And, sure enough, this pans out. While Goldman felt compelled to quote the most Xoom-favorable pricing, the off-contract price for the 32GB 3G Xoom is $799 while the 32GB 3G iPad is $729. That’s the easiest, most straightforward comparison. But it shows that the iPad’s less expensive, so let’s ignore long-term costs and just look at what Motorola can do to put you in a Xoom…

Of course, they may have to clear it with their manager first.

(Note: their manager is the carrier.)

Oh, also, why is it no one seems to remember the 16GB $499 iPad when comparing the iPad to the Xoom? Get ready to hear this a lot:

16GB?! HA-HA! NO ONE CAN LIVE ON 16GB! IT’S IMPOSSIBLE! ONLY 32GB AND ABOVE SHOULD BE CONSIDERED AN ACTUAL TABLET. ANYTHING LESS IS MORE OF A SPEAK-AND-SPELL.