Sony tackles Apple with tablet release

Sony will introduce a new tablet computer this year, in a bid to win back customers from rivals Apple and Samsung.

The electronics company says the product will be released first in Japan, as the struggling electronics maker tries to halt four straight annual losses.

Labelled the Xperia Tablet Z, the product will be 6.9mm thick, weighing 495 grams with a 10.1-inch display.

While a price hasn't yet been confirmed, Bloomberg claim the device could be available in Japan as early as March, with other countries set to follow at a later date.

After debuting its first tablet in 2011, Sony's CEO Kazuo Hirai has reiterated his focus on the mobile devices industry, as he desperately tries to revive the firm.

"It's a rational strategy for Sony to focus on mobile devices including tablets as its TV business is no longer a cash cow," Keita Wakabayashi, analyst, Mito Securities in Tokyo, told Bloomberg.

"Still, the tricky part of the tablet business is that products can conflict with laptop computers on one hand and smartphones on the other."

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