Sony Officially Launches Tablet S and Tablet P

Sony is now taking pre-orders for the Sony Tablet S which is slated to arrive next month. The book-styled Sony Tablet P will be released later this year.

Wednesday Sony officially announced its long-awaited Android tablets, the blandly named Sony Tablet S and Sony Tablet P (seriously, Sony?). The former tablet is up for pre-sale starting today, and will land on store shelves next month (September). The Sony Tablet P device will be released later on this year at an unspecified date.

Launching next month, the Sony Tablet S will feature a 9.4-inch touchscreen display backed by Nvidia's Tegra 2 SoC and Android 3.1. As reported earlier, the tablet will sport a rather unusual "folded" asymmetric design that shifts the device’s weight closer to your palm, and will also have an overall weight of 1.33-lbs "for hours of comfortable use." Also included will be a front and rear-facing camera, built-in Wi-Fi conectivity, an SD card slot and support for a micro-USB interface.

"The screen is sloped when placed on a flat surface, enhancing visibility and making typing more comfortable," the company said. "Placing a Sony Tablet S device onto a specialized charging cradle (sold separately) converts the device into a digital photo frame, a digital clock that displays customizable information or chumby with access to over 1,500 fun and entertaining apps."

As for the upcoming Sony Tablet P, the device will mimic a virtual magazine/book using two 5.5-inch displays and an innovative folding design. Overall the device will weigh around 0.83-lbs and could easily fit into a pocket, purse or backpack. Like it's larger "Tablet S" brother, it will come packed with Nvidia's Tegra 2 SoC, Wi-Fi connectivity, a front and rear-facing camera, an SD card slot and support for a micro-USB interface. But it will also be 4G-capable (exclusively on AT&T) and use Google's Android 3.2 OS.

"Software taking advantage of the unprecedented design of the Sony Tablet P device allows its dual screens to be used for different functions simultaneously such as playing video on one screen while using the other as a controller or reading email on one screen while using the other as a virtual keyboard," the company explained. "The displays can also be combined to form a single large screen for Internet browsing and more. By holding the device vertically, you can also read eBooks much in the same manner you would a physical book."

On the software front, both tablets will be crammed with Sony's Video Unlimited and Music Unlimited services, its Reader Store and its Personal Space cloud storage for sharing pictures and videos captured on the tablets. And, as reported earlier, both tablets are PlayStation Certified and include full versions of the original PSOne game Crash Bandicoot and Pinball Heroes pre-installed (via the PlayStation Suite). Both tablets are also Google certified, so users will have access to the Android Market and other Google-related applications.

"These devices truly represent the best of everything Sony has to offer," said Mike Lucas, senior vice president of Sony Electronics’ Networked Technology and Services Division. "From hardware to software and services, Sony Tablet devices embody all our innovations rolled into one."

The Sony Tablet S device is available in both a 16 GB and 32 GB versions, and will be sold at Sony Stores including online and other authorized retailers nationwide for about $499 and $599, respectively. So far pricing and availability for the Sony Tablet P is unknown.