These days, almost everyone has a cell phone. From Bluetooth and WAP-enabled phones to infrared-based models, we simply can't live without them. There are almost as many cell phones on the street as there are pedestrians. If you're not convinced, try a little experiment to prove it to yourself:

Stand in crowded public place, like at the mall or on a busy street corner. Have a nearby buddy call you on your cell phone and as it rings, look to see how many people are reaching in their pockets or purses to check their own phones.

The very fact that cell phones have caught on like wildfire in the bushes is hardly surprising. After all, these mobile wonders offer constant communications from just about anywhere, to virtually anywhere. What amazes some people, however, is the rampant popularity of the camera phone.

Today's cell phones are like the Swiss army knives of the communication world. With just a touch of a button they can be used to instantly send and receive e-mail and text messages, play games, surf the Internet and keep track of appointments. Best of all, each of these tasks can be accomplished while the user is out and about: at work, on the bus, in a restaurant or at a club. Now, the most exciting advancement in the average cell phone is the addition of photographing capabilities. The ability to take digital photographs from their handset is enough to send users out to the stores to replace their perfect good handsets with new camera phones.

The Japanese market was first to experience the thrill of the camera phone, and Asian cellular users immediately caught the camera phone bug. A few years later, manufacturers began marketing camera phones in the United States and these hot gadgets became available to the masses. While not overly popular at first, North Americans quickly began to appreciate the convenience of having a camera and cell phone together in one handset. Of course, the devices have become so well-received that some have predicted that camera phones will become the most popular consumer device in history.

According to industry analysts, camera phones comprised 12% of the total cell phones sold in 2003, and predicted those numbers to rapidly climb. A research firm called IDC suggested that more than 80 million camera cell phones have been sold worldwide.

Some people wonder if it isn't just as easy to carry a cellular phone and a camera. The answers lie in life's fleeting moments. That once-in-a-lifetime opportunity when you run into a famous rock star at a roadside diner, or see a majestic sunset as you stroll along the coast. Those moments are certainly lost forever if your camera is locked in your car. With a camera phone, however, you can capture those moments and turn them into memories to last a lifetime. Best of all, you can use your cell phone to save and even email the photos to all of your friends.

Having a digital camera built into a cell phone may seem like a novelty or a luxury, but there's no better way to capture life's most perfect moments, and hold them for a lifetime.