Sony's new tablets

[grumpy3b]

Originally Posted by HansTWN

http://www.engadget.com/2011/04/26/s...ycomb-tablets/

That S2 actually would be an ideal phone for me.

very nice devices on first glance. I too like the S2 but one of the first thoughts was "a guy could get sea sick watching that thing". Why did I think it? Well I first thought about using it at a 60° angle with the bottom screen on a table. with people walking by or even air flow I could see it rocking a bit. Not enough to make me uninterested though. I really do want a nice portable device for OTG stuff and this might work. It will be interesting to see how well both work.

Sony builds great stuff. Well once upon a time. I used nothing but Sony PDA's before they turned to junk toward the end of the production life. Still I long for a quality Sony product again.

[Barty]

Hmm, I guess with that curved shape, there's just one way to hold it.

$699 for the s2. That is one expensive PSP!

Interesting that no one has undercut Apple's prices (I'm not talking about 7" tabs or cheap knockoffs). Which suggests Apple actually priced their iPad 1 very reasonably, even when they had the market to themselves. Who woulda thunk it.

[grumpy3b]

Originally Posted by Kali Yuga

True, but that doesn't mean Sony will want to cater to both markets, especially if the eInk device sales are tanking. I presume they can set up the LCD devices for compatibility with the existing software and formats.

very true. Sony is notorious for shutting down products even when they are profitable. Sony needs to meet certain goals and merely being well received or profitable is enough. Sony expects accelerating growth rates. Even steady growth is often not enough to keep a product live.

For those reasons I would not be surprised to see Sony drop or seriously scale back future EPD readers. Or they might keep them on life support until color EPD is viable. I don't imagine Sony likes the idea of a monochrome screen on anything they make. For now it might be viewed as a necessary evil.

I lived through it when they began killing off their PDA devices. Sony can be, well, mean. hahaha!

[tubemonkey]

Originally Posted by Barty

Interesting that no one has undercut Apple's prices (I'm not talking about 7" tabs or cheap knockoffs). Which suggests Apple actually priced their iPad 1 very reasonably, even when they had the market to themselves. Who woulda thunk it.

Or that all of them are pricing their tablets very unreasonably.

[kennyc]

Originally Posted by Kali Yuga

True, but that doesn't mean Sony will want to cater to both markets, especially if the eInk device sales are tanking. I presume they can set up the LCD devices for compatibility with the existing software and formats.

Certainly true in both cases.

[grumpy3b]

Originally Posted by Barty

Hmm, I guess with that curved shape, there's just one way to hold it.

$699 for the s2. That is one expensive PSP!

Interesting that no one has undercut Apple's prices (I'm not talking about 7" tabs or cheap knockoffs). Which suggests Apple actually priced their iPad 1 very reasonably, even when they had the market to themselves. Who woulda thunk it.

P.S. While the company isn't ready to talk prices yet, our sources told us back in February that Sony was considering a $599 MSRP on the S1 while the S2 would likely come in at $699.

Sorry that hardly constitutes a price set in stone. Hell it's not even a fact or even a factoid. It is pure speculation based on someone knows a person whose cousin has a buddy with a sister that once dated a guy with a nephew that lives over the bowling alley who walked by a Sony store and the numbers appeared to him in a burning garbage can.

[kjk]

Wonder if Sony will release exclusive S1/S2 games for these tablets, similar to the Xperia. Would be a big differentiator for some users.

[RainingLemur]

That S2 looks kinda nifty. Although, after playing with a Kyocera Echo (dual-screen smartphone that has a "tablet mode") having a "tablet" that is made up of 2 separate screens...just comes off weird. That dividing line between the screens keeps the experience from being too smooth.

[GlenBarrington]

Originally Posted by Kali Yuga

I'm curious if Sony will stop making eInk devices, if their tablets take off....

Why not? They have a L O O N G tradition of entering and then abandoning a variety of product markets (after spending a LOT of money!).

But, I think at this point, I wouldn't buy a lot of eInk stock, the market seems to lean towards other technology. Who knows though, technological breakthroughs happen all the time.

[Latinandgreek]

I am really excited for the new Sony tablets, and the rumoured Amazon tablet as well. I think the tablet market is really about to heat up...

[Latinandgreek]

Originally Posted by kennyc

I still think they are aimed at different markets/demographics. I still use both e-ink and tablet myself and don't expect that to change real soon...

Me, too. They both have different uses; I really hope that Sony keeps up the e-ink reader line, and that tablet's don't kill the e-ink reader market.