Batten The Hatches: Dell Preps Thunder, Lightening To Rival iPhone

This week specs and images of Dell's new Google Android and Windows Phone 7 smartphones ended up in the mitts of Gizmodo rival Engadget.

First up is the Dell Lightning, which features a full QWERTY slide-out keyboard, a 4.1-inch WVGA OLED capacitive touch-screen and a 5 megapixel autofocus camera. Engadget said the Windows Phone 7-based Lightning packs in a 1 GHz Snapdragon processor, 1GB flash ROM and 512 MB RAM. It also offers a MicroSD slot and an 8GB card to boot.

The Dell Lightning is expected to run on AT&T and T-Mobile 3G networks and also adds in GPS, an accelerometer, a compass, FM radio and full Flash support including video playback. Lightning is expected to strike later this year.

Along with the Lightning, Engadget also got the goods on the upcoming Dell Thunder, the Lightning's Google Android-based companion. The Dell Thunder ties in a similar 4.1-inch touch-screen display, but ups the ante with an 8 megapixel camera that offers photo editing capabilities. It runs Android 2.1 and has links back to Facebook and Twitter for social networking. Engadget said The Dell Thunder spec sheets also indicate that it delivers Flash 10.1 for Web video and an integrated Hulu application.

The Dell Thunder is expected to run on AT&T's network sometime late this year for HSDPA and an LTE version sometime in late 2011.

Along with the Thunder and Lightning, Engadget also got a sneak peak at three other upcoming Dell mobile devices. The smartphones include the Dell Flash, a 3.5-inch touch screen with a 5 megapixel camera and Flash 10.1; the Smoke, which features a full QWERTY keyboard, a 5 megapixel camera and can support MicroSD cards of up to 32 GB; and the Aero, a 3.5-inch, touch-screen with a 5 megapixel camera that comes with QuickOffice and support for Microsoft ActiveSync and Exchange.