Handheld

Why Trust Techopedia

What Does Handheld Mean?

A handheld is any portable device that can be carried and held in one’s palm. A handheld can be any computing or electronic device that is compact and portable enough to be held and used in one or both hands. A handheld may contain cellular communication, but this category can also include other computing devices.

Techopedia Explains Handheld

A handheld is primarily designed to provide a suite of computing, communication and informational tools in a device about the size of standard palm. Typically, handheld devices are not as powerful as a computer, but modern handhelds increasingly include powerful dual-core processors, RAM, SD storage capacity, an operating system, and native and add-on applications. They are often powered by a dry cell lithium or similar battery. Moreover, these types of devices increasingly use a touch screen interface.

Personal digital assistants (PDA), tablet PCs and portable media players are all considered handheld devices.

Related Terms

Margaret Rouse
Technology Expert
Margaret Rouse
Technology Expert

Margaret is an award-winning technical writer and teacher known for her ability to explain complex technical subjects to a non-technical business audience. Over the past twenty years, her IT definitions have been published by Que in an encyclopedia of technology terms and cited in articles by the New York Times, Time Magazine, USA Today, ZDNet, PC Magazine, and Discovery Magazine. She joined Techopedia in 2011. Margaret's idea of a fun day is helping IT and business professionals learn to speak each other’s highly specialized languages.