Sprint Nextel Corp., trying to undercut rivals in the tablet market, will sell the Samsung Electronics Co. Galaxy Tab for $200 less than it costs on Verizon Wireless’ network and $229 less than the iPad.
Sprint will offer the Galaxy Tab starting Nov. 14 for $399.99 with a two- year wireless-data contract. Verizon Wireless is offering the Tab for $599.99, and Apple Inc. sells its lowest-priced iPad that can connect to a mobile- phone network for $629, though in both cases customers are not required to sign up for data contracts.
Sprint, the third-largest U.S. wireless carrier, aims to capitalize on the surging tablet market and gain an edge on Verizon and AT&T Inc. The Galaxy Tab is one of the first tablet devices to challenge Apple, which sold 4.19 million iPads last quarter. AT&T is the exclusive carrier for the iPad — as well as Apple’s iPhone — though Verizon plans to sell a version that relies on a Wi-Fi connection to access the Net.
Bloomberg News
