news I’d be looking forward to by Palm turned out to be not so exciting. Palm are close to having Windows Mobile 6 available for the Treo 750 but not yet. I excitedly presented mine at the Palm stand hoping to get an upgrade, but alas it is not yet final code. Their announcement was not, as I’d hoped, “WM6 is here” but “we are going to release WM6.”

Still, I can’t complain too much; after all, I know it will be imminent. Meanwhile, there’s no sign of WM6 yet for the Samsung Blackjack.

While at Tech-Ed I spoke to Motorola and was delighted to see the Motorola Q is now in Australia – and is WM6 – but it won’t be available from Telstra for a few months yet. I told the Motorola rep how much I liked Motorola’s use of mini-USB for power and synchronisation because my Sony-Ericsson and Palm and Samsung devices all use proprietary plugs (and the Palm is the worst offender, needing one cable for power and one for sync!) – but surprise, Motorola have gone the proprietary way themselves on the Q, so no more one-USB cable fits all as I’d had previously when I used a Motorola Razr and a BlackBerry 7250.

I also spoke to Hewlett Packard and lamented how irrelevant the iPaq was now in this 3G world and they told me a NextG iPaq is coming out in October on Telstra but is NDA (ie “non disclosure agreement”) at the moment. I didn’t see it, but nor did I sign an NDA, so I’ll gladly tell you HP have something coming out (but I don’t know what!)

According to Microsoft, there are no Australian MVPs in Windows Mobile. So, I aim to fill that gap by de-facto.

I’ve been using Windows Mobile since I first had a Windows CE Cassiopeia from Casio, back in 1998. I’ve gone through a Viewsonic Windows Mobile 2002 device, the O2 XDA PDA2K, the iMate JasJar, and recently the Palm Treo 750 and Samsung Blackjack. I’m using the Blackjack more now that I have temporarily dumped BlackBerry from my plethora of daily devices. (And those who know me, know I was a BlackBerry junkie; I was active in IBBUG (before it seized up, after the versatile Laura Nuhaan left) and sent thousands of e-mails from the tiny keypad over four years.)

I also commenced – and need to return to – a SourceForge project to make a visual programming language for Windows Mobile.

So, to fill the void of Australian Windows Mobile MVPs, I’ll aim to make one a post week here discussing new advancements on this platform.

(Of course, any Microsofties who would like to nominate me to actually be an MVP, I’d be very grateful! )

I am regularly asked “what mobile phone should I get?”The answer is not simple; it depends on the feature set which is important to you. However, here’s my subjective list:

• BlackBerry – if e-mail is important to you, nay essential, then you need a BlackBerry. No other device comes close for messaging. I lean towards the larger QWERTY keyboard, being a heavy e-mail composer. Thus, for me, the new BlackBerry Pearl – as attractive as it is – is out. However, those who are more keen on being able to receive and read e-mail, but don’t have as pressing a need to send it, would do well to consider it.
• Samung A701 – if you want to use Telstra’s NextG 3G network, then this is presently the most feature-rich handset. The NextG data speeds are impressive. However, after using other Samsung models, this flip-phone does feel more chunky.
• Samsung D820 – for standard GSM, this is a light and stylish handset, with great sound and video outputs.
• Sony Ericsson K800i – for shutterbugs or non-NextG 3G users, this handset is a winner. It has great business features, a sturdy feel, an excellent OS and currently the highest quality camera in a mobile phone. In fact, this model carries the moniker “cybershot”, aligning it with Sony’s consumer digital camera range.
• Nokia E61 – this is also a non-NextG 3G handset, with the telephone reliability of the Nokia brand along with the feature set of a smartphone. A good screen and QWERTY keyboard make this a perfect device for road warriors. BlackBerry Connect software has been licensed meaning push e-mail is available.
• Motorola v3i – it just has to be included on the list; the GSM-only v3i was an instant killer when it first came out, with unbelievable looks and a super-thin clamshell design. The Motorola operating system has quirks which bug me but for the aesthetically inclined, the gold Dolce and Gabanna model or the feminine pink model are must-haves.

All of these handsets come with USB data cables. There will be no problems with keeping your phone synchronised with a PC, nor with transferring files including ringtones and photographs.

All, bar the Nokia E61 and BlackBerry models other than the Pearl, have cameras. All, bar the BlackBerry have expandable memory.

What, no PDAs, you ask? Yes. Frankly, for all the advantages the Pocket PC platform offers, I find it still too quirky for heavy-duty use. I’ve had to reboot my HTC devices – including the iMate JasJar which “try it for three days then return it to the PR company” journalists tout as a regular “editor’s choice”.

In this world of ubiquitious online access I was stunned to come across some small business managers who were dogmatically convinced they had to use their mobile phone as a modem for their laptop, to dial an ISP, in order to pull e-mail.

That’s probably not uncommon, but when I offered alternatives which were both faster and cheaper they strongly argued that BlackBerry was a “gimmick” and that the real key to e-mail anywhere was Bluetooth – their explanation being their laptop could use their mobile phone as a modem via a Bluetooth connection.

It gets sadder; they smiled at me sagely, this obvious knowledge they possessed arising because they “can’t be without e-mail” and because they are such “heavy” e-mail users. (Although, I noted some irony that they could only read an e-mail if they first printed it, and then usually didn’t reply because the hardcopy just had the sender’s display name, not e-mail address.)

Now, I can appreciate people have different understandings of technology and different levels of tech-savviness. What shocks and surprises me though is when we talk about management. These are people I presume surely must have business acumen, people who surely must be sharp minded, and not the least people who would want information at the speed of thought. I guess not. And that’s the thing which I have the hardest time comprehending.