Smartphones of CTIA '09: The 10 Hottest Handhelds

The world's foremost handset manufacturers showed off their latest and greatest wares at the international CTIA Wireless 2009 event in Las Vegas. CIO.com hit the show floor hard to bring you images and details on the hottest new and upcoming smartphones that may earn a home in your pocket.

By Al Sacco

2008 was very much The Year of the Smartphone—you just can't ignore those impressive '08 smartphones sales numbers. But 2009 looks to be another one for the handheld record books; a quick jaunt around the International CTIA Wireless 2009 spring show floor last week in Las Vegas made it abundantly clear that smartphones were the focal point of the event.

Every major smartphone maker had a presence at CTIA, and most had brand new products to show off. Couldn't make it to Vegas to see for yourself? No problem at all; we spent plenty of time with all the handset heavies—especially with RIM at its CTIA BlackBerry booth.

Here are my picks for the 10 hottest smartphones at CTIA. Some are available for purchase immediately, while it may be months before others hit U.S. retail stores, if they do at all. Regardless, I just can't wait to get my thumbs on each and every one of 'em.

HTC Snap

Why It's Hot: This BlackBerry lookalike is VERY thin and VERY light.
OS: Windows Mobile® 6.1 Standard
Radio: Dual-band HSPA/WCDMA (900/2100MHz)/Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE (850/900/1800/1900 MHz)
Carrier: NA
Display: 2.4-inch TFT-LCD with LED back light and QVGA resolution
Memory: ROM: 256 MB; RAM: 192 MB
Processor: 528 MHz
Camera: 2.0 megapixels with fixed focus
Price/Availability: NA
Other Notable Feature(s): Wi-Fi (802.11b/g); BlackBerry-like trackball navigation and styling; memory expandable via microSD card
Image credit: Al Sacco