Less than a year after the debut of Dell’s Streak 7 Android tablet, the company is apparently discontinuing the device. The tablet was released in February as a replacement for the company’s Streak 5 tablet, which was discontinued in August amid rumors that its hardware would not be compatible with the latest version of Google’s Android operating system. The Streak 5 had also not been on the market for a full year.
The Streak 7, which ran on T-Mobile’s data network, debuted in February to lackluster reviews. Electronista’s review of the tablet compared it somewhat favorably to the Galaxy Tab, but ultimately found it did not stand out from the oversaturated Android tablet market. Similarly, Engadget found the device to be no great improvement over the Streak 5, and recommended would-be buyers wait until the inevitable wave of Android 3.0 tablets, which came later in the year.
The removal of the 7” Streak 7 signals Dell’s exit from the Android tablet market in the US, at least for the time being. This limits Dell’s presence in the mobile market to its Venue line of mobile phones – one Android based, one Windows Phone based – and the Inspiron Duo, a sort of netbook/tablet hybrid device.
How long Dell will remain absent from the US tablet market is unclear, however. The company currently has a 10” Android tablet, the Streak 10 Pro, on the market in China, where it launched this year. Though there are rumors of a 2012 US release for the device, Dell has not made any statements on the subject as yet. However, the fact that each of the company’s previous two tablets were pulled from US markets after less than a year suggests that the company may not be in a hurry to dip its toe into these waters again in the near future.
What do you think? Should Dell stay out of the tablet market, or should they keep trying until they get it right? Let us know in the comments.