The latest BlackBerry PlayBook ads are up on youtube.com/blackberry and they’re focused on promoting the PlayBook’s powerful hardware. The dual-core processors will make for some excellent multitasking but RIM has opted to not talk about apps or the web experience in these ads. Flash support is an easy way to explain the benefits of picking up a PlayBook and it’s definitely a big competitive advantage. Granted there aren’t many apps available for the PlayBook just yet, but showing off things like Facebook games would look really cool. It took RIM a long time to push out ads showing apps on a BlackBerry (super apps campaign), and they should continue with PlayBook ads. The other two ads are after the jump. Continue reading ‘BlackBerry PlayBook Ads Promote Powerful Hardware’
RIM has opened up BlackBerry App World 2.1 to US and UK residents in the Beta Zone. Here is what’s new in App World 2.1:
In-app Payments – With the BlackBerry Payment Service SDK, developers can monetize their games and apps in new and interesting ways. Filtered Featured Items – Featured Items are now filtered by carrier, country, device and OS to ensure that you are presented with the most relevant apps as soon as you open App World. Extended BBID Login Session – With this latest release, a single BBID login session lasts for 20 minutes, making it easier for you to download and install as many apps as you’d like in one go.
The in-app payments is probably the most exciting addition in App World 2.1 and hopefully developers will start implementing this feature. We may start seeing more free games supported by the sale of virtual goods which would make for some interesting gaming.
RIM has a big PlayBook presence at CES 2011 and even though the device isn’t ready to be shipped, RIM is letting people have some time with the device and the reviews that are coming out are really solid. We’ve heard that the PlayBook isn’t optimized for a dual-core experience, and the QNX OS still needs some work, but regardless, reviewers are loving the smooth experience. One can only imagine how powerful the device will be when it’s ready for launch.
Thumb Arcade sent us a preview of their upcoming PlayBook app called Staks. The app has some really cool features and aims to be a hub for your social and web activities. Features of the app include:
Take control of your information – social, RSS, blogs, BBM and more. Shrink the feeds you want to monitor. Expand the ones you want to read or post to.
Widgets for cross-content trending, polls and quizzes, social mapping and BlackBerry Messenger.
Gesture and swipe-controlled UI with game inspired animations.
Stay on top of your world through one powerful, fun app.
Staks looks like it’s going to be a must-have app for the PlayBook and while we don’t have pricing details just yet, this is something a lot of people are going to want to have.
Today, Sprint has announced a 4G PlayBook will be available exclusively from Sprint this summer. While many have debated whether 4G is all it’s cracked up to be, it’s still awesome to know that the PlayBook will be available with radio connectivity on the Sprint 4G network. According to Sprint, the 4G PlayBook will give customers download speeds up to 10 times faster than 3G1. More details in the press release below. Continue reading ‘Sprint Announces 4G BlackBerry PlayBook To Launch This Summer’
The 2012 Ford Mustang is the next vehicle in line for the SYNC AppLink system that connects your smartphone to your var via voice control. Also featured in the upcoming Mustang will be AppLink integrated with Ford’s optional Voice-Activated Navigation System.
A few weeks ago, Ford announced AppLink as a download exclusively for 2011 Ford Fiesta owners, and it looks like they’ll be rolling it out for more models as the years move on. Currently, AppLink supports popular mobile apps such as Pandora, Stitcher and OpenBeak.
