At last week's Networld+Interop show in Las Vegas, I was honored to be the moderator for wireless conference session titled "Beyond the Cell Phone: Mobile Communicators." At the session, we rounded up eight vendors of mobile devices to show off their latest devices and expound on the future of mobile communications and devices.

Here's a quick roundup of some of the devices that were shown off, along with some other tidbits I picked up from the session:

Representatives from OQO and Vulcan (http://www.flipstartpc.com) showed off their respective "ultra-personal computer" devices that can run Windows XP applications on a form factor that looks like a cross between a large PDA and a miniature laptop (yes, even smaller than an ultra-light, ultra-portable notebook).

OQO takes the approach of a PDA that has Windows XP, while Vulcan's FlipStart PC - launched at this year's Demo show - has a clamshell design that the user flips open to operate like a tiny laptop.

Both devices are impressive, and they have the right number of ports for what mobile workers want to do with a device. In fact, the OQO has integrated functions like an Ethernet port and an extra USB port into its docking cable - a very cool design decision.

For the first time, I'm actually convinced that most mobile workers will be able to leave their heavier notebooks behind and use one of these devices. Wireless connectivity is handled through 802.11b wireless LAN connections, or through Bluetooth (via a Bluetooth phone, a user can get wide-area connections).

Other companies showing at the session included PalmOne and Sprint, which showed the crowd the latest capabilities of the Treo 600 smart phone, one of the most popular "converged devices" that merges PDA functionality on the Palm OS with a cell phone.

Research in Motion showed off the latest color BlackBerry handheld and revealed that the next version of the BlackBerry OS would be able to be configured and synchronized completely over-the-air, eliminating the need for cradle synchronization.

Meanwhile, Sierra Wireless talked about its Voq professional phone, which uses the Windows Mobile Smartphone OS and has a design that lets users flip open a keypad for e-mail usage.

Nokia was also at the session showing off the newest 9500 Communicator (cell phone and PDA/office application device), while Digit Wireless talked about its Fastap keypad system that aims to improve text input on cell phones (alphabet keys are raised above the numeric keypad so typing messages on a phone becomes much faster).