AT&T's Glenn Lurie predicts the imminent demise of WiFi-only tablets

[Brendan Hugo]

Is the end to WiFi-only tablets near at hand? Glenn Lurie, AT&T's president of emerging devices, seems to think so. As the market stands right now, the majority of tablets sold are sold as the cheaper WiFi-only variants. This makes tablets something more akin to stripped-down PCs than smartphones in some ways, and more importantly makes it much harder for carriers to make money off of them. But AT&T's Glenn Lurie thinks that the times, they are a changin'.

In an interview at CTIA Wireless 2012 this week, Lurie pointed out that the 3G and some 4G hardware costs are falling below $30, making it rather pointless to continue to offer the—typically significantly cheaper—WiFi-only version of a tablet.

"All devices should have all capabilities built in from the beginning," Lurie said. One reason that hasn't become a reality is that the additional hardware has been too expensive in the past, he said. "The ecosystem was a little out of balance."

It's notable that the $30 number is applicable to HSPA+ radios, which can be called either 3G or 4G depending on who you talk to. LTE radios still run closer to the typical $100 premium for a cellular-enabled tablet, costing manufacturers around $70. So, now comes the question: will we soon see the end of Wifi-only tablets, at least mainstream ones?

As Lurie pointed out, the $400 cellular-only Pantech element has sold out quickly enough, and since he's at least partly responsible for what devices AT&T carries, I would imagine that AT&T will be announcing the end of WiFi only tablets from its distributors soon enough. But the industry as a whole? That seems like a tall order when a $30 edge can sometimes make a huge sales difference—what do you think? For those with a cynical side, do you really think it they'll give us the “improved” tablets for only $30 more?

[Computerworld]

[CrowdAds]

[diechipmunk]

Seems like wishful thinking to me. The cost of 2 years of a data plan far exceeds the cost of even the top tablets. I can see some people opting for subsidized tablets and higher monthly bills, and who wouldn't prefer a tablet the wasn't limited to WiFi only? But Wifi is free and all the functionality is there, limited by access, of course; and no cap on data usage. Of course AT&T's man would want people to think they need 4G to keep up, that's their revenue stream.

IMHO, WiFi only will dominate for at least the near future as quality, less expensive tables proliferate. And, as free wifi hot spots grow, the need a carrier data plan will be further reduced. I see tablets becoming a replacement for multiple home computers. I can see homes with one central computer as a media server, a tablet for every household member.

[Jack4L]

If it made more sense for the manufacturers to just make models that come both with 3G and wifi (Reduced production costs) sure it'll happen but most people are just going to ignore it. Like 3D on modern day TV's, sure its on everything new but few people really use it.

[Mikerman]

It seems to me that manfs. will continue to produce Wifi versions if it means that they would be saving $30 from versions including the cellphone tech. I guess, though, they could include the extra tech. and just raise the price to cover that extra expense, putting this additional cost on the back of the consumer . . . .

[sideways]

3G/4G is probably one of those things that will eventually be standard on all tablets. There is not really any good reason not to put it in, costs will come down to the point that it will be a no brainer. Now that is not to say that everyone will want to buy a contract. That will not happen any time soon.

[Olley]

So long as cell data access is opt in/out with no yearly contract, I see no reason not to have the chip for access in all tablets. I have WiFi access both at home and at work, as well as many places I do business. Only once in a rare while do I wish I had internet access when away from WiFi. To me it seems that any CEO has blinders on for who might prefer a WiFi-only device as they no-doubt travel and spend time away from wifi access themselves, and of course any data plan they use is a business write-off.