Offering just one model of each tablet would save the OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) a lot of cost for marketing and keeping inventory of multiple designs, Lurie said.

One barrier to Lurie's vision may be Apple, which still adds $130 to the price of each given iPad model for a 4G radio. While a majority of tablet makers charge consumers $50 more for a cellular-equipped model, "others have made other decisions," he said.

Apple's dominance of the tablet market makes any effort toward single-design tablets harder, IDC's O'Donnell said. Some makers of Android and other devices may converge on one model, but even for them, a $30 component is still too significant to simply absorb into the cost of the device, he said. "OEMs sweat over nickels and quarters," O'Donnell said.

The key to getting more consumers to buy cellular-equipped tablets will be carriers offering data plans that cover more than one device, O'Donnell said. "All they have to do is open up those data plans," he said. "That'll solve it overnight."

AT&T's Lurie said the carrier is still studying multiple-device plans and has no plans to announce at this time.