Asus is calling its new P565 smartphone the "fastest business PDA phone in the world."

It's too early to check that claim and the phone's not available yet for testing - but when has that stopped a company from bragging? The Asus P565 does indeed have some impressive specs with an 800MHz Marvell processor. That should give the Windows Mobile OS-based smartphone ample power to multitask a number of Microsoft Mobile Office apps at the same time.

The 2.8-inch 480 x 640 touchscreen is a decent size for navigating the Glide (iPhone-like) touch interface, which runs Windows Mobile 6.1 OS. Given the amount of wasted space on the P565's front, however, I'd like to see a larger display.

The HSDPA 3G connection speed is 3.6Mb/s. That certain isn't the world's fastest, given Europe's rapidly movement toward 7.2Mb/s and higher. Asus says standby time is 250-300 hours, and talk time is 3 hours (both with 3G).

Styling is okay, but the P565 is no head-turner. One nice touch is the black synthetic leather lining the battery lid, which Asus says commands "instant respect and attention." So that's all it takes?