Dell prepares Streak for US launch

Dell's Streak will see new challenges as it moves into the US

Dell has set 13 August as the full public release date for its much-anticipated Streak tablet in the US, with pre-orders opening a day earlier.

AT&T will act as the mobile voice and wireless broadband carrier for the device, which will cost $299.99 (£190) when purchased with a two-year contract, or $549.99 (£350) without a contract.

Dell departed from the conventional launch strategy earlier this year when it released the tablet to European customers first with O2 as the carrier.

Maribel Lopez, principal analyst at Lopez Research, told V3.co.uk that the Streak could encounter problems in the US with pricing and choice of carrier.

AT&T has been much maligned for its shoddy network performance and limited reach, a reputation that could dog the Streak.

"That will limit its potential. Having said that, there are not scads of carriers to put this device on," Lopez said.

The Android-based tablet has been described as a hybrid between a conventional smartphone and a tablet PC, and Lopez categorised it as a "tweener".

"If Dell wants the device to be a success it has to anchor it as something," she said. "It is not very good as a phone because it's huge, but it seems like it would be great as a media device."

Ultimately, Lopez sees the Streak as the beginning of a larger venture into the handset market for Dell.

The analyst does not see the device as a spectacular seller, but rather as the first step towards crafting an offering for the next generation of handhelds.