Sony Corp. is betting its tablet computers will rival Apple Inc.'s iPad by luring buyers with music and movies, even as the company arrives more than a year late in the booming market for such devices.
"Yes, yes, Apple makes an iPad, but does it make a movie?" Sony Chief Executive Officer Howard Stringer said in a presentation at Berlin's annual consumer electronics fair Wednesday. "We will prove that it's not who makes the tablet first who counts, but who makes it better."
Sony, reeling from three straight years of losses without a hit product, said it will sell its Tablet S in Europe from the end of this month for €479 (about ¥52,700). The Tablet P, a foldable compact, will be available on the continent starting in November for €599. Apple's iPad 2 costs from €479 in European markets such as Germany.