Google, Dell teaming up on cellphone?

Both Google and Dell are collaborating on a handset, says a new claim by ad magazine MarketingWeek. Reportedly contacting "senior industry sources," the publication believes that the two firms will announce a phone as soon as the Mobile World Congress show in mid-February. Few details are available of the purported development, though the device would most likely be powered by Google's Linux-based Android mobile operating system and may serve as a vehicle for promoting the software to other handset makers.

Insiders at Google have allegedly denied any near-term announcements. Nonetheless, previous high-profile reports have alluded to Dell's return to smartphones in the near future, with former Motorola mobile chief Ron Garriques said to be spearheading the revival of handhelds at Dell following the slow death of the Axim PDA.

The move may also reflect an increasing shift away from dependence on Microsoft operating systems. Dell began offering home computers with Linux as of last year and would be making a similar switch with its first smartphone. The Axim was previously driven by Windows Mobile and its PocketPC ancestor.

Filed under: gadgets
Other story tags: Google, Linux, Dell, Windows Mobile, Android, Axim