Zach SpearCiting sources familiar with Dell's plans, the financial paper reported the Round Rock, Texas-based company has an office in the Chicago area where a group of engineers have been working on the phone "for more than a year."
"They produced prototypes built on Google Inc.'s Android operating system and Microsoft's Windows Mobile software," said the report.
One model has a touchscreen with no physical keyboard, like the iPhone. Â Another is a slider-style phone with a keypad that slides out from beneath the screen, like the Pre. Â The report also notes Dell's recent hiring of two former Motorola employees.
"We haven't committed to anything," a Dell spokesman told the Journal, which concluded Dell hasn't finalized its plans and could still give up the effort without releasing a device.
Meanwhile, Kaufman Brothers' analyst Shaw Wu wrote in a research note released to clients today that the news is consistent with his supply chain checks and his own comments from earlier this month, predicting an entrance into the cell phone market for Dell as soon as mid-February.
Dell might make its announcement at the GSMA Mobile World Congress event (formerly 3GSM) in Barcelona, Wu said.
"We believe it makes sense for Dell and other PC makers to pursue more aggressive strategies in the smart phone space," Wu wrote. Â "We believe smart phones are moving upstream into the notebook space. Â Dell is the latest PC vendor to enter the market...So far, only Apple has made material inroads."
The analyst reiterated his warning that Dell will need to stand out from the crowded market in order to succeed, recommending the company use its own operating system because "most of the other players use the same software, including Windows Mobile, Symbian, and/or Google Android, leaving little room for innovation."
Dell, like Research In Motion's BlackBerry Storm and the anticipated yet unreleased Palm Pre, faces a formidable opponent in the iPhone 3G. Â Last quarter saw the Apple device outsell the Storm four-to-one.
Since going on sale last summer, the iPhone 3G has sold more than 4.3 million units in the United States. Â Recent signs also point to a major update to the iPhone in June, possibly making it that much more difficult for any competitor to gain headway in the sector.
The Wall Street Journal also reported Hewlett-Packard is selling phones in Europe with an automatic backup feature, while Acer is planning to join Lenovo in the smartphone marketplace as well. Â Together, the iPhone and BlackBerry control 70% of the U.S. market.
This is a critical time for Dell to find a "hit", as the company is losing PC market share, including a 0.9 percent year-over-year decline last quarter. Â Shares of the company's stock have fallen 60 percent since August.
For more information on Dell's rumored smartphone and how the company is evolving, please refer to AppleInsider's previous report.
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47 Comments
They should abandon this and continue doing what they're average at;
Assembling dirt cheap PC parts (intellectually created by other people) and designing nasty plastic cases (aesthetically mimicking the designs of others) to put them in.
Dell is a decade to late to start playing 'boutique electronics manufacturer'
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What's funnier, the idea of Dell making hardware that can compete with the iPhone, or the idea of them building a competitive OS from scratch?
It is a waste of time for Dell to enter the market. They don't have much going for them beyond desktops, laptops, and servers. If they really want in on the market they should merge with Motorola for instant marketshare and credibility.
They should abandon this and continue doing what they're average at;
Assembling dirt cheap PC parts (intellectually created by other people) and designing nasty plastic cases (aesthetically mimicking the designs of others) to put them in.
Dell is a decade to late to start playing 'boutique electronics manufacturer'
Maybe their strategy is to assemble dirt-cheap phones using "dirt-free" android. In the new economy, this might work fairly well, though it would occupy a mostly different market space from the iPhone.
I do agree that an attempt to go head to head with Apple is a fool's errand just about anybody, but for Dell especially so.
It is a waste of time for Dell to enter the market. They don't have much going for them beyond desktops, laptops, and servers. If they really want in on the market they should merge with Motorola for instant marketshare and credibility.
I disagree. As much as I think most Dell products are crap, they sell quite well overall so I guess people either like crap or disagree with the idea that Dell only makes crap.
If the computer market is moving to a new, smaller, mobile form factor, possibly even a new platform as many are supposing lately, then Dell needs to be in that market to survive. To stay in position as the maker of what are possibly soon to be "old fashioned" desktops means gradual obsolescence.
One could argue that because they are a crap company they will ultimately fail at this new segment and for that reason shouldn't even try, but from their point of view it makes sense. They don't themselves believe that they are crap computer makers and probably think their chances are good.