| There was absolutely no mistaking either of Sonys previous tablets for anything else they had a look all their own. The Xperia Tablet S is considerably less notable, but thats probably a good thing: this is a much better-looking slate, handsome and minimalist with rounded edges, a classy silver-and-black color scheme, and a thin profile. The top edge rolls over into the back, giving it the look and feel of a folded-over magazine page its grippy texture also makes it much more comfortable to hold one-handed. I like the look, but its purely aesthetic this time on the previous Tablet S the fold propped the device up at a nice typing-friendly angle, but here the flap is much smaller and doesnt really change anything. The Tablet S took the idea too far, I think, but the Xperia Tablet S might not go quite far enough. |
| Still, its a decent-looking device, if a little boring. The 9.4-inch display is surrounded by a big, glossy black bezel, with a Sony logo placed above the screen and to the left. Weirdly, the logo looks good there. Its not nearly as obtrusive as most center-located, glittery silver logos its just a quiet reminder that youre using a Sony tablet. (Of course, Id trade it for no logo at all, but Ill take what I can get.) The 1.3-pound body is almost exactly the same weight as the iPad, and at 8.9mm (at its thinnest point, the flap is slightly larger) its about a sheet of paper thinner than Apples latest tablet. It feels like any other Android tablet to hold and use I couldnt say either about Sonys other tablets, and Ill take conformity over Sonys quirky previous designs even though I wish Sony would take a few more chances. | | Theres some space on the Xperia Tablets edges created by the fold-over plastic flap, and thats where Sony hides most of the devices physical buttons. Theres a power button and a volume rocker on the right side, and a headphone jack on the left side above a hard-to-open, easy-to-break flap that covers a full SD card slot. Having the full SD slot is pretty awesome syncing any Android device with a computer is a pain, and its much easier to just throw a document or movie (mostly movies, in my case) onto a card and plug it into the tablet. Sony uses a proprietary charging port / dock connector, which is set so far back into the bottom of the tablet that it takes a big bite out of the bottom edge. Its surely for the purposes of sturdier docking, but it looks terrible fortunately you cant see it from the front. | | There are two cameras on the device, an 8-megapixel sensor on the back and a single megapixel on the front. Both are exactly what they need to be, and nothing more: the rear camera takes decent shots in a pinch, and the front camera is fine for video chat. I dont recommend going out of your way to use either one. |
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