Modern calculators are more portable than most computers, though most PDAs or mobile phones are comparable in size to handheld calculators and may soon replace them.

However, some PDAs may not have a touch screen, using softkeys, a directional pad, and a numeric keypad or a thumb keyboard for input ; this is typically seen on telephones that are incidentally PDAs.

Some PDAs use microSD cards, which are electronically compatible with SD cards, but have a much smaller physical size.

PDAs are not typically able to connect to each other via USB, as USB requires one machine to act as a " host ," which isn't a typical PDA function.

Third-party software can be used to synchronize PDAs to other personal information managers that are not supported by the PDA manufacturers ( for example, GoldMine and IBM Lotus Notes ).

The most common operating systems preinstalled on PDAs are:

Other PDAs are compatible with external GPS-receiver add-ons that use the PDA's processor and screen to display location information.

PDAs are increasingly being fitted as standard on new cars.

PDAs are used in hospitals, hospices and care homes to record audit and surveillance data, and then sync with a remote data server for immediate access to management data and trend analysis.

PDAs and handheld devices are allowed in many classrooms for digital note-taking.

Nondeterministic PDAs are able to handle situations where more than one choices of action are available.

As of today the game is only available for the DELL x50v and x51v both of which are PDAs not mobile phones.

Announced in 1997, the SA-1100 was targeted for portable applications such as PDAs and differs from the SA-110 by providing a number of features that are desirable for such applications.

The most common of these are the Mobile Information Device Profile aimed at mobile devices, such as cell phones, and the Personal Profile aimed at consumer products and embedded devices like set-top boxes and PDAs.

There are more than 2. 1 billion Java ME enabled mobile phones and PDAs.

Most cameras sold today are digital, and digital cameras are incorporated into many devices ranging from PDAs and mobile phones ( called camera phones ) to vehicles.

New CBC News services are also proving popular such as news alerts to mobile phones and PDAs.

In smartphones, personal digital assistants ( PDAs ) and other wireless mobile devices, these libraries are the Java ME.

Most general-purpose microprocessors and operating systems can execute DSP algorithms successfully, but are not suitable for use in portable devices such as mobile phones and PDAs because of power supply and space constraints.

Following these rules means that web sites are accessible on all types and makes of computer, to able-bodied and people with disabilities, and also on wireless devices like mobile phones and PDAs, with their limited bandwidths and screen sizes.

The time management and communications functions of PIMs largely migrated from PDAs to smartphones, with RIM ( Research In Motion ), Apple and others all manufacturing smartphones that offer most if not all of the functions of earlier PDAs.

Other diverse devices which may be considered networking hardware include mobile phones, PDAs and even modern coffee machines.

An unusual and powerful CAS " calculator " is the now obsolete year 2001 Casio Cassiopeia A10 and A11 ( flip top ) stylus operated PDAs which actually ran the Maple V symbolic engine.

Chris Rainey, the co-inventor of Microwriter, re-introduced Microwriting for PC and Palm PDAs with a standalone miniature chording keyboard called CyKey which caters to both left and right-handed users, being 9-keys.

This type of keyboard is portable enough to be easily used with PDAs and cellphones, and many models have retractable cords and wireless capabilities.

" Video game " ( or " videogame ") has evolved into a catchall phrase that encompasses the aforementioned along with any game made for any other device, including, but not limited to, mobile phones, PDAs, advanced calculators, etc.

PDAs with wireless data connections also typically include an email client and a Web browser.

IrDA allows communication between two PDAs, or between a PDA and any device with an IrDA port or adapter.

Most PDAs can synchronize their data with applications on a user's computer.

Most PDAs come with the ability to synchronize to a computer.

* Microsoft ActiveSync, used by Windows XP and older Windows operating systems to synchronize with Windows Mobile, Pocket PC, and Windows CE PDAs, as well as PDAs running iOS, Palm OS, and Symbian

* iSync, included with Mac OS X, can synchronize many SyncML-enabled PDAs

Other PDAs come only with their own proprietary software.

For example, some early Palm OS PDAs came only with Palm Desktop, while later Palm PDAs — such as the Treo 650 — have the ability to sync to Palm Desktop or Microsoft Outlook.

RIM sells BlackBerry Enterprise Server to corporations so that corporate BlackBerry users can wirelessly synchronize their PDAs with the company's Microsoft Exchange Server, IBM Lotus Domino, or Novell GroupWise servers.

PDAs with GPS functionality can be used for automotive navigation.

PDAs have been shown to aid diagnosis and drug selection and some studies have concluded that when patients use PDAs to record their symptoms, they communicate more effectively with hospitals during follow-up visits.

PDAs offer varying degrees of accessibility for people with differing abilities, based on the particular device and service.

People with vision, hearing, mobility, or speech impairments may be able to use PDAs on a limited basis.

Later models have been credited with spurring competition in the previously stagnant Palm market, closing many of the gaps that existed between Palm OS PDAs and those powered by Microsoft's Windows Mobile operating system, particularly on the multimedia front, but also with Sony's proprietary application launcher interface.

The cause of this development is a combination of complicated regulation, relatively high Internet penetration rates, the widespread use of notebooks and PDAs and the relatively high number of WLAN hotspots.