Raining Tablets at AT&T? A Portfolio Status Report

Earlier in the month, we took an initial look at the AT&T tablet portfolio to determine the progress of consumer choices there were.  Since that post, one addition, the iPad mini joined the portfolio on the 16th of November.  

Here's how the tablet portfolio looks (online without refurbished models).

Manufacturer	Models & WWAN	OS
Apple	iPad 2 (3G) 16GB,  iPad (current gen LTE) 18, 32, 64GB,  iPad mini (LTE) 16, 32, 64GB	iOS
Asus	vivoTab RT (LTE)	Windows 8 RT
Pantech	Element (LTE)	Android
Samsung	Galaxy Tab 8.9 (LTE),  Galaxy Tab 10.1 (LTE),  ATIV (LTE) SmartPC (LTE)	Android Android Windows 8  Windows 8

To AT&T's credit, the portfolio has 8 tablet models and many memory level iPad choices. So rather, AT&T has 7 iPad models to sell.  This expands the portfolio to 13. At this snapshot in time (after Black Friday), will there be additional announcements ahead of holiday shopping? There may be one or two in the wings but any more tablets creates too many choices which is a problem itself.  Carriers wish to optimize its inventory and SKU count, balancing choice with carrying costs.

While AT&T has high tablet net add hopes, let's look at Verizon Wireless' online portfolio (without refurbished models).  There is a similar apples-to-apples comparison since this carrier also offers a shared data plan.  

Verizon Wireless Tablet Portfolio     

Manufacturer	Models & WWAN	OS
Apple	iPad 2 (3G) 16GB,  iPad (current gen LTE) 18, 32, 64GB,  iPad mini (LTE) 16, 32, 64GB	iOS
Motorola	DROID XYBOARD 8.2” (LTE) DROID XYBOARD 10.1” (LTE)	Android Android
Samsung	Galaxy Tab 2  7” (LTE),  Galaxy Tab 2 10.1” (LTE),	Android Android

Verizon Wireless' portfolio offers the same choices on Apple products but is limited to Android support. This isn't that much of a surprise as the carrier has just started supporting Windows Phone 8 smartphones. Verizon Wireless' 11 models isn't far off from AT&T's 13.  What is different is each carrier's approach. AT&T is offering an aggressive $100 discount while Verizon Wireless has no such incentive. However, the $100 discount requires a two year contract whereas Verizon Wireless allows month to month.

From the carrier view, a two-year subsidized plan is good for overall churn reduction and ensures customer data use. Of course US consumers have yet to be acculturated to tablet data and like smartphones it will be a multi-year endeavor to create the demand.