On Thursday, Nov. 1, U.S. carrier Sprint announced that it would begin offering Samsung's Galaxy Tab 2 10.1, its first 4G LTE tablet for $549.99 from Nov. 11.

"Sprint, the only national carrier with Truly Unlimited℠ 4G LTE data for smartphones while on the Sprint network, will offer its first 4G LTE tablet, Samsung Galaxy Tab® 2 10.1, beginning Sunday, Nov. 11, for $549.99 (excluding taxes and surcharges)," stated the press release.

The tablet will be available in Sprint's retail stores or online the carrier's Web site. Additionally, potential customers can order by calling "1-800-SPRINT1." The Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 supports Sprint's new 4G LTE network and will be available with LTE plans. The plans start at $14.99 per month (for 300MB of data).

Consumers also have the option of purchasing the 3GB, 6GB, or 12GB monthly plans for $34.99, $49.99, or $79.99, respectively. Sprint also claims that its new plans offer 20 percent more data for the same price than rival AT&T.

"Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 brings Sprint 4G LTE to a new category of device and expands a portfolio already recognized as one of the industry's best," said David Owens, VP - Product Development, Sprint. "This new tablet combined with the Sprint 4G LTE network and our aggressively priced tablet rate plan options offer consumers and business users an exciting new way to stay connected and productive with a large workspace in an easily portable device."

The Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 sports a 10-inch display and is powered by a 1.5GHz dual-core processor. The tablet also has a 3-megapixel rear-facing camera and a VGA front-facing snapper. A powerful 7000mAh battery fuels the tablet which will come pre-loaded with Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich.

Additionally, thanks to the tablet's built-in IR Blaster, the Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 can be used as a "universal smart remote that helps users easily find their favorite TV shows and control their TV, set top box and other home theater equipment."

Sprint's existing smartphone customers have the option to add the Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 to their account at discounted rates for either a $15 per month (1GB of data) or $10 per month (100MB of data) plan. What's more, for a limited period Sprint is waiving off the activation fee on all 3G/4G LTE tablets.

Sprint introduced its LTE network earlier in July this year. The carrier currently offers services in 32 U.S. cities. Recently, Sprint announced that the 4G LTE network would be rolled out to additional 115 cities in the "coming months.