The isn't an ordinary tablet--or an ordinary netbook--in that it flips from a Windows 7-powered tablet into a netbook in a supposedly fluid motion. It's a neat idea, but after to Dell's kinda-smartphone, kinda-tablet, the , the question now is whether Dell can enter any kind of modern tech market successfully.

Specs for the Inspiron Duo haven't been unveiled yet, but the device will feature an Atom N550 dual-core processor, come in both 1GB and 2GB configurations, and perhaps even play HD 1080p video. that "pre-sale information" will be "dished out later this week, alongside Microsoft's announcement of a new store opening."

Pricing also hasn't been announced, but if you think might repeat itself, the Duo could be quite pricey.

Despite lukewarm reception, The Dell Streak smartphone-tablet-thing wasn't a complete failure. that the Streak was the most successful pre-sale the company has ever offered, but quickly dampened the enthusiasm by that the Streak's initial sales were "interesting" and "exciting," but "immaterial to Dell's $60 billion in revenue." (Sounds to me like the Streak's sales figures aren't that interesting or exciting; otherwise the company would be a tad more, I don't know, excited?)

You could say that , thanks to the iPad and other tablets (but mostly the iPad). Combining a tablet with a netbook could appeal to consumers who aren't interested in typing on a touchscreen and who don't want to buy an external keyboard to do otherwise. But if the Inspiron Duo's main functionality is as a netbook, and the tablet portion doesn't live up to the expectations set by Apple's iPad, the Duo could fall amongst the other disgraced netbooks out there.