The waterproof Sony Xperia Z tablet is now available in the United States, starting at $499.
Customers worldwide can now order the sleek tablet directly from Sony or at third-party retailers.
The 16GB Wi-Fi only version of the Xperia Z tablet costs $499.99, while the 32GB Wi-Fi model runs $599.99. Sony also makes a 16GB LTE-enabled version, but no word on the availability for that model.
"Sony Mobile today announced that Xperia Tablet Z - the world's slimmest, lightest premium Android tablet - is now available to buy across the globe through Sony's retail and operator partners as well as online channels. The multi-award winning product -- which recently picked up a Red Dot Design Award 2013 -- has received the largest number of pre-orders of any Sony tablet to date," wrote Sony in a press release.
The Xperia Z tablet hits the market as the modding community has taken notice. Last week Sony released the source code for the Xperia Z tablet, giving modders the opportunity to dissect it over the weekend. A stable release candidate is now available for CyanogenMod 10.1, one of the most popular Android ROMs, which is based on Android 4.2. The stock Xperia Z tablet ships with Android 4.1, so it's an opportunity to get ahead of the official Sony updates.
The Sony Xperia Z tablet is the world's thinnest and lightest Android tablet, weighing just 1.09 pounds and measuring just over a quarter inch thick. It features a 1.5GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro processor, 2GB of RAM, a 10-inch 1900x1200 display, an 8-megapixel camera and runs Android 4.1 Jelly Bean, though Sony has promised a quick upgrade to 4.2. It is waterproof down to a meter in depth for up to half an hour.
Check back for the latest information on the Xperia Z tablet as it becomes available.