Competition in the market for smartphones – devices that combine the functions of mobile phone, wireless e-mail device and portable PC – has never been fiercer, which is good news for business users and the growing number of consumers choosing to carry one.

Definitions of a smartphone vary, but it is essentially a mobile phone packed with features that can run multiple applications, says Al Delattre of Accenture, the consultancy. “Smartphones are designed at least as much for non-voice applications as for voice,” he says.