Last week Dell released a short teaser video for their upcoming Dell Inspiron Duo tablet, which should hit the market by the end of the year.
Obviously, Dell faces the same challenge that every tablet has faced since the iPad was launched. They are trying to not only separate themselves from Apple's hugely popular tablet, but from the sea of other tablet that have dominated technology headlines in recent months.
And what is Dell bringing to the table?
For starters, the Inspiron Duo sports a full QWERTY keyboard in addition to the standard tablet touchscreen. And to get to that keyboard, the Inspiron Duo has a really cool flip lid that turns the touchscreen 180 degress. So what you end up with is a combination tablet/netbook. It's hard to explain, so I recommend checking out the video for yourself.
The number one question facing technology developers today concerns multifunctional capabilities like this. Do people want a device that does a little bit of everything, or a device that does one thing really well?
The prime example is the tablet vs. e-reader debate. Many feared that the iPad would kill off the Kindle because it could do a lot more in addition to functioning as an e-reader. However, despite a very successful tablet release by Apple, the Kindle is still going strong as well.
Given the success of both product categories, I think that, assuming the Inspiron Duo performs well as both a tablet and netbook, it has a real chance to gain ground in this very competitive tablet market.
