One of my ongoing research projects of late has been looking for companies that fit into the smartphone trend that Jim Cramer has written about several times this year.

Mobile computing is going to be a powerful social and economic trend in the years ahead, and a lot of money will be made in this space. Jim has posted his index of stocks on the site before, but most of those are simply too expensive for me to even consider buying. As a deep-value investor, I find that the idea of paying those multiples of earnings and assets gives me a case of the cold sweats. I simply cannot do it.

As a result, I spend some time each week running scans to find cheap technology stocks that fit fit my investing criteria and are in a position to ride the smartphone wave. Some, like Audiovox, do not fit directly into the smartphone world but are still involved in mobile and electronic communications. I like and own this stock. Mobile entertainment and gaming will grow almost as fast as the phone market, and the company is heavily involved in those areas. At 60% of tangible book value and half the stock price in cash, it is a too-cheap-not-to-own stock in my opinion.

I have recently come across a few other stocks that are going on the watch list to buy on weakness. The first is Advance Analogic Technologies. The company makes power-management semiconductors used to regulate power usage in mobile devices including cell-phones. Its products are meant to extend battery life and allow devices to be smaller and lighter in design. In addition to cell-phones, its chips are used in electronic gaming and computing. One of its chip designs is used for panel backlighting in the fast-growing HDTV marketplace as well.

The company recently reported results for the last quarter, and revenue growth was strong, up 14% sequentially to a little over $26 million. Some 68% of sales were from chips to provide display and lighting in cell-phones and other products, and 14% was from voltage management chips. Although battery management is small segment for the company at just 6% of revenue, sales did grow 60% in that product line for the quarter. Samsung and LG were the largest customers for the fabless semiconductor company during the third quarter.

The shares is almost cheap enough to be must-own. The stock trades a little bit above tangible book value. The good news here is that cash on the balance sheet equals almost 80% of the market cap. The company also has a buyback plan in place and has repurchased $3 million of shares so far in 2009. The company has no debt and could easily become a net cash stock in a broad market decline.

O2Micro International also provides chips that mange battery supply and provides lighting for electronics devices including cell-phones. It also makes Internet security products. The company is something of an innovator in its markets with an inventory of over 12,000 patents already granted and 15,000 patent applications pending. The company is also a fabless manufacturer and is based in the Cayman Islands.

The stock is cheap on the numbers. The shares trade at 90% of tangible book value. O2 is also cash-rich, with $115 million on the books. That amounts to a little over 70% of the total market capitalization. The company has publicly said that it intends to target the fast-growing mobile smartphone business, and it will become a net buy if the price sinks closer to the cash level.

Sycamore Networks is an old favorite that has drifted back onto my radar screen. The company makes optical networking devices for both fixed-line and mobile telecommunication companies. The company has had a dismal 2009 with revenue down over 40%. Sycamore has struggled to compete as the merger wave in telecom has dried up the list of potential customers. The company has let go 30% of its workforce in cost-controlling efforts so far this year.

Needless to say, the stock is cheap. The company currently has cash and investments of $927 million, or $3.15 per share which is greater than the current stock price of $2.85 a share. In spite of the operating difficulties at the company, it is not burning cash on an annual basis. The cash position alone makes the company too cheap not to own.

The cash as well as existing technologies and customer relationships could easily make the company an acquisition target. If it remains a stand-alone company, the need for bandwidth will eventually allow sales and profits to recover, and the stock should move higher. In the meantime, the cash provides a large margin of safety. I have owned this stock before and will own it again by the end of today.

The smartphone and mobile computing trend is in place and will be for a decade or more. If you look hard enough, even deep-value investors can get into the trade and profit from what may well be the fastest-growing segment of the technology market.