Some people believe the iPhone was the game-changer concerning what you could do on a mobile device. I say no, because the Danger Hiptop (a.k.a. the T-Mobile Sidekick) predated the iPhone by four years all the way back in 2003.

I state this because the ability to do things ordinarily reserved for PCs and laptops only have been on mobile devices for well over 5 years. In this span of time there have been numerous improvements both to the devices and the networks they use, but The Big Question is:

Can you use a mobile device for it all?

The answer to this question is best answered by drilling it down Q/A style.

Can you use a wireless carrier as your only ISP?

Yes. Any wireless carrier that offers internet-enabled smartphones has the connectivity.

If you chose to do so, all of your internet stuff could be performed on the smartphone and nothing else.

Is using a wireless carrier as the only ISP cheaper or more expensive?

In some instances it’s actually cheaper. T-Mobile Sidekick Prepaid for example is a dollar a day, and that gives you unlimited text/web/email and more.

Data-only plans for most wireless carriers can be as low as $35 monthly. Bear in mind that’s just data. Voice plans are still considered separate, and even though you can combine the two, it does add cost. Were you to add on voice, this would most likely be an extra $40 monthly.

Is the data connectivity fast?

The opinion is generally the answer of no.

The way in which we get data connectivity on mobile changes every few years. We had EDGE, then 3G (current standard) and there will be 4G in the future.

Most people are willing to accept that 3G simply isn’t as fast as in-home broadband. This is fine because the mobility more than makes up for it.

With 4G and beyond in the future, speed won’t be an issue. But at present it is.

Is mobile web browsing the same as it is on a PC?

Somewhat.

You run into three issues when browsing the web using a smartphone.

First is the issue of no mouse. This is replaced by your finger on touchscreen-enabled phones. Some people don’t have a problem with this. Others hate it.

Second is the issue of browser plugin support. Namely, Flash. If you’re using Flash on a mobile browser, it’s Flash Lite. This is obviously not the same as regular Flash. Most Flash content will work with it.

Third is the issue of screen size. You’re working with a 3.5-inch screen and while it’s true you have zooming capabilities, it’s still small. And the problem is that you can’t go any larger else the phone won’t fit in your pocket. Sure, we’d all love to have 5-inch screens on our phones, but that’s just too big for mobile use.

(Incidentally, the solution to this problem would be a flip-out dual screen setup, one on handset and one on flip, with touch enabled on both screens.)

Do I have the ability to use real-world apps on my phone?

Yes, you can use Word, Excel and PowerPoint on mobile. With your browser you have all the access you’d ever want to email. All the big webmail names have mobile versions (Gmail, Hotmail, Yahoo Mail) and they all work great. And with app stores you can get all the other stuff you need easily.

But it all boils down to three things

1. Can you deal with a 3.5-inch screen?
2. Can you deal with a touchscreen or thumbpad as your only keyboard?
3. Can you deal with the only sound coming from tiny chintzy speakers?

Here are my three answers:

No, no and no.

I like my monitors (I have a dual screen setup).

I like my full-sized keyboard.

My speakers, even though dirt cheap, still sound better than anything that comes out of a smartphone.

There’s no way I could ever switch 100% to mobile for those three reasons. There are others, but those are the biggies.

However that’s not to say I wouldn’t entertain the idea of using mobile with 4G (when available) and tethering capability. Using a smartphone with tethering so you have both the mobile and the "big" laptop (or desktop for that matter) is a good combination. In this fashion you have the best of both worlds, that being mobile and in-home when sitting at the desk.

But 100% mobile? I personally just couldn’t do it.

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About a decade ago I read news stories (on the internet of course) that yes, eventually the internet will simply run out of IP addresses. This is because the internet primarily assigns IPv4 addresses. You know them as four numbers separated by periods, such as 192.168.1.100.

The solution to the problem is the assignment of IPv6 addresses. More on that in a moment.

Google says in somewhere in the year 2011 (which is not that far away) IPv4 space exhaustion will occur according to current predictions. As such, the Google search engine is available right now over IPv6 at ipv6.google.com. If you’re actually on an IPv6 connection you can connect there now. If not (which counts for the vast majority of us at the present time,) it won’t work.

Some quick notes on IPv6 support

Q: Does Windows XP support IPv6?

A: Yes, but it’s not installed as a default protocol. However installing it is relatively painless.

Q: Does Mac OS X support IPv6?

A: Yes.

Q: Does Linux support IPv6?

A: Yes. In fact, Linux was first to support it way before anyone else.

Will you have to buy a new router when IPv6 becomes mainstream?

Most likely. Granted, some routers have IPv6-enabling abilities in them but yours most likely doesn’t.

Are there any write-ups on how IPv6 would work in the home?

Yes. Microsoft has a detailed write-up explaining in-home network setups using IPv6.

Do you have to prepare for IPv6 now?

No. But in 2010, yes.