Shortly after Apple Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL) announced Wednesday that both AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) and Verizon Wireless will be offering the iPad 2 on their 3G networks, the carriers took to social media to promote their respective networks. (See Apple iPad 2: The Basics and Apple Live Event as It Happens.)

As usual, Verizon went into attack mode and AT&T went on the defense.

Verizon Wireless tweeted from its official handle a not-so-subtle dig to AT&T: "You have a choice between 2 identical-looking cars. One drives everywhere fast! The other fast -- then OOPS! The network drops it."

In a separate Twitter account, @VZWNetwork, Verizon teased: "Who leads the way in call quality? Check back tomorrow to find out..."

Around the same time, AT&T CTO John Donovan posted a blog assuring users that AT&T will continue to work on improving the network experience. He reiterated that AT&T saw its traffic grow by 8,000 percent in the past four years and that it will invest $19 billion in capital to improve its wireless and wired networks this year.

"We know that we still can make call quality even better in some markets," Donovan wrote in the blog. "That work is our top priority for 2011. We’ll be sharing specific plans for many markets in the weeks to come."

Many have pointed out that Apple made a few network missteps with the iPad 2. First, Apple didn't include support for Long Term Evolution (LTE) in the device. Second, without a dual-mode chip, different models are required for the tablet to run on CDMA and HSPA, so consumers have to choose their carrier up front. And finally, Apple didn't offer the iPad to Sprint Corp. (NYSE: S) nor T-Mobile US Inc. .

All this means that AT&T and Verizon will continue to duke it out over 3G coverage alone, and consumers will vote with their wallets as they did with the iPhone 4.

— Sarah Reedy, Senior Reporter, Light Reading Mobile