I've probably written about this before but with all the hype that's been going on this week I feel infuriated enough to moan about it again. What is the deal with phones that do everything? I don't get it and for some reason when people try to convince me it's the way to go I just end up getting crosser.

Currently I have a phone, it takes photos and has the ability to play mp3s (but I never use that bit) and a PDA which does everything else. I can use my pda to listen to mp3's (wma's) from sd and compact flash cards - effectively meaning I can have as many on there as I like. I can play games on my pda (although I have my ds for that too). I can go on the internet on my pda, download and send emails, listen to internet radio. I can even, if I can be bothered to convert them, watch films on my pda. I can ring people, receive phone calls and send and receive texts on my phone. Usefully I can take the odd photo if needed although I prefer the quality and flexibility of my digital camera for this.

So these new phones, all the usual phone stuff, listen to music, take photos and videos, watch tv and films, play games, surf the web, email, gps etc etc. Great, brilliant, wonderful, but...

I'm stuck in goodness knows where, my train apparently doesn't exist, I need to make a phone call. I can't because I've been using my phone to listen to music and watch the odd tv show on the journey up and the battery is now dead. I would use a payphone but they're few and far between these days, apparently mobile phones are the way to go. Now what?

I'm off out for the evening and have decided it would be highly inconvenient to take a huge bag with me, whatever I need to take will fit in my small jacket pocket. All except my phone, which seeing as it now does everything is the size of a brick - who wants to watch tv and films on a screan the size of a 50p piece afterall.

Granted, sometimes it would be useful to have a phone and pda in one, it would be useful not to have to remember both. However, most of the time it makes more sense for them to be separate. I like being able to do stuff on my pda without worrying that the battery won't last me incase I need it later on. I like having a small phone that I know I can keep with me whatever I'm wearing and where ever I go. I like having the option of leaving the bulk of my pda behind if I don't need it (which, shock horror, sometimes I don't). I also like the fact that when I want to upgrade either I can do knowing I'm paying for what I need, sometimes I want a new flashy phone, occasionally I will need a little extra from a pda.

Of course, nobody will listen to this, more is apparently better and small, useful but limited phones will become extinct as the plebs buy into the hype...

Rant over.