

Dell's Mini 3 smartphone is coming to AT&T. Google wasn't the only company announcing new Android-based devices this week. At this year's Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, several handset and mobile device manufacturers also announced new models and partnerships with mobile carriers for their Android devices, ranging from various mobile phones and tablets, to eBook readers.

Computer manufacturer Dell announced that it has signed a deal with AT&T to carry its Mini 3 Android-based mobile phone. Although Dell is an American company, as of the end of 2009, the Mini 3 smartphone was previously only available in Brazil and China. The deal with AT&T marks Dell's first entry into the US handset market. Following in Dell's footsteps, Lenovo announced its new LePhone handset which will launch in the Chinese market in May of this year. Even though Android 2.1 has been released, reportedly the LePhone will only run version 1.6. Lenovo has yet to confirm if it has any plans to launch the phone in Europe or North America.

In addition to Dell's Mini 3, mobile phone carrier AT&T also confirmed that it would be launching four additional Android devices in the first half of 2010. AT&T is expected to carry other phones from HTC and Motorola. Pricing details and model details, however, have yet to be announced. One likely candidate is Motorola's new BACKFLIP phone which features the company's MOTOBLUR interface. The BACKFLIP features a "reverse-flip" QWERTY keyboard, a 5 MP camera, built-in Wi-Fi and a 3.1-inch screen.



Spring Design's Alex e-reader. HP demonstrated a conceptual model of its Mini Android smartbook. The 10-inch touchscreen device is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, but currently doesn't support multi-touch. NVIDIA was also seen showing off its 7-inch Tegra tablet which can playback 1080p video and will support TV out to a standard HD television.

Spring Design, the company behind the much anticipated Alex e-reader, announced that it would begin shipping its device on the 22nd of February for $399 in the US. The Android-powered Alex e-reader features two displays, one colour and one e-ink, a micro-SD expansion slot, Wi-Fi, built-in 3G and a 624 Mhz processor.

See also:

Google announces Nexus One smartphone, a report from The H.

(crve)