The Dell Streak Review
by Anand Lal Shimpi on August 15, 2010 6:59 PM EST- Posted in
- Smartphones
- Dell
- Streak
- Gadgets
- Mobile
Cellular and WiFi Performance
The Streak only supports 802.11b/g and WiFi performance isn’t very good. Connected to an access point less than 6 feet away the best transfer rate I could get from a locally hosted PDF was 1.76Mbps. I tried copying directly to the microSD card over USB and got over 50Mbps. This may be an Android 1.6 limitation however as the Speedtest app managed 5 - 7Mbps consistently (on my desktop I get 17 - 20Mbps running the same test on the same network).
The Streak uses Qualcomm's QSD8250 SoC with integrated cellular radio:
| Dell Streak Network Support | |||||
| UMTS | 2100 / 1900 / 850MHz | ||||
| GSM/EDGE | 1900 / 1800 / 900 / 850MHz | ||||
| HSDPA/HSUPA | 7.2Mbps / 5.76Mbps | ||||
Cellular network performance was pretty good. Using the SpeedTest.net app I managed 2204Kbps down and 1007 Kbps up.
Cell signal attenuation was also in line with most other phones we’ve tested:
| Signal Attenuation Comparison in dB - Lower is Better | |||||||
| Cupping Tightly | Holding Naturally | On an Open Palm | |||||
| Dell Streak | 14.0 | 8.7 | 4.0 | ||||
| Droid X | 15.0 | 5.1 | 4.5 | ||||
| iPhone 4 | 24.6 | 19.8 | 9.2 | ||||
| iPhone 3GS | 14.3 | 1.9 | 0.2 | ||||
| HTC Nexus One | 17.7 | 10.7 | 6.7 | ||||
The Streak doesn’t appear to drop signal any more than comparable Android phones, and of course less than the iPhone 4. The wireless radio stack is less sensitive than the iPhone 4 but in line with other Android phones I’ve tested. I could hold calls at -109dBm but had mixed results below that point.
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RyanE - Monday, August 16, 2010 - link
hey, don't want to be a downer, but what about the Archos5. You can get a version with cell phone and it has all the multimedia goodness going for it. the only thing missing is a camera. Thoughts?repatch - Monday, August 16, 2010 - link
Propriety docking connector and LOCK TO ATT even at the full price??MAJOR FAIL.
dch58 - Monday, August 16, 2010 - link
Carrier locked to AT&T? I was pretty excited until I got to that part. I could even live with the proprietary cable (though I wouldn't like it).Great article, though!
fearsome - Monday, August 16, 2010 - link
1 its on ATT bad network and bad CS2 the screen is really way to low on resolution. A 3.6" old touch pro 2 runs the same resolution. I do want a 5" screen but not if it comes with no added pixels. That makes this phone completely worthless I could purchase any of the many high end smartphones out there and get this resolution in a smaller package.
fragemall - Monday, August 16, 2010 - link
Hi AnandOnce again a great review. Isn't the omission of the Samsung Galaxy S from the benchmarks a glaring one. Considering it is one of the fastest phones with one the best displays out there? Not to mention that it is also available from AT&T for $199. In fact its available from amazon for $50 with a two year contract :).
Stas - Tuesday, August 17, 2010 - link
2.2 or GTFOAndrej Gabara - Tuesday, August 17, 2010 - link
Any news on the 7 and 10 inch versions? I'd love a 7 inch version with higherresolution. The iPad only has 1024x768... not great for 10 inches.
bill4 - Thursday, August 19, 2010 - link
A Galaxy S review! Like to see where it sits next to all these other phones in the benches, and Anand's overall thoughts. Seeing as I recently bought a Captivate.evalese - Friday, August 20, 2010 - link
Oh, yes, they call him the Streak. He likes to show off his physique. If there's an audience to be foundHe'll be streakin' A-round invitin' public critique.
DoubleVanos - Saturday, August 21, 2010 - link
This might be a little bit O/T but how come there are no Galaxy S benchmarks in there - or a full review for that matter?