[MWC 2013] Sony Xperia Tablet Z Hands-on: Slim, Water-Resistant, and Powerful

Meet the Sony Xperia Z: The Awesomest Premium Android Tablet at MWC 2013

Alongside the Xperia Z, Sony unveiled a new tablet offering called the Sony Xperia Tablet Z during the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain. Gone are the weird form factors that Sony adopted with the Tablet S and Tablet P. The Xperia Z goes back to the basics: it’s razor thin, built with quality materials, runs on all four cylinders, and the design is simply breathtaking. We were able to play around with the Xperia Z at the Sony booth. Check out our initial impressions below!

Sony Xperia Tablet Z Spec Sheet

1.5GHz Quad-core Krait Qualcomm Snapdragon APQ8064
Adreno 320 GPU
2GB RAM
16GB Internal Storage, expandable up to 64GB via microSD Card
10.1-inches LED-backlit LCD capacitive touchscreen
1920×1200 resolution, 224 pixels per inch
8.1-megapixels rear-facing camera with autofocus, HDR
Can record video 1080p@30fps HDR
2.2-megapixels front facing camera
WiFi a/b/g/n, WiFi Hotspot, Bluetooth 4.0, GPS with A-GPS Support and GLONASS
3G, HSPA+, HSDPA, LTE Connectivity
Android 4.2 Jelly Bean
6,000mAh Battery

Supermodel of Android Tablets?

If there’s one thing going for the Sony Xperia Tablet Z it’s the fact that it’s scorching hot! Not hot in the sense that it gets warm but the supermodel sezzy lady kind. This is by far the nicest looking Android tablet we’ve seen. It’s razor thin, light, sleek, and just gorgeous! It’s one slab of sexy. Monoslabsexy. There we coined a new term, lol.

The good news is that it’s not just all looks. Other than the specifications (which we’ll tackle later), the Sony Xperia Tablet Z also has the same toughness that the Sony Xperia Z has. Yes ladies and gentlemen, this is a water-resistant monoslabsexy! The ports, like the microUSB, miniHDMI, and audio jack all have covers to make sure that water doesn’t leak into the device.

To check out the Xperia Tablet Z getting dipped in water, watch the video below. It should be at 1:30. Just fast forward if you want to skip to it.

Two thumbs up to Sony for the Xperia Tablet Z design. Definitely lightyears better than the Tablet P and S.

Beefed up specs complete with all the bells and whistles

Now we go to what’s under the hood. Powering the Xperia Tablet Z is a quad-core processor, 2GB RAM, and Android 4.2. All these components combined deliver a near flawless basic experience of Android. Transitions, animations, and graphics were smooth. Unfortunately we weren’t able to try any games but based on the spec sheet though it should pretty much handle whatever you throw at it.

The 8-megapixel rear-facing shooter promises decent photos but then again not everyone likes taking photos with their tablets, especially 10.1-inch ones, hehe.

Anyway, we’ll try to give you guys more details and insights to the software side once we get our hands on a unit.

Initial Verdict: It has me interested

We’ve never been excited about an Android Tablet as much as we are with the Xperia Tablet Z! It has all the right ingredients for a smash hit: specs, looks, and to a certain extent, an ecosystem. There are only two variables right now: pricing and marketing. For this to succeed it has to be less than the cost of the iPad, otherwise people will just go for Apple’s slab of coolness. Sony also has to mount a serious marketing campaign behind this otherwise it won’t get enough exposure to get customers.

Looking forward to seeing this in PH shores soon! We heard that it’s scheduled to hit India sometime in May so maybe we can expect it here around that time as well. 🙂