Verizon Selling Xoom, Galaxy Tab, iPad
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This "Pick a tablet, any tablet" approach
appears to be an attempt to move Verizon Wireless from being just another
wireless phone company into something more. The broad tablet offerings mean
that Verizon has a solution to meet pretty much any need. Customers who want
access to the wealth of iPad applications will have the ability to come to
Verizon and get what they need, along with having a mobile hot spot that can
support their other devices.
For those who want something more portable, the 7-inch
Galaxy Tab is the Android-based alternative. And now there's the Xoom, which seems
to be designed to be what the iPad is not-a multifeatured tablet that builds on
the iPad concept and manages to deliver more for the same price.
Assuming that you're willing to buy into the idea that
tablets are the next big thing-something that netbooks weren't-then Verizon
Wireless is putting itself in exactly the right place. While the other wireless
companies are also offering the Galaxy Tab, you're not seeing the broad
selection that you see from Verizon. This kind of one-stop shop for tablet
solutions may well be exactly what the nascent tablet industry
needs.
Whether this works depends greatly on how Verizon
Wireless markets its tablet offerings. Assuming that the company manages to
make the role of each device clear, and manages to identify the market segments
it intends for each device, it could create even faster growth in the tablet
market than we're already seeing. While Apple iPads don't really need a lot of
marketing right now by the wireless carriers-Apple is taking care of that-they
may need more in the future as solid alternatives such as the Xoom make it
obvious that the iPad isn't the only game in town.
But what's equally important is that by offering a range
of tablets with similar prices but differing capabilities, Verizon Wireless can
also show that the iPad is one of many games in town, each of which has its own
reason for being, and each of which has its own logical customer base. The
result is that this sort of approach could create a better market for tablets,
and enterprise tablets specifically, because now it'll be possible to get the
product you need with the capabilities that are required for your application,
and to do it from one vendor.
About the only thing that will make this work better is
if another wireless company adopts the same approach. While AT&T seems to
still be overwhelmed with the iPhone, there are rumors that it may get the
Xoom. Whether this same broad tablet selection and 3G/4G support will come to
other vendors remains to be seen, but it would be good for everyone if it did.
Wayne Rash is a Senior Analyst for eWEEK Labs and runs the magazineÃÃÃs Washington Bureau. Prior to joining eWEEK as a Senior Writer on wireless technology, he was a Senior Contributing Editor and previously a Senior Analyst in the InfoWorld Test Center. He was also a reviewer for Federal Computer Week and Information Security Magazine. Previously, he ran the reviews and events departments at CMP's InternetWeek.He is a retired naval officer, a former principal at American Management Systems and a long-time columnist for Byte Magazine. He is a regular contributor to Plane & Pilot Magazine and The Washington Post.
