Whoa, get ye ready folks.
Sony’s tablet challenger to Apple’s iPad is expected to hit the market next month, well in time to tap into the lucrative holiday shopping season in North America if all goes well.
But all’s not likely to go well for the Sony S1 tablet if the experience of the other iPad challengers is anything to go by.
Sony’s 9.4-inch, Android 3.1-based S1 multitouch touchscreen tablet includes front and back cameras as well as a USB socket.
The tablet supports WiFi and 3G/4G for those desirous of connectivity while on the move. Consumers can also use the S1 as a remote to control their Sony Bravia TV sets.
Although Sony also has a smaller 5.5-inch dual-display S2 tablet in the works, we expect the larger-screen S1 will be the company’s primary go-to-market tablet weapon against the iPad, the Samsung Galaxy Tab and the rest of the market.
Sony S1 Tablet – Coming in September
Sony Sets Big Target
At the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas earlier this year, Sony’s Deputy President of the consumer products and services group Kunimasa Suzuki boldly declared that the company was aiming for the No. 2 spot in the tablet market within a year.
Surely, an ambitious target for the upstart because it’d mean displacing Samsung from the No-2 perch in just four months.
Although Samsung has had to cravenly surrender and genuflect at the altar of the iPad, it’s no slouch when it comes to competing against the lesser players.
With the Galaxy Tab 10.1-inch device, Samsung is already in its second generation tablet and has presumably gained some expertise in design, manufacturing, marketing and developer relations as well as a small fringe following.
It’s safe to say that Samsung is unlikely to easily cede ground to Sony.
Sony S1 Tablet – New Challenger to iPad
Big Question for Sony
But the big challenge for Sony is not in upstaging Samsung but how to ultimately avoid the same tragic fate of HP’s recently killed TouchPad or that of other struggling tablet vendors with no takers for their products in the stores.
As the fate of other iPad challengers has made clear, adding support for Flash or having a better resolution screen or higher megapixel camera is no protection from the predatory appetite of the iPad juggernaut, which has so far mercilessly pulverized every tablet competitor in its path. Continue reading »
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