Dell dealing HTC Aria for free on new AT&T contract

$130 for the newest member of AT&T's Android family? Funk that noise! Dell -- yes, the same Dell that will be offering its own Android phones on AT&T in the near future -- is selling the just-released Aria for free when activated on a new line with a two-year contract. Of course, it's a time-honored tradition for third-party wireless retailers to undercut carriers' own subsidized prices, so it's no big surprise that this is cheaper than $130 -- but for it to drop all the way down to $0 the same week of release is a pretty sweet deal. Too bad the lack of app sideloading is less of a sweet deal... but we digress.

[Thanks, Jon]

[bailey12345 Posted Jun 21st 2010 9:34PM]

I am pretty sure that 98% of people don't know what sideloading an app is. That's for people that buy nexus ones or have the developer kit.

[xboomer Posted Jun 21st 2010 10:14PM]

Sideload what exactly? Are you saying that none of these devices are marketable, without hackery? Is this just a fringe, elitest blog?, or what?

Good grief...Try again...Tell us about the Aria...

[jroff Posted Jun 21st 2010 10:25PM]

@xboomer
Sideload = Install programs that are not in the Android market. Believe it or not, but unlike Apple's App Store, not all of Android's application catalog appears in the market. So, basically, if you want to install a program that doesn't appear in the market, like swype (www.swypeinc.com), you're S.O.L with the Aria (unless you're the elitist fringe hacker type and use a program called adb). Every other Android phone on every other carrier makes it accessible to everyone. They simply go to the page and download the program with their phone's browser.

If anything, AT&T is necessitating the hackery by making it's customers jump through extra hoops to put a program on their phone.

[Frogboy Posted Jun 21st 2010 10:58PM]

Aero ... Aria ... undercutting yourself ... sell customers a competing product ... malfunction ... malfunction ... * head explodes *

[Alexandertron Posted Jun 22nd 2010 2:05AM]

im getting two for free right now. on the phone with dell right now

[oh4real Posted Jun 22nd 2010 8:21AM]

Actually, it's just Dell.com rebranding Wirefly.com

Credit where credit's due. A 100% free HTC aria w/ Sense UI and Android 2.1?

I'm sold. Was gonna buy N1 and run on TMo, but now...

[peabody Posted Jun 22nd 2010 9:32AM]

Funny how they have it in stock but it's back-ordered through AT&T Premier....knew I should have went to a store... smh

[GodFlow Posted Jun 22nd 2010 10:14AM]

This just made it significantly harder to wait for the Samsung Captivate. Dammit.

[Rara Posted Jun 22nd 2010 11:17AM]

I have had the Aria for several days and love it love it love. I had been using the Nexus One, which I also liked, but: (1) couldn't see the screen *at all* in direct sunlight, or really, in any bright situations outside; (2) became sick of waiting for Froyo (I need full exchange syncing and the third party app I had to use on the N1 slowed things down considerably); and (3) as a former Nokia E71 adherent, really wanted a smaller form factor. As many people have remarked, there are loads of people (myself included), who don't want or need to install custom roms, JITS, or apps that can't be found in the Market, but who love Android. I am one such person. The Aria is very snappy; has a better battery life than the N1; has a screen that can be read in direct sunlight (and is still gorgeous to look at in all light-situations); runs Sense (which I like); and doesn't suffer from the quirky 3G problems like the N1. And although it doesn't have the dual speakers for sound cancellation like the N1, I prefer the call quality of the Aria. I highly recommend it to anyone who wants to experience Android in a smaller form factor. Excellent device.

[johdaxx Posted Jun 22nd 2010 5:50PM]

So Chris - at a buck thirty plus rebate, your verdict on the review was to leave it. How does the answer change if it's free? (or included with contract?)

It looks like it would be pretty good, but for the lackluster camera...I'm assuming that there will be plenty of hacks in the future for those of us that would want to bend it more to our will....

[wshwe Posted Jul 20th 2010 7:27PM]

Another example of Android lockdown!