Dell is readying a line of Android products, the computer maker said this week, which will include no fewer than four phones. The Android handsets will range from the budget-minded Aero to the Thunder superphone, which includes everything you’d expect in a high-end phone, plus a custom Hulu app. The Android line-up will also feature a 5-inch tablet dubbed the Streak. Dell plans to launch a larger model — the Looking Glass — with Nvidia Tegra 2 technology later in the year.
In the meantime, another 7-inch tablet running Android was unveiled. Due out in July, the Cruz Tablet , which is being produced by PC maker Velocity Micro, will have Android 2.1 running the show and a web browser with full Flash 10.1 support; memory expansion will be possible through USB and SD cards. While tablets running Android aren’t able to interact with the official Android Market, Velocity Micro says there will be a “Cruz Market” for distributing apps.
Also this week, an enterprising individual was able to install Android on the iPhone. The hacked device works as a regular Android phone, yet retains the ability to boot into the iPhone OS — though the Google OS on the Apple device was said to be “a bit buggy and unstable.”
The Android products are coming left and right. The new Dell lineup look rather amazing and the wide choice in tablet sizes might actually make tablets usable for the masses. I guess Google had to finally give in and let Android run wild on all types of hardware. They may have been thinking that Android wouldn’t leave the phone market but you have to run with what’s hot and Android is getting hotter all the time. It’s great that there is finally a “major” Open Source OS for the consumer market, hope that translates into the desktop arena.
I don’t think that tablets become “usable for the masses” simple because new hardware has emerged. If it was all about the right hardware tablets would have taken off already. I’ve seen some beautiful ones. The consumer wants utility. Only geeks sit around staring at their hardware. A pet rock is still a rock.
The Dell Flash Android 2.2 phone is beautiful!
Only thing Google is good at is search and I think they should stick to that and learn to treat their adwords customers right. Google is run by arrogant phds and not by savvy street smart college dropouts. Google will see themselves fall flat on their face.
And if the consumer cared about open source operating systems HP or Dell would have been able to corner the market with desktop Linux a while ago. Simple slap Ubuntu onto a Sony VIAO and watch consumers buy them. Wait! That never happened. Yeah. Open source is not something consumer understand or give a hoot again.
[...] Android This Week: Dell Readies a Line; the Cruz Tablet Is Unveiled; iPhone Gets Android [...]