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As a long time fan, cheerleader, and supporter of Dell, I am very pleased to announce that I have personally confirmed that Dell is coming to market with the Dell Mini 3. I am not claiming to have broken this announcement as I 1st saw a Google alert to a Cnet story, but as many times as we’ve had false alarms on upcoming Dell products, I had to hear it from the horses mouth. I just got off the phone with my long time contact at Dell and she confirmed this. I am beside myself in excitement this morning.

When this hit the FCC earlier this month, I was happy, but official announcement is good to have.

DELL CONFIRMS SMART PHONE PLANS; ANNOUNCES CHINA MOBILE AND CLARO AS FIRST SUPPORTING OPERATORS

• Dell confirms entrance into the smart phone business and names China Mobile and Claro in Brazil as first two supporting mobile operators to sell Dell Mini 3 smart phones
• China Mobile serves more than 500 million subscribers
• Claro is part of the largest mobile phone network in the Americas, America Movil

Read on of the Press Release and long history of Dell Smartphone rumors.

How long have these rumors been out there? Well look at all these articles posted just here:

• Dell Mini 3iX hits the FCC
• Dell’s Android Phone to AT&T? Rev up your rumor engines…
• Dell Mini 3i Smartphone is official
• More Dell Smartphone Photos Appear
• Hey Dell, Can We Talk?
• Did you know that the Dell Axim was rather disastrous
• Dell Smartphone Blurry Shot?
• Dell’s New Smartphone
• Dell Smartphone Talk…. AGAIN?
• Dell to Make Smartphone?
• Dell Handset Rumors – Here we go again!
• Dell and Android… I don’t care, do you?
• Dell Phone Rumors Back Again…
• Dell Smartphone News, Nothing New
• Quanta may be developing Smartphone/PocketPC Phone for Dell

These date all the way back to 2007. Hell, I had tips in my inbox on the forums about Dell phones even before phones were hot. I learned to ignore them until I saw something official. Now I am happy.

Added a blog post by Dell today: Hello… Dell’s Getting into the Smartphone Business

Press Release:

Dell today confirmed plans to enter the smart phone business and announced partnerships with two of the world’s largest mobile operators.

Dell plans to distribute its new Mini 3 smart phones through China Mobile, the largest telecommunications company in the world with more than 500 million customers, and Claro, which serves more than 42 million people in Brazil as part of the America Movil network.

Entry into the smart phone category reflects Dell’s continued expansion into mobile internet products and services through value-added relationships with leading operators. Earlier this year Dell was the first mobile PC manufacturer to embed China Mobile’s 3G technology and services into its netbooks and quickly became the leading seller of netbooks through retail outlets in China. In addition Dell has existing agreements with other leading global telecom providers, including Vodafone in Europe; Australia/New Zealand, AT&T and Verizon in the U.S.; M1 and Starhub in Singapore; and Maxis in Malaysia, creating more opportunities to meet the needs of a connected lifestyle.

“Our entry into the smart phone category is a logical extension of Dell’s consumer product evolution over the past two years,” said Ron Garriques, President, Dell Global Consumer Group. “We are developing smaller and smarter mobile products that enable our customers to take their internet experience out of the home and do the things they want to do whenever and wherever they want.“

“This signals an important milestone in the long term partnership between China Mobile and Dell,” said a China Mobile spokesperson.  “We are excited for Dell to be among the first manufacturers to introduce new technology based on the OPhone platform.  We look forward to working with Dell as it brings innovative new products and services to add value to our customers’ lives.”

“As a leading innovation company in Brazil, Claro is proud of being the first wireless carrier in the world offering the 3G version of Dell’s smart phone. This confirms the Brazilian market strength and Claro as a leading actor in introducing new technology products and services to the country”, said João Cox, president for Claro. 

The initial Mini 3 smart phones are designed around the Android platform to best deliver power, flexibility and customization opportunities for both users and carriers. 

Dell’s Mini 3 smart phones reflect the elegant look and style that demonstrates Dell’s commitment to design innovation.  Details of phone models will be announced on a partner-by-partner basis when devices are available in stores, anticipated in late November for China Mobile and year’s end for Claro.