I have been shopping for a new phone for a while & kind of had my eye on a Dell Venue (Android). Does anyone here have 1 & can provide an opinion?

It used to be $99 w/ a 2 year contract & $499 unlocked but prices have been slashed to $0.99 w/ a 2 year contract & $299 unlocked.

Thanks!

 

I would avoid Dell Android phones simply because update support is very minimal. Unfortunately, there just aren't that many Dell Android users which makes the updates not as critical for Dell to push. With that said, if you don't care for future updates, then by all means get a Dell Android device. XDA has a copy of their Stage Launcher which you can use in other Android devices as well. I haven't tried it but it doesn't really look that great.

 

Android Approved by Pentagon for DOD Usage
Major SetBack for iPhone

The Pentagon has approved a version of Android running on Dell hardware to be used by DoD officials, along with the BlackBerry. The approval of Android by the DoD is a major setback for Apple's iPhone.

This doesn't mean that DoD employees can use any Android phone. The Pentagon has approved only Dell's hardware running Android 2.2. Interestingly Dell recently discontinued its Streak phone which runs Android 2.2. Dell is now offering Dell Venue which runs on Android 2.2. So, this is the phone which DoD employees can use.

Why the DoD chose Android?
The reason was simple: open source. Starts & Stripes repots, “Android, developed by Google and other companies, is open source software meaning it can be easily configured by uses – including DOD tech whizzes who want to install security measures.”

The Army is already doing widespread testing of prototype smartphone-like devices for use in combat, These devices could change the Army's tactics, reports Stars & Strips.

iOS has not been approved probably due to Apple's tight control over the platform.

Why Governments Enterprises Should Not Use iOS
Using Apple's iPhone or iOS by government officials is a risk, especially when used by non-American officials. Apple tracks your movement through the built-in GPS chips. When the UK minister uses his/her iPad in the parliament, everything she puts on her iPad using the iTunes goes through Apple servers. If she is using iCloud all of her data is residing on Apple servers and Apple knows about everything that she does. So, it is a potential security risk for government officials to use Apple products as they are simply telling Apple everything they do.

Android on the other hand doesn't have anything similar to iTunues which tracks and keeps record of your data. Since Android is open source it is far more secure and experts go through every line of the code to find if there are any holes and fix it immediately. There is no way of doing the same with iPhone/iPad. Apple is also slow at fixing security holds in its products leaving users vulnerable to attacks.

 

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Is this how the government plans to bailout Dell?