Welcome to the wireless world. Laptops, cell phones, pagers, and PDAs are just the beginning of what tech pundits say is a coming revolution in mobile gadgetry. Beyond reading e-mail and checking stock quotes, new wireless devices will bring instant messaging, web surfing, gaming, and, or course, e-commerce into the palm of your hand. The question is, who really needs it? There are 100 million mobile users in the U.S. alone who think they do, with over a million more signing up every month.
And the U.S. is behind in the gadget game. In Finland wireless whiz-kids pay for parking meters with their cell phones and download the latest pop songs as MP3s. The Japanese have figured out a way to do karaoke on any handheld device, and can beam photos to their screens from sidewalk picture booths. But can the latest wave of digital hysteria live up its hype, or should we be wary of wireless? No strings attached: Wirelessness is this hour on the Connection. (Hosted by Christopher Lydon)
