Second leak has Dell Mini 3i fighting iPhone

Dell's US-oriented Android phone will land on the same carrier as the iPhone when it ships, a rumor asserted mid-Tuesday. Unidentified tips from those "familiar with the plans" claim the Mini 3i will be tied to AT&T and should reach the network in early 2010. Talks are reported by the WSJ as underway with other US carriers, though which networks are involved and the amount of progress in negotiations aren't clear.

Some of the details of the phone itself have also been corroborated and suggest the phone will be improved from the 2G-only Chinese version shown this summer. These are said by the paper to involve unspecified "different features," though a previous tip had alluded to a higher-resolution 5-megapixel camera. On AT&T, 3G and Wi-Fi are more likely to render the phone competitive with the iPhone and most other smartphone-class devices.

Neither AT&T, Dell nor Google has agreed to comment on the apparent leak, which would give AT&T one of its earliest Android phones and signal Dell's first phone for the US. Previous rumors had Dell shopping a prototype to carriers early this year but may have been rejected for having a too-similar design.

By Electronista Staff