As the IFA 2012 event draws closer, tech gurus and fans eagerly await a wave of tablet launches. The tablet race heats up with major players like Sony, Lenovo, and Acer vying for top honors.

Samsung

Samsung recently released a teaser video for its forthcoming Windows 8 device on the Samsung Notebook YouTube channel. The video showcased images of what it called the "evolution of technology". The specifications and features of the Samsung offering are veiled in obscurity, but a glimpse of the screen bezel suggests that the device in question is a tablet rather than a laptop. According to CNet UK, the Asus Transformer-style tablet may be released with a keyboard dock. Experts opine that given Samsung's penchant for jaw-dropping surprises, the tablet-laptop hybrid may make its debut at the IFA 2012.

Sony

Japan-based Sony is leaving no stone unturned to ensure that it strikes the right chord with consumers. Rumors and leaks indicate that the company will unveil the Sony Xperia Tablet at the IFA 2012 event. Weighing 540 gms, the 9.4-inch Sony Xperia Tablet has a capacitive touchscreen and a Nvidia's Tegra 3 processor with 1GB of RAM. The 8.8mm thick aluminum body is believed to be splash proof. The tablet sports an 8-megapixel rear-facing and 1-megapixel front-facing camera, an improvement on its predecessors. The tablet has 16/32/64GB internal memory options, as well as a microSD card slot which enables up to 32GB of additional memory. The Wi-Fi- enabled tablet packs a punch with its 6000mAh battery (up to 10 hours of usage) and will run on Android 4.0 ICS.

Lenovo

Lenovo showcased its IdeaPad Yoga at the CES in January and wowed aficionados and fans with its features. Considering the fact that the reversible tablet-laptop hybrid is yet to hit the shelves, it may well make a reappearance at the IFA. The 13.3-inch touchscreen Yoga (with 1600x900 resolution) comes with a keyboard that folds to almost 360 degrees and hides itself in the process, transforming it into a tablet. At 16.9mm thick and weighing 1.47kg, the IdeaPad Yoga is quite bulky by tablet standards thanks to its flip-and-fold design. Intel Core i3/i5/i7 will power the device that will pack in 256GB of SSD storage. The IdeaPad Yoga runs on Microsoft's Windows 8 OS and the entry-level model is priced at $1,199.

Aug. 31 to Sept. 5 will mark a new beginning for many companies. Whether IFA 2012 brings additional surprises to consumers remains to be seen.