Dell Streak

If you just can't wait for upcoming tablet PCs, or 'pads', from the likes of HP and Samsung, and don't want to take a chance on lesser brands like iRobot, the Dell Streak might just meet the bill.

The Streak has a 5-inch display and is powered by version 1.6 of Google's Android operating system, supported by a Qualcomm Snapdragon processor running at 1GHz. Like all Android devices, you get to access lots of applications both built-in and downloadable.

There's also everything you'd expect from a tablet, including Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, a MicroSD card slot for expanding storage, and all the trimmings such sensors for detecting ambient light, face proximity, accelerometer, e-compass, GPS and so on.

Unlike other tablets however, the Streak comes with full mobile phone functionality in the form of GSM, 3G and high-speed data, complete with two digital cameras - 5 megapixels on the back and VGA quality upfront.

With a display that's smaller than other tablets - which have 7-inch, 9-inch and, soon, 10-inch displays - the Streak really pushes the boundaries between a tablet and a smart phone. In that sense, the display is sufficiently big enough for comfortable reading of websites, but not so big that you'll feel like you are holding a laptop to your ear when making calls.

So is it a tablet or a smartphone? Dell is marketing the Streak as a tablet, but it is certainly priced more like smartphone at HK$5,499.

Pros: bigger display than smartphones, but still small enough to make calls

Cons: very expensive compared to other Android tablets