At one time Dell was on top of the world, but then again, so was their spouse, Microsoft. Then they lost the #1 spot to HP at top PC maker, then the #2 spot to Lenovo. They now snuggle up again with Microsoft, this time though in hopes of finding greener pastures in the tablet market.
When was the last time you heard it said by yourself or an associate, “Wow. Have you seen that new Dell Android device!? I’ve got to have it.” Well, you surely won’t hear that that anytime soon. Dell is officially out of out the Android business, at least for now.
At the Dell World Conference currently being held, the Head of Dell’s Consumer Business affirmed that “It’s a content play with Android. Amazon is selling books and Google is making it up with search. So far we couldn’t find a way to build a business on Android.”
The Android war is one in which the marketshare of much larger competitors such as Dell is eaten away at by the ‘nibbles and bites’ by the smaller ‘Android’ competition. A war in which much smaller competitors are actually doing well, but then again making 10 million per year on a products isn’t exactly a happy figure for Dell, as it would be for, let’s say, a ‘Mom & Pop’s Android Business’. So Dell has simply put an end to their struggle in the Android war it seems.
Dells’ latest plan? According to a Forbes report: “Dell’s new Mobile Strategy: Windows tablets!“ Since Dell can’t find a way to profit from Android in ways they’d like, Dell has once again decided to snuggle up close to Microsoft in hopes to ride the coat tails of the OS makers latest development.
Dell’s counting on tablets may be it’s best bet, because at the moment, Windows 8 phones surely aren’t very lucrative. Microsoft has already seen its share of trouble with Windows8 and it hasn’t even left Q1 of its sales figures. In some countries such as Sweeden, Nokia and Windows 8 are having a swell time as the Lumia 820 & 920’s are in high demand, but overall that’s not the case. In a separate Forbes article Pacific Crest analyst James Faucette is quoted as saying, “Our sell-through checks in North America and Western Europe indicate sales volumes [of Windows 8 smartphoens] are quite low, while initial shipment volumes are similarly low.”
Microsoft Surface is Microsoft’s own flagship tablet, but even with regards to that many say that, “Surface is likely to represent a tiny fraction of overall Windows 8 sales, but it’s the Windows 8 hero device”, according to Time Magazine.
So can Windows 8 tablets actually be the key to Dell’s rebound? We suppose we just have to wait and see.