Sony announces a duo of PlayStation-certified Honeycomb tablets

Sony's tablet design leaked out in February and we've been waiting to hear more for nearly two months. Now, finally the company announced two new Honeycomb “Sony Tablets” - the Sony S1 and S2 - at its press event in Tokyo and both are PlayStation certified. The tablets both feature the standard Wi-Fi connectivity, but what's more interesting – they are both 3G/4G “compatible” as Sony puts it and we are hopeful that means full 4G connectivity once the tablets are released this fall.

The first one, codenamed Sony S1, also known as the Qriocity, comes with a 9.4-inch screen. It's a close copy of the mockup we saw back in February, focusing around an “off-center of gravity design,” which reportedly makes it easier to hold. Under the hood, an NVIDIA Tegra 2 chip is responsible for running Honeycomb skinned with a “Quick and Smooth” interface, tailor-made for touch input. The tablet also has both front and rear facing cameras. What Sony aims with the S1 is not only standalone functionality, but close integration with the company's line of products as the tablet doubles as an infrared remote for the company's TVs. In addition, PlayStation-certified instantly translates into loads of quality gaming time. Actually, we saw Crash Bandicoot running on the S1 with on-screen controls mimicking the look of a PlayStation controller.

The S2 reminds the Kyocera Echo with its dual-screen setup. Two 5.5-inch screens come with a resolution of 1024 x 480 pixels each. The S2 runs on a Tegra 2 chip and has a camera, while on the software side of things we have a custom-made user interface including a tweaked out book reader application and an email app allowing to type on one of the screens, while looking at the message on the other. The two screens are hinged together making the whole package look much like a bulky case for glasses, but as big as it seems Sony's own Kunimasa Suzuki demonstrated its pocketability by taking it out of the pocket of his jacket.

“‘Sony Tablet’ delivers an entertainment experience where users can enjoy cloud-based services on-the-go at any time. We’re aiming to create a new lifestyle by integrating consumer hardware, including ‘Sony Tablet’ with content and network,” Suzuki mentioned. Check out the video below for a first peek at the look of the tablets and don't hesitate to let us know what you think about the Sony tablets in the comments below.

source: Sony