Sony’s own Android tablet, the Tablet S, which was also known as S1 when we heard of it last April, was officially unveiled during Sony’s conference at IFA 2011. This tablet sports a wedge-like design unlike the usual flat, rectangular slab of slates available right now.
When holding it in portrait mode, it feels like a folded magazine in one hand. Lay it down on the table and it will have an incline making it easy for you to peck on its onscreen keyboard. It’s a fresh take on a tablet design but will it pay off? Engadget, who was able to play with one, comments that thumb typing is a bit awkward as the thinner edge tends to hurt your palm over prolonged use. Then the sloped design makes it difficult to play games when placed on your lap. One thing’s for sure, Apple won’t sue them for copying the design.
Anyway, the Sony Tablet S runs on NVIDIA Tegra 2 SoC just like most Android tablets and has a 9.4-inch screen with a 1280 x 800 resolution. It also uses a Sony Bravia technology called TruBlack for contrast that looks good in any angle.
Another notable feature is an SD card reader on the side which unfortunately, doesn’t allow you to read files straight from it. You need to copy files from the SD card first to your internal storage so you have to decide hard whether to get the 16GB or 32GB.
What also sets this apart from other tablet is that it has an IR port letting you use it as a universal remote for your home appliances. Then it is also PlayStation Certified allowing you to play classic Playstation games from a custom game store.
No local release for the Sony Tablet S yet but it’s priced at $499 for the 16GB and $599 for 32GB. Very similar to how the iPad 2 and Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 is priced so it looks like these are WiFi models only.
Read Engadget’s take on the Sony Tablet S to learn more about this device.
