Sony's Tablet S Gets $100 Price Cut

Sony is now offering its PlayStation-certified tablet $100 cheaper although the reduction might not be enough to compete with the Kindle Fire.

The nation's first PlayStation certified tablet, the blandly-named Sony Tablet S, has reportedly taken a hit in the price tag to move more units off the shelf. According to reports, the Android-powered tablet is now selling for $100 less across the board, costing $499 for the 32 GB version and $399 for the 16 GB version.

While sporting an unusual shape, the Sony Tablet S has the advantage of providing native support for the Sony Entertainment Network which includes Music Unlimited, Video Unlimited and the PlayStation Network. Through Video Unlimited, users can either purchase or rent movies and TV episodes before they arrive at Blockbuster, Netflix or Redbox. Users can also purchase, store and stream music from the cloud thanks to the Android Market and Amazon MP3.

For those looking for a new tablet, the Sony Tablet S sports a Tegra 2 SoC, a 9.4-inch screen and a 1280 x 800 resolution. It also features 1 GB of internal memory, 16 GB or 32 GB of internal storage, a front-facing 0.3MP camera and a 5.0MP rear-facing camera. Other details include 802.11 b/g/n connectivity, Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR, an SD card slot for adding additional storage, a Li-Ion 5000mAh battery, and support for IR remote control functions.

For gamers, the Honeycomb tablet also provides access to PlayStation classics like Crash Bandicoot, MediEvil, Destruction Derby, Syphon Filter and more. Still, in a post-Kindle Fire world, even PlayStation certification may not help prevent the Sony Tablet S from suffering sluggish sales while consumers flock to Amazon's new $199 Android-based tablet. There's a lot of Amazon bang for the buck, and could push Sony into taking additional price cuts to keep the Tablet S revenue flow moving.