RIM Introduces the 4G LTE BlackBerry PlayBook Tablet

[ssbtech]

Originally Posted by Tikker

hardware wise, the playbook is the nicest tablet to hold bar none

it feels better, and sounds better than all the rest

It's nice to hold. Light weight and I can lay on the couch and I can waste much time playing Angry Birds on it. My arms are getting tired holding up an iPad after about 15 minutes.

Originally Posted by Tikker

it's too bad it wasn't supported softwarewise the way android is

I bought it because I liked it, knowing that software support was limited. But I also knew that the dev base wouldn't grow unless people did buy the PlayBook. Slowly but surely support is growing.

[TorontoColin]

Originally Posted by ssbtech

Slowly but surely support is growing.

That's true, but it still worries me. When the Playbook was first discounted, it was the best deal in the market segment. $200 couldn't get you any other hardware close to as good, with the exception of the near impossible to find Touchpad blowout.

However, while they've sold a lot of Playbooks, the Nexus 7 is almost assuredly just the first in a wave of $200-300 tablets. Quality hardware in that price range will become the norm very soon, and while Playbook sales maybe won't stop altogether, I'd have to assume they will slow substantially. If the installed base is currently around 1.3 million, I can't see it going well above 1.5 million, unless they bring new hardware or the LTE version takes off against all odds.

If 1.3 million users isn't enough to draw the attention of app developers (and for the majority, it hasn't been) then does anyone really think 1.5 million will?

While the app selection at the moment isn't nothing, and the ones that do exist are all very nicely optimized for the 7 inch screen, it's still missing a lot of important apps. Google has shown no interest in releasing any of their apps on the Playbook. There's no Netflix or Slingplayer. MLB's At Bat is nowhere to be found. Though you can (and I did) port the Android app, there is still no native Kindle app. I can't find anything like Google Currents or Flipboard. There's no Flixster. Many popular games are still MIA. Most banks don't have a Playbook app. The selection of instant messaging clients is really pathetic, and you can't even use the front facing camera for video chatting unless you know someone who owns another Playbook (I don't).

These absences are huge problems for RIM. While Apple and Google build lots of in-house apps, RIM seems to be relying on third party devs and so far they haven't come through in a lot of areas. Going forward, building dev support needs to be the number one priority for RIM.

The Playbook is still a decent platform, but right now it just can't compete on software support. Android tablets and the iPad can do pretty much everything the Playbook can do, and much more. And now Android is competing on price too. So why does RIM believe they can sit just below the iPad in pricing on the LTE model?

[ssbtech]

It makes sense that Google won't develop applications for a competing platform. Now that Skype is owned by MS, I don't see them doing anything to support a competing tablet either.

What's sad is companies like Netflix saying there's not enough interest in the platform for them to develop for it, yet it's Netflix's own disinterest in the PlayBook that's helping to kill interest in the first place.

Every piece of Google software I've used has been awkward and disjointed. Heck, just the signup process for Gmail and Youtube is about as convoluted as landing Curiosity on Mars. I never found Android to be very intuitive either.

Interestingly, every time I've shown my PlayBook to one of my friends who has an iDroid device they've always been impressed.

[TorontoColin]

Google makes numerous apps for iOS, and they used to make apps for BlackBerry. They just don't see the need to spend resources on the Playbook, just like Netflix. Neither company has any vested interest in setting the Playbook become a success, so they'll wait until it does on its own before they show up. And given how widely used many of their services are, it's a big deal not to have them.

[shabbs]

It is a bit surprising that there are not more of the "big apps" for the PlayBook. RIM has come out and said they would send out developers to Neftlix, Skype etc... at a moments notice to create the app with them and get it out there. They must feel that it's not worth their while to do this on the PB platform, which is a shame. Unless you have a significant slice of the market, it's an uphill battle.

[Jase88]

Originally Posted by TorontoColin

That's true, but it still worries me. When the Playbook was first discounted, it was the best deal in the market segment. $200 couldn't get you any other hardware close to as good, with the exception of the near impossible to find Touchpad blowout.

For $200, I'm not worried. I'm definitely getting my money's worth out of the investment in a Playbook.

Heck, just the signup process for Gmail and Youtube is about as convoluted as landing Curiosity on Mars.

How very true! I consider myself a technically-inclined person. But signing up to Gmail was painful.

My other issue with Google is their apparent lack of concern for privacy. Now their technology will be scanning the text in your personal email, looking to improve search results.

[TorontoColin]

But it's not about whether current owners think it was a worthy investment. I don't regret mine. This is about whether RIM can sell enough of these going forward to make themselves relevant again. Remember that devs that support the Playbook are more likely to support BB10, while those who don't are much less likely to get on board until BB10 devices sell well.

Google has always done that (Microsoft and Yahoo do too, that's how you can search your email), the results are just showing up somewhere new. But that's a totally different issue. Google services are already used by hundreds of millions of users. I would imagine that most people are more likely to choose a tablet that supports the services they currently use than to choose new services that work better with a tablet they might buy.

Google is not having trouble acquiring users, either for their services or for their mobile OS. RIM is. That means they have to be the one to make changes.

[Jase88]

Originally Posted by TorontoColin

But it's not about whether current owners think it was a worthy investment. I don't regret mine. This is about whether RIM can sell enough of these going forward to make themselves relevant again.

The issue for RIM is that their current Java-based OS has reached the limit of it's capabilities. Once they transition to the new OS, I'm confident they'll rebound.

[ssbtech]

And QNX on the PlayBook is already a step in that direction. I'm not a developer so I don't know how much easier it is to build applications for QNX/BB10

[ssbtech]

Originally Posted by MarcP

If only you knew what you're talking about...

PlayBook Mobile Responder app puts police tools in a finger-friendly package

The PlayBook may not have taken off in the consumer market, but its enterprise-friendly features may help it find a home elsewhere -- especially now that it's packing a speedy 4G radio. Fresh on the heels of the LTE edition hitting Canadian shores, Intergraph has unveiled its Mobile Responder app that turns RIM's slate into a formidable tool for police and other emergency responders.

[...]

http://www.engadget.com/2012/08/10/p...responder-app/

[TorontoColin]

Originally Posted by Jase88

The issue for RIM is that their current Java-based OS has reached the limit of it's capabilities. Once they transition to the new OS, I'm confident they'll rebound.

But the Playbook OS is the underpinnings of BB10, and right now it's not attracting nearly enough developer interest. If they're not attracting interest now, why would all the developers start building apps for BB10? And if they need BB10 to sell before devs will build for it, then how will they do that when app support is negligible?

They need to bring more devs on board now. This isn't an "if you build it, they will come" scenario. RIM did build it, and they're not really coming. They need to solve that problem, and unless BB10 somehow makes it substantially more attractive to develop for Blackberry than the current Playbook OS, they need to find another way to fix it.

[ssbtech]

There's a good chance that developers are waiting for the Cascades UI framework before they put too much effort into BB OS2.

[BGY11]

Isn't the Pacemaker DJ app already using Cascades? What's stopping other developers from doing so?

[shabbs]

Some police enforcement info regarding the PB:

http://crackberry.com/canadian-cops-...berry-playbook

Presser info:

PRESS RELEASE

Mobile Responder Application Accelerates Critical, Smarter Decisions

Intergraph® presents the Intergraph Mobile Responder application for the BlackBerry® PlayBookTM tablet at the upcoming Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police (CACP) Annual Conference in Nova Scotia, Canada. Mobile Responder gives police and emergency responders in the field access to Intergraph's Computer-Aided Dispatch (I/CAD) system from a mobile device. Mobile Responder's rich interface allows the transmission of unit status, dispatch reports, incident updates and emergency requests from a BlackBerry PlayBook.

The Mobile Responder application extends the power of the command center to remote teams and accelerates critical decision-making and incident management in the field. Interfacing with a BlackBerry PlayBook, field officers can access local police databases in real-time, view event details and interact with dispatch centers to provide and receive incident reports.

"Intergraph is very excited about Mobile Responder. It offers the functionality officers need in the field, on the platforms being deployed today," says Mark Patrick, Intergraph's Public Safety Business Development Manager in Canada. "The consistent interface will allow officers to be more efficient, whether deployed in vehicles or on foot."

Officers will also benefit from real-time chat capabilities and location verification from GPS tracking capabilities found in the PlayBook. Mobile Responder fosters public confidence with its secured transmission and storage of data found in BlackBerry devices. Police chiefs, field agents and dispatch officers in attendance at CACP will be able to receive personal demonstrations of the Mobile Responder application on PlayBook by Intergraph experts and representatives from BlackBerry-maker Research In Motion (RIM). In addition, Intergraph will also demonstrate its Computer-Aided Dispatch (I/CAD) system that is integral to Mobile Responder.

Adding to Intergraph's footprint at the CACP show is the exhibition of a police cruiser outfitted by Darta Enterprises, a contracted manufacturer to public safety agencies. A Darta representative will be in the Intergraph booth with the police cruiser, which will have a BlackBerry PlayBook mounted inside, in place of the traditional cruiser notebook computers. This showcases the emergence of new cruisers where officers will be able to work faster and smarter for their communities.

"Utilizing the BlackBerry PlayBook, Intergraph is bringing useful information to the fingertips of law enforcement officers and emergency responders in a fast, convenient, secure and affordable way," said Paolo DeNarda, Senior Business Development Manager, Research In Motion. "This is another great example of how BlackBerry developers are finding new ways to leverage the power of the BlackBerry solution and add significant value for customers."

Intergraph will be exhibiting in booths 225, 227, 324 and 326 at the CACP Annual Conference, which takes place August 19 - 22, 2012, in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia. Details can be found online at www.cacpconference.ca.

About Intergraph
Intergraph is the leading global provider of engineering and geospatial software that enables customers to visualize complex data. Businesses and governments in more than 60 countries rely on Intergraph's industry-specific software to organize vast amounts of data to make processes and infrastructure better, safer and smarter. The company's software and services empower customers to build and operate more efficient plants and ships, create intelligent maps, and protect critical infrastructure and millions of people around the world.

Intergraph operates through two divisions: Process, Power & Marine (PP&M) and Security, Government & Infrastructure (SG&I). Intergraph PP&M provides enterprise engineering software for the design, construction, operation and data management of plants, ships and offshore facilities. Intergraph SG&I provides geospatially powered solutions including ERDAS technologies to the public safety and security, defense and intelligence, government, transportation, photogrammetry, and utilities and communications industries. Intergraph Government Solutions (IGS) is an independent subsidiary for SG&I's U.S. federal business.

Intergraph is a wholly owned subsidiary of Hexagon AB (Nordic exchange: HEXA B). For more information, visit www.intergraph.com and www.hexagon.com.

[nursedude]

"meh".

And then the words of Johnny Mathis/Deneice Williams song from the late 70's come to mind:

Guess it's over
Call it a day
Sorry that it had to end this way
No reason to pretend
We knew it had to end

(Chorus)
Too much too little too late...