Sony Tablet S Tablet Review

Screen

Employing a capacitive screen that is roughly 8 x 5, the Sony Tablet S is a little smaller than the iPad and some of the other larger competitors, but it still has a respectable size. Perhaps it's a little more appropriately sized for travel, as some of the bigger tablets out there can be a bit unwieldy and awkward.

With a resolution of 1280 x 800, the Sony Tablet S has a DPI (dots per inch) of 160, giving it a competitive score among the other big kids on the block (who typically have DPI of 145 for 10-inch screens).

Indoor & Outdoor Use

Due to the Tablet S using an LCD screen, its visibility becomes an issue the more direct sunlight reaches the screen. Because LCD screens on the whole are almost universally more reflective than eInk screens, and the fact that this type of display needs a backlight to operate, many tablets are easily overpowered by even overcast sun because of the difficulty in striking a balance between performance and battery life. Looking at the comparison photos below, you can see that it doesn't take a whole heck of a lot of sun to completely obfuscate the image on the screen. This is not a tablet that does well away from the house.