AT&T asks for Windows Phone 7 tablets, Microsoft says no.

AT&T’s Mobility CEO Ralph de la Vega has said  that tablets should be driven by a mobile OS.

"There’s a tablet revolution going on. Almost every major OEM is coming up with a tablet device," said de la Vega, in an interview with a CNBC reporter outside the launch event. "The size, the ease of use, is going to be fantastic for the industry," said de la Vega.

"The interesting thing about tablets is they’re going to be driven by mobile operating systems as opposed to desktop operating systems," he said.

Ralph lauded mobile operating systems as more responsive, energy efficiency, and lightweight footprint are far better suited for tablets than their PC-bound counterparts.

Microsoft’s Steve Ballmer did not however agree.  In July he told financial analysts  Windows 7 tablets has was the winner.

"We’ve got the application base, we’ve got the user familiarity, we’ve got everything in our favor," he said.

Greg Sullivan, senior product manager at Microsoft, said Windows Phone 7 was designed for small screens, and that Windows 7 will be adapted for low power designs, and will provide both a rich application experience and touch-based capabilities.

He also claimed Windows 7 would offer greater networking and printing capabilities  as well as a more powerful software and driver stack that would make it easier for tablets to communicate with other products.

It is widely expected that Microsoft is waiting for Intel’s new Oak Trail chipset, which promises laptop performance at smartphone energy usage to fully realize the benefits of Windows 7 on tablets. In the mean time however the market appears to be running away with tablets based on mobile operating systems, with between 30-45 million iPads predicted to be sold in 2011.

Is Microsoft being obstinate or wise by insisting on Windows 7 on tablets? Let us know below.