With all of the converging technologies now involved, the word confusion comes to mind when it comes to wireless devices.

Why? Well, consider all the players. Telephone manufacturers like Nokia, Motorola and NTT DoCoMo are big players, as are telephone companies such as Telus, Rogers AT&T and Bell Canada. Then there are software firms including Microsoft and Sun, plus PDA (Personal Digital Assistant) companies such as Research in Motion (RIM), Palm Computing and Handspring, makers of the Visor. Even Sony has entered the PDA game with the release last month of its Palm V-like device, the four-ounce Clie, short for Communication Linkage for Information & Entertainment.

And it looks like the competition is just starting, too, as the traditional hardware companies like Compaq, IBM, and HP will soon be making a "clamshell" like device that is a cross between a thin notebook computer and an electronic clipboard. It will operate on a version of Microsoft's Windows CE operating system, and mobile users will send and receive orders with them.

Finally, there is Bluetooth - a wireless specification established by several companies including IBM and Intel. IBM recently announced a pair of Intel-based notebook computers with integrated wireless local area network (LAN) capabilities. Big Blue is also offering Bluetooth PC Card options for its notebook and desktop computers. And you thought Bluetooth was the name of Jed Clampetts dog.

So - why the excitement? Demand, that's why. According to Business Week magazine, there are 46,000 new cell phone users every day. Clearly, it's a growing market that will only increase as devices like the Palm and Blackberry drop in price. Then you will really need a programme to know who is playing.

What does all this mean to you and me? For starters, we will probably be carrying around more than one device - at least for the next year or so. Currently, the cell phone takes first place, especially as monthly usage and per minute rates continue to fall and competition increases. In second place are the Palm/Handspring devices, followed closely by wireless e-mail devices like the Blackberry. The Blackberry 957, which is sold through outlets like Rogers AT&T, costs between $450 and $550, plus an additional $25 to $50 per month for airtime fees.

This scene could quickly change if and when Palm makes its Palm VII wireless device available in Canada. So far, it is only available for wireless use in the U.S. Palm, which has a big lead over RIM in terms of number of users, third party add-ons and software development tools, could deliver a solid punch to the Blackberry once Palm VII is available in Canada. To counter the Palm, RIM has installed several day timer-like features in the Blackberry 957 - not the least of which is an Internet browser interface and a paging service. Through its existing Rogers AT&T network, the RIM unit reaches about 75 percent of Canada's population. RIM, incidentally, has aligned itself with Microsoft and that company's Exchange Server BackOffice product. Furthermore, RIM will soon announce deals with Lotus (for Mobile Notes) and Novell for its GroupWise messaging system.

To ratchet up its wireless e-mail business in Canada, look for Palm to make a deal with another large telephone company. Bell Canada and Telus immediately come to mind, but that may change after Telus' recent purchase of ClearNet, which may be more interested in selling telephones that employ a WAP (Wireless Application Protocol) to surf the 'Net and exchange e-mail. (I HOPE you are following all of this.).

Still, the wireless players are not without their share of problems. Sony, for example, withdrew from the cell phone business last year, and the people at Palm are starting to hear the suddenly thundering footsteps of Microsoft which finally seems to be "getting it" with the release this year of its Pocket PC software. Hewlett Packard, Compaq and Casio all make good, colour, handheld PDA's that sync nicely with Outlook.

And how about the radiation issues that are starting to plague the phone companies? Responding to consumer pressure, Nokia, Motorola, and Ericsson announced August 28 that they would provide more information to consumers about SAR or "specific absorption rates." SAR is a measure of radiation from cell phones. Although all phones now on the U.S. market must meet safety standards set by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), manufacturers have said they will begin labeling their phone packages by next year.

The problem is, testing of SAR levels is questionable, and the phone companies do not want to add to cell phone confusion by placing a health related gauge on the side of your new Fido.

The ultimate wireless device that will emerge at the end of the day might look a lot like the Handspring Visor unit, although that product has been slow to emerge in Canada. The Visor, which was formed by a few ex-Palm employees, naturally has a Palm look and feel. However, from the base unit, you can choose to add various attachments. A cell phone, for example can be one snap-in addition, a pager another, and a wireless e-mail sender receiver as another.