Dell dives into U.S. smartphone market with release of Mini 3

PC manufacturer Dell announced that it would release an Android-powered smartphone in the U.S. market, saying that pricing and availability information would be available about the Mini 3 within the next six months.

The second-biggest PC maker in the world has long had a thriving smartphone business in China, but its participation in the cutthroat U.S. market was but a rumor until the announcement of the Mini 3. USA Today notes that the company also had a line of PDAs – known as Axim – in the earlier part of the decade.

AT&T will be the exclusive carrier of voice and data service for the Mini 3, which is expected to be the name of an entire series of smartphones running the Android wireless application platform, rather than a single device, according to the Austin American Statesman.

That newspaper says that the Mini 3 series is expected to be similar to Dell smartphones already in use in Brazil and China, using Dell’s partnership with China Mobile – the world’s largest cellular provider – to achieve a significant market share in the latter nation.