Sony Xperia Tablet S UK sales halted by splash-proofing woes

Avast ye, to the pumps, lads! Sony's Xperia Tablet S be shippin' water! The Japanese tech giant's newest tablet has had sales suspended in the UK and Ireland after a manufacturing error has left the 'splash-proof' tablet struggling to repel water.

In a statement sent to CNET UK, Sony confirmed that some Xperia Tablet S models released in September "may not meet the stated splash-proof specification" -- an issue that's down to "a minor space between the display panel and the back of the product".

If you own an Xperia Tablet S and you're worried about it not being as water resistant as advertised, Sony's detailed exactly which models could be affected. "Models SGPT121**, SGPT122** and SGPT123** are potentially subject to this issue," the Xperia T-maker explains.

Sony says it's preparing a "voluntary free inspection programme" for affected models that will see tablets repaired at zero cost, but notes that affected tablets don't pose any risk to your safety -- presumably the only danger is that your tablet could take on water, which as we all know is unlikely to do it any good.

Sony will post further updates, including the start date of that inspection programme, on its support page, so bookmark that site if you're a concerned owner.

Like its predecessor, the Sony Tablet S has a weird curved design, but arrived running Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich, although this is now a version behind the latest instance of Google's operating system.

Are you concerned about this tablet's manufacturing wobbles? Do you own the Xperia Tablet S, or is there another tablet you'd rather splash out on? Tell me in the comments or on our Facebook wall.