Do you find yourself thinking, if only I had a really smart phone, I'd be organized, always in touch, and maybe stylish, too? In a word, smart?

The allure of the iPhone and other smartphones that allow you to check e-mail, browse the web, and keep your calendar up to the minute and in your bag at all times is strong. It's tempting to want to switch from a regular old flip phone to a smartphone, but it's also expensive. The data plans needed to turn a phone into a smart assistant can run you near and above $100 a month combined with your calling minutes. So here are some questions to help gauge if a smartphone is the right choice for you.

1. Do you need to or wish you could check e-mail away from the computer? I got my first smartphone, a Palm Treo, when I realized I needed to be accessible by email as well as by phone to my editors when I was away from my computer going to after-school activities. Smartphones allow you to easily sync e-mail accounts so you can get e-mail messages as they arrive on your phone, but they also allow you to view e-mail attachments and click on links in e-mail to the web.

2. Do you add calendar appointments often on the fly? Most cell phones allow you to sync online calendars with phones, but adding and editing appointments can be easily done with a smartphone. So if you make a lot of appointments away from home throughout the day, it's a nice feature to have.

3. Do you send a lot of emails and text messages with your phone? If you find yourself emailing and texting colleagues and family members more from your phone but you're not so crazy about tapping out messages on your flip-phone keyboard, then a smartphone's full Qwerty keyboard and bigger screen are very appealing.

4. Would the ability to access the web and use search functions make a big difference in your day? One of the biggest benefits of a smartphone is the ability to surf the web anywhere, anytime. But if that's more than you really need from your phone, then making the move to a smartphone is probably not necessary when most cell phones will do all you need to do.

If you're thinking of switching to a smartphone, Laptop Magazine compares the features and prices of a few different phones in this piece. But I'm betting you've got some good advice to share. If you've opted for a smartphone, let us know why and if it's really made a difference in how you move through your day.