Verizon Wireless (NYSE:VZ), AT&T Mobility (NYSE:T) and Sprint Nextel (NYSE:S) will launch Samsung's GalaxyTab Android tablet in a bid to counter Apple's (NASDAQ:AAPL) iPad, according to a Bloomberg report.
The report, citing unnamed sources familiar with the matter, said that AT&T and Sprint plan to subsidize the device by pairing it with a wireless contract but that Verizon was undecided on subsidies. Representatives from Verizon, AT&T, Sprint and Samsung declined to comment, Bloomberg said. Samsung product executive Hankil Yoon told the Wall Street Journal in a recent interview last week that the tablet will likely retail for between $200 and $300, although the final price will depend on carrier subsidies.
Samsung will name its carrier partners at an event in New York Sept. 16, the report added. The company is hosting an invitation-only event that day to introduce its Media Hub and digital marketing strategy, which are key elements of the GalaxyTab. If Samsung partners with all three carriers, it will be a significant win for Samsung's U.S. device strategy. All three operators, as well as T-Mobile USA, currently support Samsung's Galaxy S Android phones. The company is not planning on releasing a new flagship model for the holiday shopping season and will instead rely on the GalaxyTab to propel device sales.
The 7-inch tablet runs version Android 2.2 and has a Cortex A8 1 GHz processor, a 3-megapixel camera and a 1.3-megapixel front-facing camera for video chatting, access to the Android Market, support for Adobe Flash 10.1 and WiFi.
For more:
- see this Bloomberg article
- see this WSJ article (sub. req.)
- see this CNet article
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