More Details on the Upcoming BlackBerry Tablet aka BlackPad

The BlackBerry tablet is still sitting in the rumor mill right now and there are very few details about what to expect. The Street is already calling it the BlackPad and deeming it a failure while the product is still in its early engineering phase. This sort of judgment is definitely much too early to make, but it doesn’t look great for RIM to follow Apple yet again in a ‘keeping up with the Johnsons’ sort of way. App World seemed like an after-thought after Apple’s success with an embedded app store, and the success of the iPad seems to have engineers and VPs at RIM scrambling around to pull a tablet of their own together. If the BlackPad is actually the product name, it’s yet another indication that RIM is just following Apple’s lead.

According to Rodman Renshaw analyst Ashok Kumar, RIM was going to make an Android-powered tablet, but backed out and has since decided to power their BlackPad with OS 6. Kumar also says the BlackPad will use Marvell’s Armada processor, rather than go with Intel.

Rumors of the BlackPad point to it being thinner and smaller than the iPad. There are also patents filed by RIM for tablet gestures that are similar to the sort of gestures we have seen in OS 6, but a little more complicated.

It looks like this tablet business is really going to happen and BlackBerry users will have incredibly high expectations. In order for this to be a success, RIM is going to have to employ everything it has learned about the enterprise space to enter a market where Apple can’t go. With the security and email infrastructure that RIM maintains, it’s possible we could see large organizations adopting the BlackPad and transforming the way they do business. Conversely, the BlackPad could focus on a consumer market where they’re not as competitive, and seriously flop.

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http://appworld.blackberry.com/webstore/vendor/1111 Eric at Ebscer

I am still of the opinion that slates are not a useful form factor, and nothing I have heard about this promises to any good (or even interesting)…

Something tells me Verizon/Vodafone may be behind this push, instead of just letting RIM do what they do…
DavidB

I've been using BlackBerry since the 6xxx days. I would definately buy into a BlackBerry tablet device IF AND ONLY IF it maintained all the “communicator” capabilities we have today in OS 5 AND is optimized for the much larger screen. I've been using a Storm for going on a year and a half now, and I'm okay with most aspects of it, but if they just toss out (again) some hardware without thinking through from end to end the total experience, a tablet from RIM will fail as miserably as has the Storm.
melmjeff

Ok here is where I stand on the whole Blackpad thing. One “IT” should be named the “Blackbook”. Noting that all the readers are trying to go smaller than to be easy on the eyes is a factor rather than size. Why in the world would people indulge in the power of reading on something smaller when if that was the case we should stick with the current screen on our Blackberrys. If they decide to go the route of a reader to “keeping up with the Jones” (I like this one better), then there should be a reason people will not go to other brands. Here are just my suggestions:
Make it thin enough like an 8.5×11 sheet of paper and make one half the size too.
Enable the reader to surf the web without RIMs browser. (Google would fit perfectly)
Give it a camera.
Let it be WiFi, 3g and edge to download ebooks and such.
Give it memory expandable with SD or miniSD.
Give it Bluetooth for listening to ebooks or emails and such. Along with a speaker
Make sure the securities as rich as the current Presidents Blackberry.
Make sure it works with Blackberry phones and the desktop software.
Stick a few games into the mix.
Expand App world (to hell with apple. (notice the lowercase)
Charge 1.99 to 2.99 for a novel and less than the price you have to pay for the newspaper. Enhanced papers and magazines I could understand adding a markup. (Enhanced meaning color photos and enhanced commentaries by reported persons)
Hell make it the worlds largest cellphone when you put your Sim card in.
That is just the few.
Give me an few hours and I can come up with several pages more….. ok a page that dual columns.

Last Give it a better rubber grip that can take a drop of 4 feet and not shed away like the Curve 8320 or shock protected screen with a hard covered tuck behind the unit screen cover.
Hope RIM is reading this one…
Ok I am done for now
Michael Jones

I would buy one if it had a great resolution, multi-touch, silicone wrapped for drop resistance (basically built-in Otter box case). Seriously, take the Storm 2, make it a little bigger than the iPad,a at least 480 x 800 resolution, preferably better (any old HTC phone has that). If it could take a 32GB or larger micro sdhc card (or two), that would be great, Bluetooth keyboard or even better, just work with a wired keyboard (have the keyboard plug in the side). Stereo speakers.

It doesn't have to be a phone; the iPad is not a phone. But I would like to be able to connect to my phone and use it as a tether. See, that is a way to keep the BlackBerry customer, and get a BlackPad customer. Your phone in your pocket, and if you want to go to the web, go through your phone, via BlueTooth. Or go through Wifi, if it is available.

I want a replacement for my notebook computer.
greecetour

Very Good stuff .Thank You for Sharing .

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