I’ve never been one to rush into anything. Traditionally, I won’t make any major buying decision without researching the ying-yang out of it.

This hasn’t always been the case. I’m the proud owner of an original Betamax hi-fi machine that hasn’t seen the light of day in decades. At the time, I was convinced Betamax was the way of the future.

If Sony hung its name on it, so should I. We all know the rest of the story. VHS became the technology of choice and I got burned. For years, I left it under the TV. It was a great conversation piece that usually involved laughter followed by ‘I can’t believe you bought that.’

It sits to this day below a staircase in the back room. Rest its soul.

That misinformed buying decision has played on my mind throughout the years.

This leads me to my most recent purchase. For some time now, the sales and editorial staff of Truck News have been using smart phones. These handheld devices do so much that it’s a little bit scary.

They connect to our server at work, which allows them access to work files and e-mails, they access the Internet, take pictures, tell you the weather, organize appointments…the applications (the cool people refer to them as “apps”) are endless.

I can’t tell you how many times I have been asked why I don’t own a Blackberry or iPhone. A few of my clients have asked me how I manage to do business without one? The fact is, it can be done. Mind you, it’s getting harder since e-mail has taken over as the preferred method of communication.

My problems started when I was on the road. Without e-mail access I knew I could be missing something of significance.

Even when I had my cell phone, it wouldn’t be much help since it can’t access my e-mails. It was time I considered my options.

After much consideration, and flashbacks of an old useless BetaMax player, I jumped into the 2000s. I’m now an iPhone man.

I’ve had it now for two months and have found it’s an amazing piece of technology. I’m not going to embarrass myself by telling you what this baby is capable of. Most of you already know that, but for all the hold-outs out there, it’s time to embrace the technology. You’ll be shocked.

My only challenge now is when to turn the iPhone off for the day. It’s not as easy as you may think.