What is the actual definition of a smartphone?

i'm so confused about it i want to be able to tell if a phone is a smartphone while phone shopping without asking people for every single phone lol....thanks!What is the actual definition of a smartphone?
There are three types of phones. These are basic phones, feature phones, and smart phones. While the definition seems to vary with most people, the basics seems to be established, and typically used by carriers in their definition.



A smart phone is any phone that runs a third party, or multi-device standard OS. All cellular phones have OSes, but most of them are designed explicitly for that device. For a more simplistic terms, consider the devices running the following OSes as smart phones (provided they are phones of course).



Android OS (1.5 or higher is what's offered).

Blackberry OS (found on RIM Blackberry phones)

iOS (found on Apple iPad, iPhone, or iPod Touch)

Windows Mobile and Windows Phone 7

WebOS



This of course means that there are a lot of phones that could be running this. However, if the phone starts at $300 MSRP (not the contract price), than that is a start to the price of a smart phone. One thing to do is ask the representative what OS it is using. If the rep doesn't know, it is 98% likely to not be a smart phone.
Though the definition of a "smartphone" is an evolving thing, a smartphone is typically described as a device known as a personal pocket computer with mobile phone capabilities. It's qualities include running an operating system that allows the installation of applications by the user and continued development of apps by the development community.



The real world street definition today would probably be a phone that allows the installation of apps, true internet browsing capapbility and pc-like capabilities.What is the actual definition of a smartphone?
the actual definition of a "smartphone" is any phone that also has either a calendar, internet browser, or other non phone related function. In the 90's a smartphone simply had a calculator feature my first one was in 1992 and had a built in tip claculator was advertised as a "smartphone".



So pretty much any phone you buy today can be classified as a "smartphone" I've found outside of blackberry, iphone and android very few really are that smart though. lol
cell phones these days fall in classifications you have a smart phone which is close to a mini computer or pda that you can talk on you have feature phones that have alot of features but are not quite as equipped as the smartphones with running the software they run then you still have your basic phones for people that just want to keep it simple so the choice is so wide range now but basically your smartphone is gonna run a certain software that acts as a mini computer. and you usuallly have to purchase a data plan to cover it.What is the actual definition of a smartphone?
One capable of running applications.
go with davids awnser