Dell Streak 7 deals & review

Dell was one of the first manufacturers to get into the touchscreen tablet craze that kicked off after the launch of the Apple iPad in 2010. Their first offering, the Dell Streak (now sometimes referred to as the Dell Streak 5), caused some confusion due to its relatively small screen. At 5" many onlookers were unsure as to whether the device was a large smartphone or a small tablet.

There is less confusion to be had with the Streak 7 which, with a 7" screen, is more clearly identifiable as a tablet. Its slightly more petite screen (compared to bigger devices like the iPad and HP Slate) places it into a similar size range as the Samsung Galaxy Tab, which has so far been one of the most popular touchscreen tablets to go on sale.

The Galaxy Tab runs on Google Android despite Google insisting that the OS was meant for smartphones and had not been designed with tablets in mind. Like the Galaxy Tab the Streak 7 is initially available with Android Froyo (2.2) but, unlike Samsung´s offering, the Dell Streak 7 is upgradeable to Android Honeycomb (3.0). This is the first version of Google Android which has been designed specifically with tablet use in mind. The compatibility with Honeycomb is evident from the inclusion of a Tegra 2 dual core processor, which is a basic hardware requirement of Android 3.0.

The Streak 7 is designed to be compatible with 4G use but the UK will not have any 4G networks in place until at least 2012. In the meantime there is 3G and Wi-Fi to enjoy for all web connectivity purposes. The Dell Streak 7 also comes with 16GB internal storage space as well as two cameras, a 5 megapixel main camera and a 1.3 megapixel front facing camera for video calling. Qik Video Chat software has been included as a standard installation for Dell Streak 7 users and the device also comes preloaded with Dell Stage, providing quick access to music, video and TV content that can be accessed from any device running the software.

Dell also has the Dell Streak 10 up its sleeve which will feature a similar design but with a larger 10" screen. Due to this the Dell Streak 7 falls in between the earlier Dell Streak 5 and the upcoming Dell Streak 10, but certainly outperforms the Dell Streak 5 in terms of processing power and software.