For those developers making a PlayBook, you’ll be pleased to know that an updated version of the BlackBerry Tablet OS Simulator, which features the full BlackBerry Browser, is live today. Web developers can now start testing their web and Flash applications using the Browser on the simulator to ensure usability and that they are taking advantage of the BlackBerry PlayBook tablet’s browser.
PlayBook featured in the Black Eyed Peas video if you can bare to watch it.
There isn’t much being shown of the PlayBook in the latest BEP video, just Will.i.Am walking around looking through the camera as per the photo above. As usual, RIM’s marketing team for some reason absolutely adores Will.i.Am and they had to give him early access to the PlayBook for his video. Do you think it was a working model or just a prop for filming? If you really want to kill a few minutes, the video is after the jump. Continue reading ‘PlayBook Featured in the Latest Black Eyed Peas Video’
Jim Balsillie gave a brief hands on demo of the BlackBerry PlayBook at the Web 2.0 Summit and the multitasking looks incredible. As Jim browsed through multiple tabs, he really showed off the power of the QNX operating system and how it can handle multiple processes that include high definition video. Another great feature of this brief demo was the way gestures were used. Jim browsed through multiple cards and flicked them away with ease. This brief demo just gave the PlayBook +1000 in the awesome department.
This past week in San Francisco I had the pleasure to attend the Open Mobile Summit held at the Marriott Marquis. This year marked the largest Open Mobile Summit with over 650 attendees from across the mobile industry. Google, Verizon, Sprint, Foursquare, LinkedIn, Yahoo, Samsung, Motorola, and RIM were among the speakers and panelists discussing all things mobile.
Topics that dominated discussion included 4G, mobile advertising, tablets, applications, and monetization strategies. In an effort to show some Silicon Valley presence RIM’s Tyler Lessard, VP Developer Relations and Global Alliances, attended the summit and spoke to the crowd about the virtues of BlackBerry and where it’s going. Lessard spoke about the new tablet and how it will come “enterprise ready” so that existing RIM enterprise clients will be able to immediately adopt the solutions into their businesses. Continue reading ‘Open Mobile Summit San Francisco 2010: More on RIM’s Valley Presence’
Jim Balsillie made an interesting point recently when he compared the tablet market to the smartphone market, essentially saying there’s enough room for everyone and the market will explode in a similar fashion. It does seem to be the case that everyone is upgrading to a smartphone, and that everyone’s phone will eventually be “smart”, but does the same necessarily hold true for tablets?
At the same meeting, Jim Balsillie told reporters that the PlayBook will be priced under $500, but wouldn’t go into specifics about the exact price. Will it be $499? Or perhaps much cheaper at $300. Considering the device relies on a BlackBerry for connectivity, RIM is going to have to price the tablet lower than the competitors. Ideally, the PlayBook would come in at a pricepoint where every BlackBerry user will feel like they can afford one.
It looks like all of this will be confirmed in the next couple of months when we get close to a rumored February launch.
