Thursday, October 31, 2013

A Cradle Song...er... Review. The Sony Xperia Tablet Z Cradle Review

I'm a fan of official stands and cradles. I wish more manufacturers would at least offer them as official accessories.

Since I purchased my Xperia Tablet Z, I wanted a nice way to display it at home instead of just laying on a table with the charging cable dangling out. So I waited (and waited) for Sony PH to release it. But being as late as they are, I decided to get it from Amazon.com (although there are several gray market vendors that carry it now for about the same price)

Initial impression are good. I like the fact that the stand is fully adjustable, and not just a few select angles. Charging is much quicker and less prone to damaging the USB charging cover on the tablet itself. Although the charging port on the cradle is at an odd angle and location, I was expecting it to be facing the rear, instead it's hidden behind the stand and facing off to one side. Odd, but no big deal.

Guide rails are smooth and makes inserting the tablet into place very quick and easy. No issues or problems sliding it in. It also triggers a SmartConnect action as it is recognized as a Sony Smart Accessory so you can have it trigger an action upon docking. The default action is to launch the DayDream app which is like a screensaver.

Two shortcomings though, one is that there is NO CHARGER INCLUDED with the dock, as you are supposed to use your existing charger. Not that big a deal considering it isn't expensive, but it would've been nice to at least have a long micro USB cable included. Two, there is no audio/HDMI out. This would've added significant cost to the dock, but it would be a nice option. I hate having other cables connected and was hoping I could plug everything to the dock instead. I know there are Bluetooth and Miracast options but I do prefer hardwired connections when possible.

If you like displaying your tablet at home or at work, this is a very nice accessory. Charging speed is quite improved (even using your existing charger) and offers nice viewing angles for both typing text and watching videos.

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