If there was a theme to last week's CTIA Wireless 2008 show in Las Vegas, it would be, "We're like an iPhone, but better." Several devices were showcased that took a lot of the nice features of the iPhone and adapted it to the mobile carriers' world, including running on faster networks and the ability to access corporate networks.

Slideshow: iPhone clones attack CTIA!

The best-looking (and most clone-like) of the iPhone-like devices was the Samsung Instinct, coming soon to the Sprint EV-DO (Rev. A) network. The device offers GPS navigation, a true HTML Web browser, one-touch access to favorite applications and access to Sprint's TV offering.

The touch screen includes tactile feedback on the display that lets users know their icon has been pressed. And there’s a dedicated voice button that launches calls, text messages, traffic directions, news and search requests. The GPS application, Sprint Navigation, is powered by TeleNav and includes GPS-enabled audio and visual driving directions.

The Visual Voicemail application lets users listen to messages in order of preference, and manage them through tapping the screen. POP3 e-mail is supported, and Sprint says that corporate e-mail connections will be available later for the device. Other features include a 2.0-megapixel digital camera, microSD memory card slot (with up to 8GB of storage capacity) and Bluetooth 2.0 (with stereo profile for music).

The company estimates a June delivery of the device, although pricing and final release dates have not been announced. The Instinct will require activation of a Sprint Everything pricing plan, which offers unlimited wireless data for $69.99 per month. The company is taking pre-orders of the device.

If anything, Sprint and Samsung's creation of an iPhone-like device that runs on the much-speedier EV-DO network makes this appealing. We'll see how true the "true HTML" browsing experience is, but the connection to corporate e-mail should also appeal to business users and IT groups that have been wary of the iPhone.

Other devices I was impressed with:

Click to see: Microvision's SHOW ultra-miniature projector

* Microvision's proof-of-concept SHOW ultra-miniature projector was impressive. The company's pico projector prototype utilizes its PicoP display engine, and the company plans to partner with a device manufacturer to produce the projector, which could allow mobile road warriors the chance to display presentations on a large screen without carrying a bulky projector. The SHOW prototype could display an image from 8 inches to 100 inches (depending on lighting conditions) with 848-by-480-pixel resolution, along with a battery life of about 2.5 hours. The demonstration was impressive, as you could beam the image onto any surface (including the ceiling, or in a corner between two walls), without losing focus on the movie or image that you were displaying.