According to reports from Dell Inc. the value of purchases made by people through their mobile phones has now exceeded the average order value of purchases being made by users online.

Dell Inc. launched their complete mobile store applications for Android devices and iPhones some time ago and they have found that the average amount being spent on purchases through mobile is 25% higher than it is for online purchases.

The fastest selling item, the Inspiron 15R laptop is the most popular model for both mobile as well as online sales. This laptop ranges in price from $550 to $800, showing that users are not unwilling to make high value purchases from their mobile phones.

Brandon McGee, Director of Global Mobile at Dell says, “From a download and revenue perspective, the Android app is performing extremely well and reaching its goals. The iPhone app is performing twice as well as Android.”

In order to further strengthen mobile online sales, Dell suggests that in order to develop a successful mobile commerce site entrepreneurs should offer a secure site with prominently displayed lock icons on check out buttons, have a clean and easy to use interface that contains all technical and other specifications about the product being sold and also includes user reviews and provide tools to help users select products, such as the Compare feature and the Shop Assist tool used by Dell.

Promoting the mobile commerce site on popular networks such as Facebook, Twitter and on third party blogs and even via email has proved to be very helpful to Dell.

Success levels of these apps have been high enough to warrant Dell to invest in tablet apps, which are likely to be launched soon in order to further enhance their mobile commerce offering.

According to Google, a Chromebook is a computer-like object that will allow users to do everything that they can on the Web, so that they get a “faster, simpler and more secure experience without all the headaches of ordinary computers”.

The Chromebook will have a start-up time of just 8 seconds. The device will ship with Wi-Fi and 3G access built in, and everything will be stored in the “cloud”, thus enabling users to work from any place with network access. This will also eliminate the need for anti-virus protection. The operating system will automatically update, eliminating the need to buy expensive new operating systems every 3-5 years.

With a starting price of $350 or £216, the Chromebook will be cheaper than a high-street PC or laptop or even the iPad. However, it will not be cheaper than entry-level Dell notebooks, which could make it less attractive to corporate buyers who also prefer the familiarity of Microsoft Windows, which comes pre-installed on Dell machines.

“We think this will fundamentally change the way people use computing in companies”, said Sundar Pichai, Google’s senior VP of Chrome.

The Chromebook will be made available on June 15 on Amazon.com and Best Buy in the USA and other outlets in the U.K. France, Germany, Italy and the Netherlands.

Details on the Chromebook can be found at:

google.com/chromebook

Corporate Chromebooks

Business buyers will have two Chromebook hardware options to choose from:

The Chromebooks for Business subscription will include:

• Chromebook computers running the Chrome operating system
• Web-based management of user, device and application policies via an easy-to-use admin console
• 24/7 email and phone support for Chromebook administrators, as well as access to the Google Enterprise Support Portal, which has answers on how to set device and user policies as well as other Chromebook related topics
• Device replacement and warranties.

Google is currently only able to process Chromebook for Business orders of 10 subscriptions or more.

A report by DisplaySearch expects that by 2014, the number of computers sold will be 500 million and one-third of these are expected to be tablet devices.

While there were only about 2 million tablets in 2009 and about 20 million tablets last year, there will be 202 million tablets by 2015 according to iHS iSuppli.

Apple’s iPad continues to hold the largest market share among tablets. However, Android-based tablets are also growing in popularity according to Strategy Analytics. During the last quarter of 2010 22% of tablets sold were running on Android OS. While Apple held 95% of the market share during the third quarter of 2010, it held only 75% of the market share in the last quarter.

Tablet sales 2009 – forecast 2015. Data source: Gartner and iSuppli

Among the Android-based tablets, the Samsung Galaxy Tab was the most popular. Android-based tablets are growing in popularity not only because of their relatively lower cost but also because of accompanying features such as YouTube and Google Maps. The planned launch of the Android 3.0 for tablets is expected to further boost the sale of Android tablets.

The entry of other companies such as Dell, Hewlett Packard and Research In Motion, in the tablet market will also further boost the growth of the tablet market.

According to the terms of the agreement, Live Search will now be the default search engine for most of the new consumer and small business PCs that Dell ships globally. Considering the fact that Dell is the largest provider of PCs in the U.S. and the second largest OEM worldwide, a lot of new clients will now have the chance to use Live for their searches, without any trouble. All these new PCs will also have a Live Search-powered toolbar.

This agreement between Dell and Microsoft will be applicable across 23 countries worldwide ranging from Australia, Brazil, India, Japan, U.K. U.S.A. and many others and will come into effect from February 2009.

HP and Lenovo PCs shipped within North America already include Live Search as the default search engine.

The other interesting announcement made by Steve Ballmer is to the effect that Microsoft beat Google to acquire a five-year deal with Verizon, the second largest mobile carrier in the U.S.A. Thanks to this deal, users of Verizon Mobile in the U.S. will be able to use Live Search Mobile as their default search service.

Google is probably unhappier about the deal with Verizon, as mobile continues to be one of their top priorities for future growth and losing out to Microsoft in this relatively nascent market does not bode well.

However, no matter how many deals Microsoft can muscle in with providers and OEMs, it is the consumers who will finally decide, and far as consumers are concerned, Google is undoubtedly firmly entrenched in their hearts and minds.