With free WIFI becoming so ubiquitous (McDonald's chains, Starbucks chains, free WIFI at hotels, public WIFI's, at home, etc.), I'm just not seeing the case for embedding so many devices with power-sucking, surreptitiously running and space-hogging cellular radios in devices that were never intended to be cell phones.

The Nokia 770, N800, N810 and (arguably) the N810WE were all GREAT with just WIFI for connectivity. I'd argue that the N800 had an INCREDIBLY powerful WIFI radio, especially. Considering how well that's worked out, and the move of Apple to provide non-cellular versions of devices (iPhone->iPod Touch, iPad G3->iPad Wifi). Google has changed the specs for Android so that it would run and make sense on non-cellular devices, recognizing that people might prefer a good embedded OS on a non-cellular device. Even Barnes and Nobles has decided to release a wifi-only version of their Nook eBook reader, very recently.

With the sneaky use of the N900's phone-home registration as an example, and the unnecessarily short battery life and added heft and smaller screen (comparing all these elements to earlier Internet Tablets), do we really want cellular connectivity in all our devices? At the very least, shouldn't there be an OPTION of getting a current generation device with WIFI only?

Long-time readers already know I'm biased toward WIFI-only with bluetooth/USB tethering to a cell-phone. I want my cell phones tiny and my computers JUST pocket-sized (even if it's a cargo pocket).

I, for one, prefer the demarcation of devices and the security of knowing that if I run out the battery playing games or video, I STILL have a teeny tiny cell phone on my hip with a charged battery and I can get out an emergency call for an ambulance if I get my arm stuck in a furnace.

Opinions?