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Dell announced that the firm’s Streak 7 Android 2.2-based tablet would be available through T-Mobile and direct from Dell in the next few weeks.
The 7-inch device, similar in size to the Samsung Galaxy Tab, boasts a dual core Nvidia Tegra 2 chipset running at 1GHz, as well as support for T-Mobile’s 3G network. The device is also armed with 802.11n Wi-Fi and dual cameras, a rear-facing 5 megapixel unit and a 1.3 megapixel forward unit.
Rather than the crop of larger Honeycomb devices which are not expected to appear until April, Dell will be making the Streak 7 available much sooner in a move which echos Samsung’s ‘giant smartphone’ approach with the Galaxy Tab.
The Streak 7 will also offer what Dell describe as ‘sharp video calling’ via the supplied Qik Video Chat software either via Wi-Fi or 3G and 4G mobile networks. The device will ship with the pre-Honeycomb Android 2.2, with no word on availability of an upgrade to Android 2.3 Gingerbread.
Dell is also offering a UI modification called Dell Stage with its own set of desktop ‘Stage widgets’ as well as functionality which connections between different Dell devices, mobile and desktop, including the ability to sync photos and video across Stage-equipped devices.
Dell also announced the Dell Venue smartphone, a 4-1-inch AMOLED-equipped phone with an 8-megapixel camera. Again it’s an Android 2.2 based device and will be bundled with the Dell Stage software. The Venue has a ‘curved design’ which seems to be in vogue in the latest smartphones such as units from LG and Samsung.
The Venue will also be available in January and it’s likely to be sold unlocked from Dell direct in addition to any network operators.
