Dell Bows Out of the Smartphone Business

Dell has been rather quiet on the mobile front lately, and there’s good reason: the company is officially getting out of the smartphone game, rendering your Streak, Aero, and Venue handsets instant relics of mobile computing history.

Dell’s Jeff Clarke (pictured) told Forbes, “It needs a lot of investments to really be successful,” which is something of an understatement. The smartphone market is intensely competitive, and it’s been getting uglier with the ongoing patent wars between giants Apple and Samsung. Nokia is fighting for a comeback powered by Windows Phone 8, and RIM is closing its eyes and hoping that BlackBerry 10 will be a thing that enough people care about to keep the brand viable.

Dell XPS 10
Dell XPS 10 tablet

Dell is probably wise to cast its lot elsewhere.

Besides, the company has plenty of computing products to peddle, including its Windows 8 and Windows RT-packing XPS and Latitude tablets as well as its regular slew of laptops and desktops.