Sony announced on Thursday the return to store shelves of its Xperia Tablet S after it temporarily pulled out the units due to a technical glitch. With its return, the device's tablet war with a similar device, the Microsoft Windows Surface, is expected to be revived.

A manufacturing error caused tiny gaps between Xperia Tablet S's 9.4-inch screen and its casing affecting about 100,000 units sold worldwide. Sony had fixed the problem.

Xperia Tablet S was released on October 2012, running on Android 4.0.3 Ice Cream Sandwich. During its absence from the market, similar phablets were released such as the refresh iPad 4, new iPad mini, Google Nexus 10, revamped Nexus 7, Nook HD, Amazon Kindle Fire HD and the Microsoft Surface.

Microsoft Surface release is expected to boost due to the release of the Windows 8 OS.

Both the Xperia Table S and Microsoft Surface have stunning features and almost the same speed and performance. The Sony Xperia Tablet S uses BRAVIA engine for its display while Surface has ClearType HD.

Xperia uses the LED Backlit LCD for screen while Surface is equipped with TFT capacitive touchscreen. Xperia Tablet S sports 9.4-inch of display screen with 800x1280 resolution and Microsoft Surface had a 10.6-inch screen with 1366x768 display resolution.

Both supports entertainment with great display viewing and have several standard codes like mp4 and DivX. The two devices uses Nvidia Tegra 3 as their chipset, Cortex A9 1.3GHz quad-core and ULP GeForce for graphics.

Sony Xperia Tablet S Features

  • Remote control functions with TV, cable box, Blu-ray Disc players and others that is not limited to Sony brand only. Play Music or Watch TV are executable commands using the tablet
  • Interactive visual guides of trending shows in social media and other sources with the option to watch on the TV and retains the remote control functions.
  • User control for kids and guests, allowing different customisable homescreens and apps for several users.
  • Music Unlimited service from Sony Entertainment
  • Video Unlimited service for the latest movies and TV shows from major studios
  • Reader Store with many selections of eBooks, newspapers, and magazines
  • SonySelect which provides updated list of useful applications selected by Sony

Microsoft Surface Features

  • Kickstand which serves as foundation and is very useful during movie time.
  • Touch cover which serves as both cover and spill resistant keyboard for typing.
  • Access to Microsoft Office and Xbox with integration synching of SkyDrive to store files and can be accessed in any computer
  • Business ready
  • Windows OS program compatibility and Windows 8 privileges and connectivity with other Windows 8 devices

Specifications

Sony Xperia Tablet S

Microsoft Surface RT

Operating System

Android OS 4.0 ICS

Microsoft Windows RT (Windows 8)

Processor

Quad-core 1.3GHz Cortex A9

Quad-core 1.3GHz Cortex A9

Memory

1GB RAM

2GB RAM

Storage

16/32/64 internal, up to 32GB expansion

32/64GB internal, up to 64GB expansion

Graphics Unit

Nvidia Tegra 3

Nvidia Tegra 3 T30

Browser

Built-in browser

Internet Explorer 10

Camera

8MP rear (1080p), 1MP front (720p)

1.2MP rear (720p), 1.2MP front (720p)

Protection

Oleophobic Coating, IPX4 certified splash proof

VaporMg casing, splash proof keyboard

The return to market of the Xperia Tablet S is considered by tech experts as timely for pre-Christmas order as high tech devices fast become favourite yearend holiday giveaways by companies and individuals.

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