After a somewhat mediocre reception to its first Android tablets, the Tablet S and Tablet P, Sony launched a much more attractive-looking second generation device called the Xperia Tablet S.
That sleek tablet is now available to buy, just a short time after its official reveal at the IFA annual tech event in Berlin. We think Sony has really nailed the design this time, and the unique design is very appealing to the suave geek inside us.
Two Wi-Fi only models are currently available to buy from Sony in the UK: the 16GB model for £329 and a 32GB version which will set you back a reasonable £379. To put that into perspective, the 16GB Wi-Fi iPad 3 costs £399, while the 32GB Wi-Fi only model costs £100 more at £479.
Sony also mentioned a version of the tablet that would feature 3G connectivity for internet on the go as well as Wi-Fi, and this model is currently available to pre-order for £429, with 16GB of onboard storage.
These prices put the Xperia Tablet S between the iPad 3 from Apple and the Galaxy Tab 10.1 2 from Samsung, which is cheaper but far less attractive in our opinion. The Xperia Tablet S offers Android Ice Cream Sandwich (version 4.0) along with Sony’s own user interface, with a powerful 1.3GHz quad-core Nvidia Tegra 3 processor and 1GB of RAM.
We don’t like to think of a tablet as a suitable camera, but Sony has ensured you’ll get decent pictures using its tablet thanks to the 8-megapixel rear camera and a 1.3-megapixel front camera for video calling. There’s also a hefty 6,000 mAh battery crammed inside the slim shell, for a battery life that rivals the iPad’s 10 hours.
Sony has kept the ‘folded magazine’ shape on the back of the tablet, but slimmed it down plenty from the original design. A good 10mm has been shaved off in some areas, and splashproofing has been added to make sure a little water won’t wreck your shiny gadget.
If that specification isn’t enough to sway you, Sony has promised to upgrade the tablet to Android Jelly Bean in the not too distant future.
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Via: Sony UK