Will Dell Buy Palm?

When rumors first broke that Palm was looking for a buyer, some wireless insiders suggested Dell would buy them. Then Dell dropped off the rumor radar screen as stories about possible deals from Nokia and Motorola took center stage. Well, the Nokia and Motorola rumors have come and gone and now whispers suggest that Dell might be looking to buy Palm once again.Take this rumor with a big grain of salt, folks. But, don't take my work for it; there are also analysts out there who think this might happen:

Both sides of this story have refused to discuss the possible buyout at this point, but industry analyst Jack Gold said that "Dell was likely to introduce a smartphone later this year", and purchasing the infrastructure in place at Palm would streamline the process considerably.

I have no evidence for this rumor besides all the clatter and noise on the Web. The Dell, Palm rumors started the second Dell killed its PDA line, the Axim. Insiders have been predicting a Dell smartphone for the last four years.

Skeptics of this rumor claim that Dell is focusing on its core business and has no time for the wireless market. Supporters of a Dell, Palm deal, though, claim that Dell cannot afford to wait any longer if it hopes to win market share in the smartphone space.