Sony not convinced 1m-plus iPads a real market

Sony is still only contemplating the idea of creating a tablet to challenge the iPad, the company's IT products senior VP Mike Abary said this week. Despite Apple selling over 1 million iPads in a month, the executive said Sony was "not convinced" the market was large enough for tablets. He also admitted that Sony had been thinking about a tablet for "years" but hadn't committed to the idea.

"We have been taking a deep look at developing a tablet for a number of years, not just because of Apple but because it creates some interesting opportunities," Abary told Bloomberg. "The iPad has created a new opportunity... now we can get a good judgment as to whether the market is truly accepting of it."

Instead, Sony would keep focusing on its Reader models, which include a pair of touchscreen models with one of these carrying 3G for downloadable books. It hoped to bolster Internet access and might have a color E Ink display as soon as early 2011.

The statements echo those from Sony Japan three months ago.

Sony has sometimes followed Apple into different device categories but has often taken a conservative approach that has cost it control or influence in the market. It lost the lead in MP3 players in Japan until brief period last year by depending too heavily on MiniDisc-based Walkman players and saw the iPhone and iPod touch impact Sony Ericsson as well as the PSP.

By Electronista Staff

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iPod, iPhone, sony, walkman, computers, gadgets, PSP, tablet, Sony Ericsson, Apple, Reader, iPad