14 DAY TRIAL // Now that Dell has decided to abandon the smartphone industry, the company has to fill the blank with something else, and, naturally, tablets are at the top of that list, like they are for everyone else on the laptop market nowadays.
Dell's choice to back out of the smartphone market wasn't too shocking, but the decision to work heavily on tablets was even less so.
For one, every other mobile PC maker out there is adjusting its plans in such a way that tablets have an important spot.
Another reason is Microsoft's Windows 8 operating system. While it hasn't yet taken off for real, the software did have a better start than Windows Vista.
Windows RT will be used more in media tablets, based on ARM platforms like NVIDIA Tegra, Qualcomm Snapdragon and Samsung Exynos.
Dell is bound to continue releasing Tegra devices. When it said that its new mobile strategy is centered on tablets, it couldn't exactly mean much else.
It seems as though Dell is glad for the opportunity to leave Android behind, at least in part.
The company tried to make Google's OS a major part of its business, but it didn't manage it in the end, despite using Android in Streak, Aero, Thunder and so many other product lines.
“It’s a content play with Android. Amazon is selling books and Google is making it up with search. So far we couldn’t find a way to build a business on Android,” said Jeff Clarke, the head of Dell’s consumer business.
Nevertheless, Dell will continue developing Android-loaded consumer electronics devices, as there is still enough of a market for them.
“It doesn’t mean we’re not looking at Android. You should come and see what’s in our labs,” Clarke said.
Overall, Dell's new direction is quite different from the one implied by previous reports about a supposed attachment to Windows 7.