Mobile phone manufacturers will soon meet a new competitor in the face of the US largest PC maker Dell. According to a source the company plans to introduce Android based smartphone on carrier AT&T's network.

While the move will help Google boost its operation platform it may be a hard task for Dell to conquer its niche in the overfull mobile phone market.

A source familiar with the case told that Dell plans to launch a U.S. version of its "oPhone" for China running on Android. Besides, the source reports that the device has been certified by AT&T for its domestic network. According to the Wall Street Journal who cited people with the knowledge of the matter, Dell's phone could be launched as soon as early 2010.

Meantime, experts believe Dell will face hard times trying to squeeze into the market already crowded with competition. For instance, this week South Korea's Samsung said it would also begin selling an Android phone through Sprint Nextel's network.

Others including Taiwanese rivals Acer and Asustek Computer are moving into smartphones, which tend to offer higher margins than PCs.

Dell spokesman Andrew Bowins declined comment on the AT&T tie-up but said: "We are deeply engaged with our operator partners around the world to deliver mobile broadband enabled computing devices."

He added: "We haven't announced anything around voice or Android although we continue to explore opportunities in those areas with operators around the world."