Smartphone OS: A 22-Year History

This week, Dell added a new model to its premium Android line of tablets with the Venue 10 7000. In addition, the Round Rock, Texas, computer-maker announced that it is upgrading its Venue 8 7000 tablet to Android 5.0, or Lollipop.

When slotted into the magnetic, backlit keyboard, the new Venue 10 700 tablet can be positioned in five different configurations, including tablet, slate, stand, tent, or clamshell modes.

Dell officially announced the Venue 10 7000, along with the Venue 8 7000 upgrade on April 8.

Available through the company's website in the United States, Canada, and China starting in May, the Venue 10 7000 tablet starts at $499, or $629 with the keyboard. Dell will also offer Microsoft Office for Android on its Venue 10 and 8 7000 tablets beginning this summer.

Sporting a 10.5-inch OLED 2560 x 1600 display and a quad-core Intel Atom Z3580 processor, the Venue 10 7000 also boasts enhanced audio with MaxxAudio Mobile by Waves software and front-firing stereo speakers.

The Venue 10 7000 tablet includes 2GB of RAM and offers 16GB of internal storage, as well as a microSD slot additional storage expansion.

In addition, Dell included Intel's RealSense snapshot depth camera, which the chip company revealed this week, with the tablet. The technology used in RealSense is small enough that it can fit into a smartphone, or in this case, a tablet.

RealSense technology comes in three forms: A front-facing camera that captures facial movements and tracks fingers and hands, a rear-facing camera that can scan and measure, and a snapshot camera, which can alter photo backgrounds later.

RealSense has been integrated into a host of applications, such Dell Gallery, which uses the technology's measuring capabilities.

In addition, Dell's new tablet features smart albums to help users automatically organize photo files.

Dell has also built into the new tablet the company's suite of Mobile Management and Mobile Workspace software designed for business users, and the IT departments that have to manage large fleets of mobile devices. These tools allow workers to secure multiple device types and operating systems, including Android, and also manage applications and content on the devices. This helps to make corporate data more secure, especially as it moves away from the company's secure internal data centers.

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The software also enables users to self-enroll their devices for instant provisioning of corporate access and automated policy enforcement.

The Dell Venue 10 and Venue 8 will also come equipped with Android for Work, which allows users to separate and encrypt corporate data so personal information and sensitive business files are kept separate, increasingly important for business now that many workers mix personal and professional data in a single gadget.

The technology leverages multi-user support in Android to create a managed profile with its own set of secure applications that can be provisioned and controlled by IT and wiped remotely without touching personal data.

In addition, Dell will be offering Office for Android on the Venue 10 and 8 7000 this summer.

The company also announced the availability of the Venue 10 5000 running Android, which it first announced in February, for $299, or $349 with the keyboard.

Specifically tailored for the education market, the tablet's 10.1-inch HD or Full-HD display can also be positioned in five different ways.

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