OK I admit it I am extremely CHEAP!! I've been waiting to bite on the 900 now Dell has the E72 for $250 (U.S.) . This will be my first Smart Phone, but the lack of iNet on a device I will be dragging around all day is tough. I looking for opinions not attacks, any advice?

E72 is better as on date.

Very different type of devices. Hard to give advice without knowing bit more about what kind of functionality and features are important to you.

Nobody can recommend whats best for you - unless we know you and your habits really, really well.

Having said that, I wouldn't use the N900 as my primary or only phone. (And I say this although I absolutely love the device and think Maemo if the most advanced mobile system ever.)

It's just that as a phone, it's full of compromises. Touch screen instead of real buttons, lacking dozens of features you take for granted in a $50-phone, heavy, big,... No, not as my main phone.

But you know... You may be the person who never needs the lacking features, who prefers a touch screen and who loves to carry big things in the front pockets. So how would my POV help you?

If you could get the E71 in the low 100's, I would actually recommend it over E72.
E71 still has
- best keyboard
- free OVI maps with navigation
- mind-blowing awesome battery life

Thanks for the responses, as for my habits...I LOVE the idea, abilties, potential of the N900, I'm not as intersested in the cell phone aspects of the device. However I would like a "feature rich" organizer, Contacts, calanders, especially reminders is really important too.

But then there is the hole in my wallet....

I went through the same question 4 months ago and went with the N900 because I thought that I was getting on the start of a new OS platform (Maemo) rather than the end of an old one (symbian). I had an e61. The N900 is a compromise, especially with the OS moving to Meego and the delay of the OS upgrade (PR1.2). It works as a phone and computer, but if you want a rock solid phone and a better keyboard, then go with the E72. I might still buy the N900 if I had it all to do over again, but there is definitely compromise on the phone and right now, it is not living up to Nokia's hype. However if PR 1.2 fixes several key items and Meego matures for the N900 (and there is dual boot), the N900 will be a tremendous platform. "If" vs. solid phone and best keyboard.

The N900 is a great device, but the E71/E72 is a more well-rounded device and would generally be considered as "better" by the standards most people would rate a smartphone. Coming from the E71 to the N900, I can say that I could easily recommend the E71 to any one of my friends, family, coworkers, or people on the street without hesitation and without knowing their level of technical experience. I can't say the same for the N900, which I could only recommend to maybe one or two of my friends who are more tech-savvy and adventurous.
N900 = superior web browsing, bigger screen with greater resolution, much more customizable, better for media, much funner for those who like to tinker under the hood
E71/E72= great form factor, best keyboard, easier to use, battery life is awesome, bigger selection of natively supported games and useful apps, better email integration, better GPS navigation