Hasta La Gadget!

We’ve just learned at D8 today that Dell will be offering the Streak to US customers direct from its website — unlocked — starting next month for $500. That’s later than the June 4 date that UK customers will be enjoying, but it’s earlier than it could’ve been — Dell had merely been giving “later this Summer” guidance previously. More on this as it develops!

Dell Streak: $500 unlocked in US, available next month originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 02 Jun 2010 17:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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So we’ve been hearing rumors about the Dell Streak being some kind of a rugged bad boy. Word is, the Gorilla Glass display on this 5-inch slate is good enough to withstand pretty much anything a human would care to throw its way. Them’s fighting words where we come from, so we did the only thing a responsible tech blog can do — we put them to the test. Should you be brave enough to follow us after the break, you’ll come upon our best efforts to destroy our own Streak prototype, albeit with little success. Then again, the end result might be less important than the journey there, which is not to be missed.

Continue reading Dell Streak’s Gorilla Glass screen: torture tested for your amusement (video)

Dell Streak’s Gorilla Glass screen: torture tested for your amusement (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 29 May 2010 15:10:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Let’s all feign surprise now, as Dell has just gone official with its worst kept, though perhaps sexiest, secret ever. The former Mini 5 has been christened the Streak and is launching at the beginning of next month. The UK will be getting the first bite at this cherry, with the rest of Europe following soon thereafter and the US a disappointingly distant third with a launch “later this summer.” If you’ve been living under a (Round) Rock, this is Dell’s big foray into the smartphone market: a 5-inch supersized Android handset, housing a 1GHz Snapdragon, a 5 megapixel cam, 16GB of built-in memory (expandable to 48GB via MicroSD) and a customized UI. Curiously, Dell’s opting to market the Streak as “the ultimate portable tablet pc” and would prefer that this device, albeit fully equipped to carry out cellular calls like a phone, not be called a smartphone.

We got a chance to play with it during a briefing in London recently, and frankly, aside from the snazzier paintjob, there’s nothing new to report. Just like the prototype unit we’ve previewed to exhaustion, the device on hand was running Android 1.6 and Dell’s skinning team hadn’t yet laid on the goodies that we’ve been promised. The battery is the same 1,530mAh cell as before, and we even managed to get the browser to crash in the exact same fashion that our own Streak exhibits on occasion. Now that’s consistency. We’re not being told the specific Android version that the Streak will ship with, but a couple of flavors are being mulled over right now. Till we get more info, we suggest sitting back, relaxing, and perusing the gallery below for the roaring red number that’s currently on show. It won’t be available at launch — you can have any color so long as it’s black — but “a range of colors and designs” will swiftly follow to sate any aesthetic concerns. Video and full press release after the break.

Update: The Carphone Warehouse listing for the Streak shows Android 1.6 as the OS with an “OTA upgrade available soon.” Pair that with word direct from Dell that Android 2.2 and Flash 10.1 are coming “later this year,” and you can connect your own dots [Thanks, Azza].

Update 2: O2’s website now has a precise date for us: June 4.

Continue reading Dell Streak official: exclusive to O2 UK in early June

Dell Streak official: exclusive to O2 UK in early June originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 25 May 2010 05:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Dell is inching closer to the release of its first tablet, the Mini 5 aka ‘Streak’. The device will debut on AT&T in “late summer,” company CEO Michael Dell said at a conference.

And for once, Europe will get a gadget ahead of the U.S., as the Streak will launch on O2 Telefonica.

The Sony PlayStation Portable-sized Streak isn’t directly an iPad competitor. The Streak has a 5-inch capacitive touchscreen, a 5-megapixel camera on the back, a separate front-facing camera that can be used for video conferencing, a standard 3.5mm headphone jack, Wi-Fi and 3G connectivity and a Qualcomm Snapdragon 1-GHz processor.

It will run the latest version of Google’s Android operating system, version 2.0 or higher. But instead of just processing data, Dell hopes to offer a SIM card option so users can make phone calls through the device. Dell hasn’t commented on pricing for the device.

At this point, Dell’s tablet seems the first real shot against the Apple’s iPad. Dell rival HP’s efforts with its ‘Slate’ tablet has been mired in uncertainty since the company’s acquisition of smartphone maker Palm. Reports suggest that HP may re-work its tablet to run Palm webOS operating system, instead of Windows 7. HP has declined to comment on what it calls as “rumor and speculation.”

See Also:

• Dell’s Tablet Aims to Stick It to Apple’s iPad
• Why 2010 Will Be the Year of the Tablet
• Gallery: 8 Tablets That Aren’t Made by Apple
• HP Offers Another Peek at its Tablet, Specs Leaked?
• HP Slate Could Get a Makeover With Palm’s WebOS

Photo: Dell Mini 5 (ndevil/Flickr)

Continue reading Dell Sparta and Athens netbooks, Looking Glass Pro and Streak variants teased in Android roadmap

Dell Sparta and Athens netbooks, Looking Glass Pro and Streak variants teased in Android roadmap originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 25 Apr 2010 10:47:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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