Dell's Streak may look like a huge smartphone, but its form factor means it's a hybrid device that sits somewhere between a largish touchscreen phone like the HTC Desire and Apple's iPad tablet.
Read our comprehensive Dell Streak review.
Naturally, comparisons to the iPad are inevitable — the Dell Streak is the first of many tablet devices that will be released this year, aiming to steal sales from Apple. While it has a much smaller footprint than the iPad, the Streak will be used in a similar manner: as a media consumption device that's ideal for browsing the Web, viewing multimedia and reading books. Like the iPad, the Dell Streak is not a meant to be a complete netbook or notebook replacement.
With this in mind, how does the Dell Streak stack up against the Apple iPad?
| Feature | Apple iPad | Dell Streak |
|---|---|---|
| Operating system (OS) | Apple iOS 3.2 (upgradeable to 4) | Google Android 1.6 (upgradeable to 2.2) |
| Display technology | Capacitive LED-backlit IPS | Capacitive TFT |
| Display resolution | 1024x768 pixels | 480x800 pixels |
| Multitouch | Yes | Yes |
| Camera | None | 5 megapixels, dual LED flash, autofocus, geotagging, face and smile detection |
| FM radio | No | No |
| GPS | Yes (Wi-Fi + 3G models) | Yes |
| Internal memory | 16GB, 32GB or 64GB | 16GB |
| Expandable memory | No | microSD card slot |
| Dimensions | 242.8 x 189.7 x13.4mm | 152.9 x 79.1 x 10 mm |
| Weight | 730g (Wi-Fi + 3G models) | 220g |
| Application store | Apple App Store | Google Android Market |
| Processor | Apple A4 | Qualcomm Snapdragon (1GHz) |
| 3G networks | HSDPA 850/1900/2100 | HSDPA 900/2100 |
| Wi-Fi | 802.11a/b/g/n | 802.11b/g |
| Bluetooth | 2.1 with A2DP | 2.0 with A2DP |
| Quoted talk time | N/A | Up to 600min |
| Quoted standby time | Up to one month | Up to 400 hours |
| Adobe Flash support | No | No (Yes after 2.2 upgrade) |
The Dell Streak offers greater customisation options than the iPad — whether it's changing themes, backgrounds or the interface's entire look and feel, Google Android is definitely far more flexible and open than the iOS platform used by the iPad. Of course you can jailbreak the iPad, just like the iPhone, but this will void your warranty.
The iPad's display uses IPS technology, while the Dell Streak boasts a standard, capacitive TFT touchscreen. Both displays are excellent at rendering text, making reading and browsing the Web a highlight, but the larger size of the iPad obviously scores extra points. On the other hand, the Dell Streak is far more pocketable and easier to carry around than the iPad. You would be hard pressed squeezing the Streak into the pocket of skinny leg jeans, and it would be uncomfortable in normal pants when walking up stairs, but generally the Streak should fit snugly inside most suit jacket pockets.
The iPad is an excellent multimedia device, aside from the lack of flash and built-in camera. Videos look superb on the large screen, while Web pages render superbly. However, the Dell Streak is far more flexible; you can transfer files by dragging and dropping them and you don't need to run iTunes. There are a number of third-party media player applications designed for the Android platform to boost the tablet's music and video playback capabilities.
The Dell Streak also makes phone calls. At 15cm wide, you wouldn't want to be holding it up to your ear all the time, but it is reasonably small for a tablet and is stunningly thin for a device this size. The Streak is just slightly thicker than Apple's iPhone 4, which measures just 9.3mm thick.
What do you think about the Dell Streak and the Apple iPad? Tell us in the comments below!
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