The point is that they were not good enough for the task. For example I had several "smartphones" before my iPhone and really browsing the web was so much of a pain that, if you were near a computer, you'd turn it on wait 5 minutes for it to boot and still get your task done quicker than trying with your phone.
In fact going home to check something on computer (or ringing someone up) was often preferable to using an early smartphone.
Windows mobile didn't solve the web problem before the iPhone, several vendors solved the email problem before the iPhone though, which was easier, but just a small part of the problem.
To be fair, it isn't quite as bad as browsing on a feature phone with optical trackpad. Styli also have enough precision to avoid zooming in when clicking on links.
On the other hand, it's a dreadful browsing experience in practice.
In fact going home to check something on computer (or ringing someone up) was often preferable to using an early smartphone.
Windows mobile didn't solve the web problem before the iPhone, several vendors solved the email problem before the iPhone though, which was easier, but just a small part of the problem.