Tablet computers such as the Apple iPad must be able to access broadband services from any location if they are to command the consumer market, it has been claimed.

Writing for wired.com, Stephen Levy noted that the devices enable "unique and just plain fun new activities" and are chalking up extremely strong sales figures at present.

However, he suggested that broadband connectivity must be improved if the iPad, and rival devices, are to prove more than a "transitory novelty".

Levy explained that despite its many benefits, the functionality of the basic iPad is "severely limited" if the consumer is away from a wireless broadband hotspot.

While the 3G version "solves that problem", this still relies on being in an area covered by mobile data services, he noted.

"We need ubiquitous, high-speed data at a very low price, and please, let's make it all-inclusive," said Levy.

By the start of June, sales of the Apple iPad had hit the two million mark in the US, just 60 days after the product was launched.