Will Project Ophelia Save Dell?

Dell has officially sent its newest device, “Project Ophelia,” to beta testers this week. 

The device, named after the character in Shakespeare’s Hamlet , is a $100 Android computer in the shape of a USB stick. It can plug into any old HDMI or MHL port on a television or computer monitor and access Android 4.0 and the Internet on the display. 

The exciting thing about this gadget is that it can also access the cloud and all of the files stored and saved from PCs, which differentiates it from other similar devices. Dell’s Project Ophelia made its debut in January at the International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. It seems like an eternity since the initial news broke about Ophelia’s release, but the full launch is much closer now. Dell hopes that Ophelia will change the face of the brand. Known as a member of the falling PC market, Dell is no stranger to the declining demand for PCs and desktops. Project Ophelia appears to be the company's solution to getting its name back at the forefront of consumers' minds.

Dell executives hope to find a niche in the business market, in particular. They believe the device will be particularly helpful for those who travel on business, but do not want to lug around an entire computer. 

There are no plans for Project Ophelia to run any Windows-specific software, but so long as it is connected to a virtual server or part of the cloud it can connect to Google Docs, Office Web Apps, and Office 365 accounts.

So long as the beta test goes well, Project Ophelia is expected to be released publicly this fall.