Today I went snooping around Sony’s support site where I was able to uncover some support documents for their upcoming S1 and S2 tablets that have gone public before they were supposed to.

From the leaked documents, I’ve found that the S1 and S2 will most likely be shipping with Android 3.2 as opposed to 3.0 or 3.1:

The same screenshot also shows us that the model of this particular tablet is called “Sony Tablet 5 (or maybe S?) inch which is likely an internal codename.

It’s good to know that the S1 and S2 will ship with 3.2 as many tablet owners are still waiting to get their 3.1 updates!

Sony will also be including a ‘Wi-Fi Checker’ app which will presumably help people connect properly to the web, perhaps with more complicated enterprise connections in mind:

Screenshots of the app launcher also indicate that Sony will be including a Chumby app. Chumby is a sort of internet companion that’s designed for a bedside table. Sony’s Dash ‘Internet Viewer’ is powered by the Chumby OS, so it makes sense that the S1 and S2 will be able to use the Chumby app to fill a Dash-like role, though the redundancy between Chumby and the ‘Dash Dock’ is perplexing.

Along with the Chumby app, other screenshots show Zinio, indicating that this will likely come pre-installed as well. Zinio is a digital magazine publishing platform with apps available for iOS and Android.

According to one document demonstrating how to charge the S1, the device will be using a proprietary adapter, which means you’ll be out of luck if you need a charge and didn’t bring your adapter with you! And you definitely won’t be able to fit that adapter on a keychain.

Another screenshot shows us how the keyboard looks, and it will apparently have a number pad, though it can’t be determined if this will be there all of the time or just some of the time (or perhaps it can be toggled?):

There’s also a look at Sony’s Music Player app which will include Sony’s creepily named SenseMe mode which seeks to play music based on your mood.

And just for good measure, here’s the homescreen:

The S1 and S2 are due out this fall, though Sony keeps reminding us that the names are unofficial and may be changed! We’ve got a close eye on these two interesting devices, even if I’m still not convinced that they represent better value than Archos’ awesome new tablets.

Sony is steadily releasing short videos showing some pretty awesome Rube Goldberg machines involving their upcoming S1 and S2 tablets to build hype for the devices.

The tablets, which were recently previewed for the press, are expected to hit the market this Fall. I suppose Sony hopes to keep our attention with these videos until then, but by the time that Fall rolls around, we might begin to see Kal-El devices which will likely blow these tablets out of the water.

We may as well enjoy these interesting videos for the time being. Have a look!

What do you think, will it be too late for these tablets come Fall?

Some members of the media were granted access to a Sony event held in Germany yesterday. Front and center at the event were the Sony S1 and S2 Tablets (which were first announced back in April), both of which take a differentiated approach to the tablet solution. Quite a few sites got some hands-on time, so let’s go through some of the general impressions.

As one would expect, Sony seems to have nailed the hardware design. The S1 is a “full-sized” 9.4 inch tablet running Android 3.0 Honeycomb. Most of the press seem to feel that its design invokes the feeling of a folded newspaper or magazine. One item of note is that the rear of the device is textured, which should result in better grip. I think a lot of tablet manufacturers fail to recognize the importance of grip in a tablet device. Good grip can compensate for a device that might otherwise be deemed too heavy.

In stark contrast to the S1’s design, the S2 features two 5.5 inch screens, and folds into a clamshell position for transport. It also currently runs Android 3.0 Honeycomb. I suspect that the actual OS version at launch might be a step-up of the 3.x-series by the time the S1 and S2 ship. Sony was mum on specs today. However, they did announce that the S2 will launch running on AT&T’s 4G network. AT&T has an HSPA+ network now, and is deploying LTE networks this summer. No one from the press appeared to get specific word on which variant the S2 will support, or if it will support both.

While most 10-inch Android Tablets are deploying with 1200 X 800 displays, the S1 has a 1280 X 768 screen. Despite the slightly lower resolution, the report from Germany is that viewing angles were good from both side and overhead perspectives.

Both devices are Playstation Certified. The jury is stil out on whether or not this feature is truly value-added. It certainly has not hepled reception of the Xperia Play, which debuted to lukewarm reviews.

This Is My Next caught a solid video of the S1 and S2 in action:

All-in-all, the hands-on reports seem to indicate positive interest. Of course, the proof will have to wait until the actual launches. No one is really certain how the Sony proprietary customizations of the Android OS (Quick View and Quick Touch) will be received. Sony’s Android solutions have not been hits so far, neither have they been complete failures. We’ll definitely let you know if these devices hit the mark or not when they release later this year.