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There are already a few mobile phones based on Linux available. Two Linux editions dedicated to mobile phones, the one from Mizi and the other one from Trolltech are out. As well as Linux PDAs which come pre-installed with Linux. So it shouldn't take too long until a true Linux smartphone will hit the market.

Maybe because some people want "phones" and not big bulky "PDAs" taking up their space in their skimpy pockets they give you nowadays in clothing.

I'd much rather flip open a phone and answer a call than bust out a PDA and hold it up to my face like im holding a phone from zack morris's locker.

Who needs a full featured PDA with a phone built in when you can get a full featured phone with a PDA built in?

The question is worth asking, and so far, that is why the motorolla MPx200 (windows smartphone) with SD/MMC Memory slot and stero headphone jack with fully featured PDA Applications is among the most popular of GSM phones currently in the united states. It has all the fancy stuff you would find in a PDA, plus it comes with a built in media player, something you don't normally find integrated in a palm. The only thing it lacks is PDF and excell document viewers/editors but I have read on the internet that they are available to download. Those flash MP3 players cost over 150$ at bestbuy for just 128-256MB. The 299$ list price tag on a high end smartphone is well worth the investment just for the mp3 player alone so you don't have to carry around 2 seperate devices.

Take a look at the screenshots on this link and tell me you would rather have a full size Palm Tungsten W or Handspring PDA phone insted of this high resolution (but smaller screen) smartphone in a small and light flip design.

"tons of applications because it runs PalmOS, and is supported by a company that's been in the business of making pda / cell phones for a while now?"

If you haven't noticed, Linux has been around longer than Palm OS. It has more applications available. QT/Embedded has been around for a reasonable while now and it is very fast. Pretty much all the smartphones being manufactured in china are coming with linux on them. Including motorolla, the world's second largest handset manufacturer. By the time they hit the streets in the US, I'm sure we will be seeing some very interesting products. I'm talking stuff that blows palms out of the water. Konqurer built into the phone, etc etc..

The Samsung SCH i519 runs Qt/Embedded on Linux, and the official SDK is a Linux machine running KDevelop :)

w00t!

Linux has already been ported to the CPU used in the HP-49G+. See here. Wedging it into the limited memory of an HP-49G+ is left as an exercise for the student.

I'd say its more like the seriously kick-ass nature of Linux, lately, in the embedded world.