The Dell Lightning: One Hot Windows Phone 7 Device!

[Jason Dunn]

<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://www.engadget.com/2010/04/21/dell-lightning-the-ultimate-windows-phone-7-device-leaks-out/' target='_blank'>http://www.engadget.com/2010/04/21/...vice-leaks-out/</a><br /><br /></div><p><img src="http://images.thoughtsmedia.com/resizer/thumbs/size/600/wpt/auto/1271892024.usr1.jpg" style="border: 0;" /></p><p>We knew that <a href="http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2359364,00.asp" target="_blank">Dell was one of the Windows Phone 7 launch partners</a>, but I wasn't expecting something like this from them - to be honest, I didn't know what I was expecting - but the Lightning looks awesome! I'm digging that keyboard if the device thickness is kept under control. I generally adore my HD2, but the on screen keyboard sucks. It really, really sucks. Until someone can come up with a software keyboard as good as what Apple has on the iPhone, I really want to have a hardware keyboard on my next phone.</p><p>Engadget has a few slides from a leaked PowerPoint deck, but the basic rundown is a 1 Ghz Snapdragon processor (the QSD8250), a 4.1 inch OLED screen at WVGA (800 x 480), AT&amp;T and T-Mobile 3G support (in the same model? Maybe two models?), a five megapixel autofocus camera (I think I see a flash there too), 1 GB of Flash memory with 512 MB RAM, and 8 GB of storage on an attached-to-the-motherboard microSD card (presumably). It also has a GPS, accelerometer, compass, FM radio, and apparently...full Flash support. Flash support? Really? Hrm. Not sure if I buy that - Microsoft has been pretty up-front about the lack of Flash support at launch. Q4 is the release date, so no surprises there. The surprise? Apparently it's going to get an upgrade to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/3GPP_Long_Term_Evolution" target="_blank">LTE</a> in Q4 of 2011. An OEM willing to offer a significant device upgrade a year after it comes out? Times have changed folks - and that's a good thing. <a href="http://www.engadget.com/2010/04/21/dell-lightning-the-ultimate-windows-phone-7-device-leaks-out/" target="_blank">Hop on over to Engadget</a> to check out the device.</p><p>So you Windows phone 7 haters - still planning on staying away? ;-)</p>

[Fritzly]

I will stay with my HTC HD2 with 32 GB of storage thanks.
Besides, is this thing real? The only GUI images showed seem to be the one of a Zune device; I said "seem" because I have not used a Zune in ages. I would have expected at least an image of the Metro UI.......
Mah... I could be wrong but something does not seem right.....

[Lee Yuan Sheng]

I will stay with my HTC HD2 with 32 GB of storage thanks.

As I was about to say, Jason, that you'll need a lot more than the device to convince this crowd. :D

[xdev]

its an attractive device, but whats up with the huge upper and lower bezel? makes it look a bit like the pocketpc's of yesteryear which had loads of space around the screen instead of the modern devices which front is almost all screen.

i'll be skipping the first batch of Windows Phone 7 devices, i just signed an 18 month contract and got a Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 for free, so wont be upgrading till that contract is over. So far i'm really enjoying android. Feels like a modern version of pocketPC in a way.

i guess by the time its time for me to upgrade again, windows phone 7 should have been on the market for a while and matured a bit.

things i miss about my touch HD:

windows live messenger (android versions are crap)
skype (android version is crap)
office suite (only have a viewer on android, cant edit, need to check out what my options are in the market)
the input method button (with android its a pain trying to minimize the input method, sometimes it blocks buttons)

[Rob Alexander]

I wouldn't call myself a hater... more of a wait-and-see'r. I'm not sure what this is supposed to do to change anything though. The things I am concerned about with WP7 aren't really about how hot the hardware is. I mean, you could put a quad-core CPU and a terabyte of memory in the thing and, if the OS won't let you multitask, then all that means is that it's increasing the speed at which it is not running my programs.

So I like seeing this, and it's great that companies are getting on-board and designing innovative devices. I do hope WP7 succeeds big time. But at the end of the day (since my investment in WM software is gone), I'll base my next device purchase on which device seems best to me at the time. Who knows? It may be this one... it may be an Android phone... or it may be a 4G iPhone. I'm just glad I love my Imagio so much that I'm in no hurry to trade it in for any of those options.

[Phillip Dyson]

I really like the design of this one. But it is very reminiscent of the Zune HD. Not that that is a bad thing.
I'm glad more people are getting into the portrait slider form factor.

I'm a little disappointed in the small amount of onboard storage though.

[efjay]

The nice hardware doesnt change the OS it runs and the limitations MS has imposed and this is highlighted by the paltry amount of storage on board. The T-Mo HD2 came with a 16GB card, 8GB on this device with no way to upgrade makes it a less attractive option, no matter how nice it looks.

Its the OS and its restrictions thats the problem, not the hardware design.

[Craig Horlacher]

I like the 4.1" screen. Most people don't seen to get the importance of a reasonable dpi. I have a 2.8" vga screen and that gives it a ridicules dpi of about 286. The problem is I can't make text as small as I want because it's too hard to read. Things should be much better with a 4.1" screen and 480x800 which gives about 228dpi.

I mean, you could put a quad-core CPU and a terabyte of memory in the thing and, if the OS won't let you multitask, then all that means is that it's increasing the speed at which it is not running my programs.
Unfortunately, Rob sums it up for me too. I wish Microsoft would understand this. They should release two versions of WinPhone. Simple and Advanced - Both would run all the same software. Simple is what we are expecting at this point. Advanced would offer multitasking, an open installation model, storage card support, and copy & paste.

[randalllewis]

That is actually a very appealing design. There was a lot of detail in this "leak" but not the size and weight figures. It appears to be very thin, but that is hard to confirm from these photos. I like the portrait slider form factor, but I don't care for the wide, early-Blackberry style. This appears maybe just a bit wider than my TD2.

Who usually makes devices for Dell?

[virain]

Very nice looking device! If software is up to the task,, and I mean Complete Office integration. So that Excel and Word doc's will not require to be reedited on a PC. Outlook will not be stripped from such important features like Tasks. twill buy this device. And the Flash is a bonus. Some sort of a stylus support would be nice too, but I guess it's too much to ask. Gotta wait for Apple to come up with it first I so microsoft could follow:)

[signothefish]

I would dig it a whole heck of a lot more if it was on CDMA. As it is, I don't care to do business with AT&T or T-Mobile. Their plans are too expensive, and their networks are crap.

[OTHHC]

Jason - not sure if you have given Swype a try and enough time to get good at it? I'm in my first week with my new T9193 / HD2 and I have been a hardware keyboard guy forever, including 2 years on Blackberries and more WinMo devices than I can count. With the other benefits of the HD2, I think I can live without the keyboard and most of my use is corporate.

The Dell device looks nice, but I've never been a fan of portrait sliders, so I don't think it is for me. The problem with Windows Phone 7 from my perspective is that there is so many attributes that have simply copied the iPhone model - honestly, if I wanted what Windows Phone 7 offers, I think I'd be better off with an OS 4 iPhone (I'll start looking under bar stools :^).

On the other hand, if I want an open, powerful and flexible device, I get the feeling that my next phone may be Android. They are doing a better job of what Windows Mobile has always tried to do and they are advancing much more quickly than Microsoft. They may stumble, but they aren't afraid to try things and they have a huge community backing them.

Having said all that, the HD2 is the best phone I have ever owned. I replaced my HTC TP2 with this and while it was ghastly expensive, I think it was worth it.

[maxnix]

Wow! the SCH-i730 is reborn!

[whydidnt]

Wow! the SCH-i730 is reborn!
Don't laugh, that was my favorite WM device for a long time. Very usable for it's time.

Anyway, love the form factor of the Lightning, but seriously, a nice new high end device shackled with 8GB of memory, and no expandability-- available on $99.00 iPhones everywhere. What the heck is Dell thinking? Seriously is the extra $3.00 for a 16 GB SD card going to ruin their margin?:rolleyes:

This skimping of hardware and memory was one of the leading failures with WM versions prior to 7, if OEMs are going to continue down this path not much will change.

Why would you buy this instead of a 32 GB iPhone or a something like the HTC incredible from Android with the ability to carry a 16 GB or 32 GB memory card? I doubt it will be cheaper.

[Phillip Dyson]

As a user of Zune services I'm very interested in WM7. I have a Zune HD but really want a convergance device. It becomes a real hassle managing my phone and Zune when I'm out and about. Not so much a problem in the winter with my jacket, but once the whether warms up I start running out of pockets.

I'm very worried about the lack of desktop sync. Thats the only way I can get my work calendar on my current phone.
That and the minimal memory.

[Zman]

I like the 4.1" screen. Most people don't seen to get the importance of a reasonable dpi. I have a 2.8" vga screen and that gives it a ridicules dpi of about 286. The problem is I can't make text as small as I want because it's too hard to read. Things should be much better with a 4.1" screen and 480x800 which gives about 228dpi.

Unfortunately its still too much, 480x800 is overkill, it makes the UI slower, less responsive, and games suffer big time. The iPhone resolution is perfect at 480x320 and they should have went with that for sure. QVGA is too blocky, VGA is too many pixels for games, and 480x800 is nuts. The DPI is so high you can't even see the details, totally wasted. Why on earth do you want or need your cellphone to have a higher DPI than your laptop and desktop?

[Zman]

I'm very worried about the lack of desktop sync. Thats the only way I can get my work calendar on my current phone.
That and the minimal memory.

Say goodbye to desktop sync, its a pain, all syncing will be through the cloud from now on, from your hotmail/live account.