Bullseye! Exactly so.

I do feel that if Apple had made the Streak and with all of the "one more thing" BS that goes with it then it would have been a roaring success and suddenly 3.5" screens would be objects of derision.

I'm right with you there.

Apple, if nothing else, is an expert at understanding customers and product positioning.

Remember Steve's ramblings of the general wretchedness of the netbook due to its diminutive proportions? It seems that many people 'forgot' about these warnings when the much acclaimed macbook air 11.6" was released, which is essentially just that; perhaps not in processor, but certainly in dimension.

Samsung seems to understand this market, though it seems they use a more metric tact rather than Apple's seeming genuine understanding about how people behave. However, this keen insight, whether derived from surveys or intuition is requisite to being a market leader.

I think the streak, as are most devices, are perfectly adequate for the tasks of a phone/slate/tablet/whatever. It really is a game of inches when we're talking about slate devices. It is certainly not the 'worst product of 2010' or other such nonsense -- not even close. That said, Dell must realize that there are variables besides price that influence people's behaviours, and focus those rather than just releasing something for $49.99 less than the other guy.

How can I mount "MyDocs" under nitdroid, so I can listen to my music ?

totally wrong thread...

yeah... just noticed.... sry...

I also own another Dell product, XPS M2010 20” laptop, which gives me the same joy of ownership as the Streak. So I have no doubting Dell’s capability in making great innovative products when they set their minds to it and give their design talent free rein to innovate.

So the question seems to be whether they actually want to do it or not.

I recall Michael Dell saying something to the effect that these devices are trivial in the scale of Dell’s operations so possibly this is why their commitment is so variable. Anyway, the company remains a bit of a puzzle to me.

Anyone seen the PlayStation NGP knock-off?
It's called the iReadyGo.

It has a 1GHz-Cortex-A8 processor (something like S5PV210/i.mx51/rk2918), 512MB RAM, Android Froyo, Full-gaming-pad (sans L2/R2 buttons), 5" TFT WVGA screen, Capacitive multitouch, 5MP/720p camera, LED-flahlight, HDMI-out, USB-port.


http://www.engadget.com/2011/05/05/k...y-shows-up-in/

Perhaps they could make a ver-2 of the iRG?
- Four shoulder buttons
- Fix the software bugs (CM7 anyone?)
- Have it Quadband GSM + 3G (compatible for 85% of the world)
- Build with better materials like Aluminium/textured-plastic (ASUS Transformer)
- Have the usual features (Bluetooth, GPS, digital compass, gyro, frontcam, microSD)
- Perhaps decrease the size to something like 4" so it is more pocketable
- Use a better quality (non-gloss) screen, perhaps a cheap/decent SuperLCD
- Use a better internals (Tegra2, 1GB RAM, 4BG NAND) for futureproof/better performance/Tegra Zone etc

Then it could be something like the ultimate-handheld (until NGP lands anyway), just think:
>100,000 Android Apps.
>1,000,000 Retro games (emulated).
>1,000,000 DOS, PSX, N64, DS, GBA games.
>>4,000,000 Flash games.
+ theres a Nintendo DS (not 3DS/DSi) emulator out now
+ the Dreamcast emulator is in development (requires dualcore?)

That's actually an enticing system for the form factor, and an OS that has great emulator support, and good native gaming support. As time goes on, native gaming support is improving, so that's encouraging.

But I agree with you re: specs. This thing needs to have very high specs to even be considered worthwhile with tomorrows games -- unless your goal is to run emulators all day, in which case it's probably fine.

I hope the battery life wasn't a secondary concern.... This is little different than an Android phone, in a larger form factor, so battery life should be at least as good.

Dell seems to capitalize on the entry-level mid-range PC market. They're geared for that, and I think it translates to their other devices as well. They are also exceptionally good at this.

But they most certainly have been interested in the high-end market, though lacking the wherewithal to make an effective dent. Remember the Adamo? Quite a beautiful system by anyone's guess, but they failed in 2 major ways. 1) The system was way too overpriced, 2) The system was way too underpowered (lacking dedicated GPU). The PC was seemingly positioned poorly, as an art-fixture/status-symbol and it wasn't received well and subsequently scrapped. My take: if they wanted a leading device, they should have learned from their mistakes and tried again.

I think they can do it, will they remains unknown.

I've not tried the XPS personally, but I have heard good things.

Off topic:

I have the Dell Inspiron 1545, and I'm less happy with this device. Its too large (15"), thick, and heavy for my tastes, and the battery life is quite pitiful in linux (~3 hours). Additionally, it lacks a decent GPU (intel integrated GMA), and the screen quality is low (contrast, whites, viewing angles). The air intake on the bottom also irks me and makes it difficult to position and use. It was given as a gift, and I'm cheap beyond belief, so I would rather hold on to this, than receiving the marginal benefits of buying a slightly better system.

I'm not sure where I'm going for my next system, but something tells me that it will be running Android (with Ubuntu integrated -- a must for me) and an competent ARM SoC at the helm. I really dig form factor and battery life, and next gen SoCs will offer very thin/light computers with no fans and tremendous battery life. Something like the Asus Transformer with a Cortex A15 would be smashing.

I'm forgoing a PC purchase this year exclusively because of this. I may be disappointed, but I'm willing to wait and see.