If wireless is in your future, and it's one of the main reasons you want to upgrade, understand that a truly new solution is still a few months away. If you can wait and accept whatever is forthcoming, select Yes. If you're the cynical type, or you feel wireless is not "all that and a bag of chips," select No.

Longer battery life
Everyone's boasting better battery life than last millennium's models. This one really depends on your usage. If you're away from home or the office a lot of the time and don't like the hassle of carrying a power cord, then maybe it's important. More important, though, is how you use your device.

If you're likely to use battery-intensive applications, like playing music from a data card or an IBM compact flash hard drive, then any increase in battery life will come in really handy, so select Yes. On the other hand, if your daily use rarely cracks an hour, and your device sleeps in its cradle every night, definitely select No.

Adding up the score
Let's tally up your answers and decide if it's time to go shopping. Add a point for every Yes you checked. Notice that if you followed my directions, some of the scores are almost impossible to obtain. I'm a realist here, okay?

• If you scored a ten, the real world is a scary place. Drop whatever you're doing right now and go shopping!

• If you scored either eight or nine, and if your budget can handle it, go out and buy one of the HP or Casio units…. If you can wait, the Compaq is also an option.

• If you scored a six or seven, wait until June or July so you can try out all of the offerings from the big three hardware companies. Then make your decision.

• If you scored a five, you're most likely a fence-sitter. You're probably still using an old IBM PC XT with a radiation green display. You need a Pocket PC, but you might never be able to make yourself go get it.

• If you scored less than five, you're better off waiting. The Palm-sized PC you now own is sufficient for your needs. Hold off for a year or so and get the most out of the powerful device you already own.

I hope this checklist has helped you in your decision making process. Of course, if you're a true gadget freak you'll take your score sheet, crumple it up, and chuck it in the garbage can on your way to the nearest electronics store.