MPx200.org have posted a rumour that an HP iPAQ Pocket PC Phone Edition is imminent. This adds fuel to the fire of speculation over when iPAQ will become "phone" enabled. I quote MPx200.org's article:

Matt M from? MTekk gets all excited about a rumour on MPx200.org ...

" The carriers look at the two form factors a little different:

(1) SmartPhones - voice centric device with data capabilities (i.e.. MPx200, etc...)
(2) PDA/Phones - data devices with voice capabilities (i.e.. The AWS SX56, Treo 600, etc...)

The next SmartPhone for AT&T is the Voq (which has been reported by many others before) and it? falls in the first category.? What is new about this phone from the early reports is that it was originally billed as a 2002 OS device (but no carriers would buy it) so Sierra Wireless re-worked it and now will be 2003.? This is still not set in stone but it has been approved by the FCC for release in the Feb-June timeframe.

The next big Smart Phone to be released by AT&T is a little different and falls into the second category.? This new device, we will call "The Rock" for now (the true code name will be held in confidence until the FCC news breaks soon).? "The Rock" as far as I know has not been FCC certified, so I will continue to look it up on a weekly basis.

Here is some of the scoop on "The Rock":?? It will be manufactured by HP and labeled under the iPAQ brand.? It WILL include an integrated QWERTY keyboard, a modular GPRS/EDGE and possibly a new technology as of yet not released.? It will be "modular" meaning that the carriers can decide how it will be equipped, but it may not be user-replaceable module. "

If this is credible - and I'm inclined to think it is - it makes for an exciting development in the Windows Mobile world. Validation of the Pocket PC Phone Edition by the major seller of Microsoft PDAs?through selling their own product?will definitely make huge waves in the MS PDA Phone market. It would be nice to think that they'd based it on the excellent iPAQ h5550, but that perhaps would be too much to hope for. Biometrics, bluetooth, 802.11b, and a GSM/GPRS (or CDMA) phone? I think we might be waiting a while.

MPx200.org have promised more on Monday. Have a read of the full article here - it's definitely food for thought.