A user bringing in a signal via cable modem or DSL to a business or home Wi-Fi zone might only get 1 Mbit/sec to 7 Mbit/sec, which puts a limit on the total network connection, even over the Wi-Fi portion, Gold said.

For most users of the expected Apple tablet, 3G speeds would be enough to support their needs "unless they are doing a lot of streaming video," Gold said. At the average speeds Root Wireless found, streaming video could pose problems, he said.

Video streaming is more easily addressed with the prospect of much faster speeds of up to 6 Mbit/sec. with , which both Verizon and AT&T are adopting. Verizon is aiming to launch LTE in up to 30 markets in 2010, and has already begun trials in Boston and Seattle, while AT&T will introduce services in 2011.

Apple would have to update its tablet for LTE connections. The company would also have to do an update if it wants to go to another fast wireless standard called WiMax, which is being . WiMax offers download speeds of between 3 and 6 Mbit/sec. Nobody is talking about Apple's tablet supporting WiMax, however.

Matt Hamblen covers mobile and wireless, smartphones and other handhelds, and wireless networking for Computerworld . Follow Matt on Twitter at @matthamblen , send e-mail to mhamblen@computerworld.com or subscribe to Matt's RSS feed .