BlackBerry CEO Thorsten Heins seems to be among the most transparent executives in tech in terms of showing his hand regarding future product plans, which may be partly because he doesn’t have much to lose at this point. In an interview yesterday, he downplayed tablet computing in what looks to be an indicator that BlackBerry will drop the PlayBook, its own lame duck tablet and the first of its… → Read More
BlackBerry is launching the Z10 today in the U.S., but it’s already looking ahead to what comes next, according to an interview between ABC’s Joanna Stern and BlackBerry CEO Thorsten Heins. The company is working on ways that BlackBerry software can power your laptop or tablet, too, and all from your smartphone. Heins sounds like he’s describing an Asus PadFone, and revealed a dream of a personal… → Read More
Our own John Biggs could tell you that there were some terribly neat projects to be found at the PennApps Hackathon, but not every app there was… on the up-and-up, let’s say. Case in point: a group of young developers whipped up an iOS app called Playbook that lets people upload and rate pictures of their romantic conquests with their so-called “bros.”
Really. Just let that sink in for a… → Read More
RIM is not done with the PlayBook. The company just announced a major update for its tablet. The software update will be available later today for the WiFi PlayBook and brings a host of significant improvements. With this update the tablet now sports SMS capabilities through BlackBerry Bridge, data encryption on personal accounts, and improved Android application support. → Read More
RIM announced the 4G LTE BlackBerry PlayBook earlier this month and it’s finally available from several Canadian carriers. The LTE tablet is slightly upgraded from its WiFi-only counterpart with a 1.5GHz CPU and 32GB storage option, but the main difference is the new LTE radio.
The 7-inch PlayBook is a pretty little package and the operating system is finally a contender. The tablet might have… → Read More
FCC filings, leaked roadmaps, and comments from RIM’s top brass all pointed to the existence of an LTE-capable BlackBerry PlayBook — the only question left was when the thing would finally launch. The answer, according to a new statement released by RIM, is very soon.
RIM’s LTE PlayBook will launch in Canada on August 9 (with support from a handful of Canadian carriers), where it will remain… → Read More
For all its (largely software-based) shortcomings, RIM’s BlackBerry PlayBook really isn’t that bad a tablet, even if RIM ended up losing a fair bit of money on some of them.
This past weekend, a user named BusinessCat2000 posted a video (see above) of his PlayBook running a slew of iOS apps on the CrackBerry forums. Jaws dropped, legality was questioned, advice was thrown around, but the feat… → Read More
The RIM PlayBook by just received a developers update that adds some interesting new Android functionality to RIM’s tablet. This new version now supports Android apps running in their own windows, improving compatibility with the general Android app universe. → Read More
RIM is keeping the PlayBook party going. While speaking at a BlackBerry World breakfast with RIM CEO Thorsten Heins stated the company plans to launch an LTE-enabled PlayBook by the end of the year. However, the CEO didn’t detail the projected release date, price or available wireless carrier.
This is a smart move for RIM. Rather than spending the time and resources producing another tablet… → Read More
Jailbreaking, a term that has come to encompass several practices but generally refers to a user obtaining root access on their device, is controversial in a strange way. Companies like Apple and Nintendo hate it, and most users don’t care about it. Yet it’s constantly in the news because it is, in fact, a philosophical conflict.
RIM has posted an official response to the habit of jailbreaking… → Read More
It’s not nice to knock a company when it’s down, but I had a briefing earlier today in Barcelona with Alec Saunders, the head of developer relations at RIM, which — depending on whether you support RIM or not — either speaks to the company’s new, original attack on the market, or a sign of why it won’t succeed.
The bottom line is that RIM, in a way, seems to think that size doesn’t… → Read More
By most accounts there aren’t very many people out there in the world using PlayBooks, but for those that are, or are considering the purchase of one, comes some good news: RIM has finally updated the OS to include two services that have been long discussed and much anticipated: integrated email support and Android app availability.
The OS could serve to give the device a boost in the market… → Read More
Back in November, there was a run on PlayBooks when the price was briefly reduced to $199. For a tablet that started out with a premium price, the deal proved enticing to many buyers. And again at the beginning of January, with a slightly odd promotion pricing all models at $299. Well, they’re at it again: until the 11th, the PlayBook is priced to move: $199 for the 16GB version, $249 for 32GB… → Read More
When RIM first launched the BlackBerry PlayBook last spring, we were all rather shocked to find that RIM’s stand-out core services — secure messaging and productivity related apps like calendar and contacts — were… absent. The company promised an update to fix it, and after eight months said update has finally been unveiled here at CES. → Read More
CES generally isn’t RIM’s stomping ground, but the Canadian company is here in force. Chief among RIM’s news is details about the upcoming PlayBook refresh. Available for download next month, PlayBook 2.0, as RIM is calling it, seems to right many of the PlayBook’s wrongs. This is the feature set the tablet so badly needed at launch. → Read More
Well, if you were hoping to snag a BlackBerry PlayBook on the cheap, it looks like now’s the time to act. In what seems like a move born of desperation, all models of the PlayBook are now going for $299 on RIM’s online store.
Previous PlayBook sales have set the beginning price point at $199 for the 16GB model, but this time you’ll be able to purchase a 64GB PlayBook for the same price as a… → Read More
It’s clear that the BlackBerry PlayBook is a tough sell (unless you don’t have to pay for them), but that hasn’t stopped RIM and their retail partners from going nuts with PlayBook promotions. To wit: Best Buy, Staples, and Office Depot have dropped the prices of RIM’s tablet yet again, starting at $199 for the 16GB model. → Read More
Wow!
They must be breaking mirrors, opening umbrellas and walking under ladders over at RIM because this is starting to get unbelievable. A big rig, carrying around $1.7 million worth of BlackBerry PlayBooks, was stolen in Indiana.
The PlayBook has been a rough product for the Waterloo-based company. While RIM did quite a bit right with the little tab, lack of native email and calendar… → Read More
RIM has announced that it will be taking over half a billion dollars in charges related to two major failures this fiscal year. First is the immense overproduction of the Playbook tablet, the writedown of which inventory amounted to $485M on its own, or $360M after tax. The second charge is related to the prolonged network outage in early October, though it’s unclear whether that money is directly… → Read More
One of the primary criticisms of the BlackBerry PlayBook, and rightly so, was the omission of native email, contacts, and calendar applications. It was troubling then that they hadn’t considered these primary activities as important to address natively, and it’s troubling that it has taken then so very long deliver these elementary functions.
RIM originally said these reviews weren’t “fair,”… → Read More
RIM’s BlackBerry PlayBook tablet computer will soon come pre-loaded with PressReader, a digital news app from a company called NewspaperDirect.
The application offers one-click access to more than 2,000 ‘replica’, full-content newspapers from close to 100 countries. → Read More
We reported earlier this week that Staples and Office Depot are running sales promotions for the ailing BlackBerry PlayBook, and today another big-box retailer has jumped into the fray. CNET reports that Best Buy has begun to sell all models of the PlayBook with a hefty $200 discount.
That price break brings RIM’s 16GB model down to $299, the 32GB model to $399, and the 64GB model to $499. → Read More
Canadian RIM fans have been privy to some solid deals on RIM’s ailing PlayBook tablet recently, and now those price cuts are beginning to pop up Stateside. Both Office Depot and Staples are now offering their selection of PlayBooks with some significant discounts. → Read More
It may not be quite the savings we got from the $100 TouchPad, but taking $150 off the top of the PlayBook’s price may help move a few more units. We haven’t heard much lately regarding RIM’s first tablet, which received lukewarm reviews and promptly dropped off the radar. The last bit of news had native email and BBM coming some time this month. But wait! A wild news item appears! → Read More
The BlackBerry PlayBook is impressive upon first look. You pick it up, quickly scroll through the apps, and jump online. It all works like it’s supposed to. But then you find out it can’t hook up to your email; a BlackBerry needs to be connected through the BlackBerry Bridge. This connection also enables BBM, calendar and an address book, but an update due next month will finally bake several key… → Read More
The BlackBerry Playbook has some dedicated fans. Not many, of course, but they are certainly out there. One such fan took to the CrackBerry.com forums with a rather novel idea on how to support RIM and the PlayBook: retail evangelism, ninja-style.
His plan, at least in part, is to help the PlayBook cause by sneaking a poster into stores that shows some tips, tricks, and basic functions. His… → Read More
It seems that RIM might have gotten the memo that consumers aren’t exactly flocking to the BlackBerry Playbook. The same site that broke specs about the 10-incher a few weeks ago is now reporting that it’s been axed. Like killed dead. → Read More
The Playbook is a study in missed opportunities. The sexy form factor, interesting new UI elements, and distinct, recognizable branding should have set it apart and made it a real player in the tablet game. Instead, it’s a mishmash of consumer and pro features, and missing things that would give any shopper pause. Why would they go to market without even a native email client? Sources say it was… → Read More
Somehow we missed this yesterday, but it seems as if the BlackBerry PlayBook 4G is shelved until the fall. This broke during the RIM earning call and ironically only hours after we reported that O2 wasn’t going to carry the 3G PlayBook at all. RIM’s CEO Mike Lazaridis didn’t come out and say “We suck and are delaying the PlayBook until this fall.” Nope, he simply stated in passing that he was… → Read More
Here in the States, RIM’s BlackBerry PlayBook hasn’t exactly been greeted with open arms. In fact, even Sprint, the only carrier to release the tablet thus far, is only carrying a Wi-Fi 16GB version, with 32GB and 64GB models left in the dust. Plus, Verizon teetered back and forth over the PlayBook for a while, only recently deciding to move forward with the slate.
Unfortunately for RIM… → Read More
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