Sony S1 and S2 teaser video shows off gaming, movie and ebook chops

A third teaser video for the upcoming Sony S1 and S2 Android Honeycomb tablets has been released, showing off the quirky slates' multimedia abilities, including movie playback and the S2's gift for displaying ebooks and playing games.

The videos, which feature a seemingly part-CGI Heath Robinson machine (seriously, what's the point in doing it if it's not really happening?), have thus far been unhelpful in terms of actually showing off features.

But in this one -- embedded below for your delectation -- you'll spot the 9.4-inch S1 tablet rattling through movie playback, and ploughing through MP3s like a tablet possessed.

The S2 gets a more interesting showing though -- we've been mulling over uses for those two 5.5-inch touchscreens, and the video confirms our inkling that its key duties will include displaying ebooks across both screens in portrait mode, and playing games.

When it's time to get your game on, we'd hazard the S2 is held like the dual-screen Nintendo 3DS, with touch controls on the lower panel and most of the action kicking off on the top screen.

Sounds tempting, but to be honest we're concerned. Memories of the Sony Ericsson Xperia Play's rubbish software still haunt our nightmares, rising unbidden into our dreams like the sunken ghosts of drowned pirates.

If Sony's going to spread Google's Android OS over two screens, it's going to need a serious amount of tweaking to make it work. Both tablets are PlayStation-certified, but we'll be disappointed if that means plumping for age-old identikit ports of PSOne games -- another gripe we had with the Xperia Play.

Still, we'll try and remain optimistic. The S1 has a tipped pre-order date of 1 September, so we don't have too long to wait to find out exactly how good both tablets are. We wouldn't bet on them still being called the S1 and S2 by the time they're released though -- Sony will likely plump for a trendier, catchier name like the Sony Kumquat, or the Sony Glass Coffee Table.

By slowly bleeding out info on these twin tablets, Sony is at least showing that it hasn't forgotten how to imbue tech with an air of suspenseful mystery. Or at least, it would have an air of suspenseful mystery if hands-on snaps of the S1 and S2 hadn't already leaked all over the Internet.

If you want to see our own snaps of the S1 and S2 tablets turned off and behind glass, we can cater to your needs. In the meantime, let us know if you'd consider buying a Sony tablet in the comments below, or on our Facebook page.