text: Personal digital assistants (also called PDAs or palmtops) are handheld devices that were originally designed as personal organizers, but became much more versatile over the years. A basic PDA usually includes date book, address book, task list, memo pad, clock, and calculator software. Many PDAs can now access the Internet via Wi-Fi, cellular or Wide-Area Networks (WANs) or Bluetooth technology. One major advantage of using PDAs is their ability to synchronize data with a PC or home computer.\n\nThe term "personal digital assistant" was coined on January 7, 1992 by John Sculley at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Nevada, referring to the Apple Newton. Earlier devices like the Psion and Sharp Wizard have the functionality to be considered PDAs, however. In fact, PDAs by other names were available as early as the mid-1970s -- first as very advanced calculators, then as electronic organizers, and later as palmtops. [1].\n\nPDAs are some times refered to as "Palms" or "Palm Pilot" after an early PDA created by Palm, Inc. This usage is a case of genericized trademark, similar to refering to a tissue as a "Kleenex"; or a bandage as a "Band-Aid".\n\nThe currently major PDA operating systems are:\n\nPalm OS - owned by Palm, Inc. \nWindows Mobile (Pocket PC), (based on the Windows CE kernel) - owned by Microsoft \nBlackBerry - owned by Research In Motion \nMany operating systems based on the Linux kernel - free (not owned by any company) These include: \nGPE - Based on GTK+/X11 \nOPIE/Qtopia - based on Qt/E Qtopia is developed by Trolltech, OPIE is a fork of Qtopia developed by volunteers \nSymbian OS (formerly EPOC) owned by Ericsson, Panasonic, Nokia, Samsung, Siemens and Sony Ericsson \nMany PDAs run using a variation of the ARM architecture (usually denoted by the Intel XScale trademark). This encompasses a class of RISC microprocessors that are widely used in mobile devices and embedded systems, and its design was influenced strongly by a popular 1970s/1980s CPU, the MOS Technology 6502.\n\nAccording to a Gartner market study, the overall market for PDAs grew by 20.7% in the third quarter (Q3) of 2005, compared to Q3 2004, with marketshare resolving as follows (by operating system):\n\nPalm OS for Palm, Inc. PDAs and some other licensees- 14.9% (declining) \nWindows Mobile for PDAs that comply with the Microsoft's Pocket PC specifications - 49.2% (increasing) \nBlackBerry OS for BlackBerry PDA (produced by Research In Motion) - 25.0% (increasing) \nSymbian OS - 5.8% (increasing) \n\nPopular PDAs\n \nPalm IIIxe PDAPsion \nApple Computer Newton \nBlackBerry \nhp iPAQ Pocket PC (Originally Compaq iPAQ until HP merged in 2002) \nPalm Pilot, Tungsten, LifeDrive, Treo and Zire \nSharp Wizard and Zaurus \nSony CLIÉ \nTapwave Zodiac \nAlphaSmart Dana \nDell Axim \nGMate Yopy \nFujitsu Siemens Loox 720 \nList of PalmOS Devices \nAbacus_PDA_Watch \n\nVarious operating systems based on the Linux kernel for various special designed PDAs (many other supported) - 0.7% (stable) \nOther - 4.4% (stable) \nThe reason usually cited for the resumption in PDA market growth (after market declines in 2002 - 2004) is the growing interest in PDAs offering wireless email capabilities (such as BlackBerries), and PDAs with built-in GPS capabilities for navigation. Smartphones — mobile phones with PDA-like abilities will likely curtail PDA growth in the near future, as smartphones are becoming very popular.