The best portable device is no better than your ability to get the right data to it when you need it. And the built-in connectivity options for PDAs are generally much more limited than those for desktops or even for laptop computers.
Connectivity is the key to making PDAs useful in the enterprise.
Fortunately, that's changing as PDA vendors take aim at the enterprise market, and enterprise IT shops scrutinize the cost-benefit analysis of deploying these inexpensive, highly portable devices. For many organizations, strategic deployment of PDAs is starting to make sense, now that the devices are maturing into full-featured, capable solutions. Clearly, this isn't a workable model for large-scale enterprise use. But as PDAs have gained popularity, they've begun sneaking through the back door of many organizations. Often they've required ad hoc support from IT staff as a result of workers attaching their docking cradles to office computers and using PDAs to store mission-critical data along with their schedules and phone lists.