Fun with selective memory: "Dell Streak? What Dell Streak?"

CES 2012: Dell Entering Tablet Business Later This Year at WebProNews suggests that Dell is wisely biding its time before dipping a first toe in that crazy tablet market that's been so wildly unsuccessful for any company whose name can't be found within "Snapple". Or in the quoted words of Dell CCO Steve Felice,

So we are not really deemphasizing it, we are really being very careful how we enter it.

Right. Because Dell wouldn't want to end up like the guys who rushed in and failed with DOA loser products. Like that Streak thing, which figuratively blew itself into gibs before anyone even knew it had even spawned onto the board. Who made that thing, anyway?

Oh. It was Dell. Oddly, the Dell CCO seems reluctant to mention the Streak, instead talking up future products with "We have been taking our time." (Time to recover from the Streak, you mean.) Sadly, WebProNews doesn't catch the omission either, and dully remarks that it's "surprising that Dell has not entered into the tablet business". (Entered it without crashing and burning, you mean.)

WebProNews gives its source as Reuters, whose article does mention the Streak – though so quickly you'll miss it if you pause to spoon more corn flakes. After that gloss, Reuters simply goes along with the ruse that the Streak never happened. "Dell Inc intends to launch its first consumer tablet computer in late 2012", proclaims the article. First?

Maybe "consumer" is the key word; if Dell claims that the Streak was an enterprise product, then it can shout "Here's our first consumer tablet, a field in which we've bided our time like genius masterminds, and have yet to fail in at all, honestly!" And then hope that nobody pays much attention. But that's where things get confusing. Dell's still-online Streak 5 Android Tablet page enthuses over the Facebook, Twitter, photo sharing, and movies that the "entertainment, social connection and navigation device" puts in your pocket, with nary a word about VNCs and Ciscos and other businessy things. And what's more, its new "consumer" product will get all up in the enterprizez, says Dell's Felice:

When we introduce the products, they will be consumer products, but we are going to make sure that they are very compatible with the business marketplace, which we don't think Apple has addressed.

At which point Reuters could have asked, "Oh, so it's an enterprise thing, too. And how did your actual first 'enterprise tablet' work out for you?" But they didn't. (Which isn't terribly surprising in an age when the New York Times – no joke – runs a piece asking, "Hey readers, here's a wacky idea: do you think journalists should look into factual claims?")

So, what's the story? The Dell Streak flopped, and Dell plans to take another shot with a new product. No surprise, and no big deal. But while I can understand Dell wanting to pretend that the Streak never existed and that the new product will be its very first tablet, why does the press so readily play along with the charade? That's what's curious.

Oh well. I suppose it's inevitable that no questions get asked about a product that almost no one noticed in the first place. (I feel sorry for the Streak, treated by all like some invisible ghost of an hunchbacked redheaded bastard son. If it's any consolation, Streak, it could be worse: you could be an 'iPod-killer' music player no one ever heard of.)

As Dell prepares to roll out its "first" tablets, the company's actually rather lucky that no one noticed or remembers the Streak. Dell, here's hoping your new product gets that same "lucky" reception!