Cell-Phone Sector Offers Technology Bright Spot

This column was originally published on RealMoney on July 31 at 8:40 a.m. EDT. It's being republished as a bonus for TheStreet.com readers.

One of the more pathetic things I like to do on weekends is watch the Bloomberg weekend wrap-up programs, which are always informative and filled with perspective, the kind of perspective you don't get when you are living moment to moment during the earnings season.

This weekend's program featured an interview with a Texas Instruments ( TXN) executive, and I couldn't help but listen given that the stock of this fine tech company hit a 52-week-low last week.

The interviewer was asking about how cell-phone sales were, with an eye, at least I thought, toward the slowing of that business. The executive reminded the interviewer that there has actually be an acceleration in business for its three main customers, Nokia ( NOK), Sony Ericsson and Motorola ( MOT) and that business had gotten better, not worse.

You know, I very nearly fell out of my chair. I was thinking all week, how come Nokia's acting better and Mototola's starting to ramp and why do I feel that Qualcomm ( QCOM) has bottomed? The answer is a simple one. In a blackened sea of PCs and big-screen TVs and small handhelds, the cell-phone industry looks darned near exciting.

As I looked through the financials of Nokia, Motorola and Qualcomm, I was also struck about how the expectations have been totally taken out of the group and that, even though, they rallied substantially last week, you could have something in tech to, at last, hang your hat on.

Of these, I believe the cheapest may be Nokia, but I like the turn at Motorola, and, I bought more Qualcomm last week for my Action Alerts PLUS charitable trust -- stock that you could consider I sold at $50, because now that company has the lowest bar I know of in tech. At last.

Keep your eyes on this group. It seems like the best place not just to hide, but to actually make money!