As also-ran media tablets continue to launch in rapid succession, Sprint says slates are missing a key ingredient needed before consumers will bite: voice. Sprint’s director of business product marketing Jeff Adelmann believes that before tablets can be widely adopted, they need cellular connectivity and telephony capabilities that are far more deeply integrated than current third-party solutions. “When [tablets] become a communication device, then you want ubiquitous connectivity, and Wi-Fi can’t provide that,” Adlemann said during a recent Open Mobile Summit session. Read on for more.
The executive said tablets should feature better integration with smartphones, allowing owners to make and receive voice calls on a tablet while connected wirelessly to a phone. Adlemann doesn’t think such functionality will draw consumers away from Apple’s iPad, Light Reading Mobile reported, but he does believe integrated voice will help create a more appealing package that will drive sales in general.
“There’s no one silver bullet; we could fix one thing and not see the needle move,” Adelmann said. “But, tablets today are primarily companion devices. If you have multiple devices, you want to use services across them.”
Sprint currently offers five tablet models including the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 and the HTC EVO View 4G. Adlemann’s comments could be construed as an indication that none of its current models have been flying off store shelves.
