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TOKYO (Reuters) – Sony launched its prototypal paper computers on weekday in an ambitious endeavor to clutch the No.2 blot from Samsung in a fast-growing mart submissive by Apple's year-old iPad.

The gadgets, based on Google's Android 3.0 operative system, could be some of the Japanese company's most important newborn products since the Playstation game housing prefabricated its debut in 1994.

Sony, also the creator of the Walkman and once a symbolisation of Japan's high-tech might, is now struggling to become up with hit devices and improve profit margins as it competes with Apple, Samsung Electronics and Nintendo.

"Expectations are low that some company crapper inform a credible contest to Apple," said diplomatist Defibaugh, director of justness investigate at MF Global in Tokyo.

Sony's tablets tie more than 100 iPad challengers based on Android, and may effort to evolve themselves, though Sony does have the plus of being able to unification the tablets to its recreation and recreation offerings.

"Being New into the paper mart is not necessarily a intense thing," said Geoff Blaber, nous of ambulatory figure software investigate at British IT psychotherapy concern CCS Insight.

"If certain manufacturers are captivating their instance to become to mart with something really distinguished from the iPad... that crapper be beatific for them in the daylong run."

Samsung's Galaxy Tab is Apple's strongest competitor while Motorola, LG Electronics and HTC are high the mart with tablets running Android.

A analyse publicised on weekday showed that Android is already losing some allure for software developers smitten with Apple -- message that fewer of the apps that draw customers to buy a creation are probable to be acquirable for Android.

Sony's black, shiny devices, code-named S1 and S2, module be the prototypal tablets to enable the use of PlayStation games, Kunimasa Suzuki, help chair of the consumer products and services group, said at Tuesday's media launch.

Sony is banking on the unusual, off-center organisation of the S1 and admittance to prototypal procreation PlayStation games and its another networked content to evolve the products from the flood of tablets in the market.

Sales of paper devices are expected to quadruple to most 294 meg units between 2011 and 2015, with almost half that Android-based, investigate concern Gartner has forecast.

Sony gave no clues on the toll of the newborn tablets, which module need to contend with the iPad2, offered at $499 and upwardly depending on the model.

"It has to be the aforementioned toll as the iPad or less," said shrink Shiro Mikoshiba of Nomura Securities. "They are in the function of having to grownup up with Apple, so they have to be captivating in terms of price."

Price lonely may not be enough. Research in Motion, which has priced the PlayBook to match the iPad, has struggled to get consumer fans since launching the figure terminal week.

Hewlett-Packard Co undraped its entrant in the paper vie in February.

Sony's tablets module be WiFi and 3G/4G compatible. S1 has a 9.4-inch display and a curved organisation that Sony said makes it easier to stop for daylong periods of time.

The S2 has digit 5.5-inch displays in a clamshell design, which Suzuki emphasized by producing one of them from his crown pocket during the launch.

Sony has seen its deal toll motion in the past decade as it struggled to ready up with rivals. Helped by its success in TVs and another products, Samsung's mart capitalization of some $134 billion dwarfs Sony's $30 billion mart value.

Sony's Kazuo Hirai, seen as a probable progeny to CEO Howard Stringer, prefabricated his prototypal public attendance at the circumstance after the company promoted the recreation division honcho to the number 2 function terminal month.

Google's Android honcho Andy Rubin was also on hand.

Shares in Sony, which unveils its quarterly results on May 26, fell 2.1 proportionality on weekday in a Nikkei mart downbound meet over 1 percent.

(Additional reporting by Miyoung Kim in Seoul and Georgina Prodhan in London; additional composition by Anshuman Daga; Editing by Jon Loades-Carter)

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