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Sony Xperia Z3 Tablet Compact shows off its waterproof body (pictures)

The Sony Xperia Z3 Tablet Compact is an 8-inch, full HD tablet from Sony that packs a powerful quad-core processor and can act as a screen for your PS4 games.

Andrew Lanxon
Andrew is CNET's go-to guy for product coverage and lead photographer for Europe. When not testing the latest phones, he can normally be found with his camera in hand, behind his drums or eating his stash of home-cooked food. Sometimes all at once.
Andrew Lanxon
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If Sony's 10-inch Xperia Z2 tablet is too large, cast your eyes over the new Xperia Z3 Tablet Compact. Long name aside, this new chap comes in at 8 inches, making it much more easy to carry around.

It still packs in some impressive technology and, like its siblings, is completely waterproof.

The Z3 Tablet Compact is due to hit shelves some time from October, although Sony is yet to say how much it will cost or in which regions it will be available.

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Its 8-inch size means this tablet is comfortable to hold and use in one hand and is just about small enough to slide into an inside jacket pocket.

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It's extremely thin.

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It's longer and thinner than the iPad Mini. Its 16:9 aspect ratio means you can watch movies without those annoying black bars.

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It's a neat-looking piece of kit, but it doesn't feel as premium or as sturdy as the metal-framed iPad Mini.

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It arrives with the latest Android 4.4.4 KitKat on board.

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A neat new addition is the ability to use the tablet as a wireless display for your PlayStation 4 console. The console still does the processing, but it streams the game to your tablet, letting you play actual PS4 titles while in the bathroom, Wi-Fi permitting. Your PS4 controller connects to the tablet via Bluetooth, which is neat.

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There's a 2-megapixel front-facing camera for video calling or, more likely, selfies.

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The Sony interface is much the same as you'll find on most of the recent Xperia devices. It's pretty easy to use.

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The settings menu is far easier to understand than the vast list of changeable options on Samsung's recent devices.

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Being completely waterproof, it doesn't matter if you splatter it with jam while cooking and watching "Breaking Bad" -- just pop it in with the rest of the washing up.

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The screen has a 1,920x1,080-pixel resolution, which isn't as high as the screens you'll find on the iPad Mini or Samsung's Galaxy Tab S 8.4.

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Sony's usual sticking-out power button is in place.

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A 3.5mm headphone jacks sits on the side.

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It packs a 2.5GHz quad-core processor, which should provide more than enough power for all your tasks.

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