At last, the company behind BlackBerry has flexed its innovative muscle and produced its long-rumored tablet, the PlayBook.
On Monday, Research in Motion co-CEO Mike Lazaridis introduced the PlayBook at the company’s developer conference. Although he didn’t actually use or give us a walkthrough of the device, he unveiled PlayBook’s impressive specs that BlackBerry enthusiasts have been patiently waiting for.
For the past year, RIM has failed to design mobile technology that can compete with companies like Google and Apple. From the entry-level specs of the formerly market-dominating BlackBerry Curve line to the underwhelming performance of the Torch, Research in Motion has been setting its investors up for disaster. Even the BlackBerry user base, ‘CrackBerrys,’ have been consistently let down following a recent succession of BlackBerry releases.
But with the introduction of the PlayBook, it looks like RIM finally has a device that can compete with its iOS and Android counterparts. To quote Kevin Michaluk, writer and founder of Crackberry.com, “This is the magic folks… the 15 minutes where RIM gets their mojo back. I AM EXCITED.”
The PlayBook packs a beautiful 7-inch screen with a resolution comparable to the iPad. It has a 1GHz A9 processor, an impressive 1GB of RAM , 2 solid cameras for video conferencing, and weighs a mere .9 lbs. RIM’s promising both 3G and 4G connection capabilities (in the future), and it even offers something the iPad will never have – full flash capabilities.
With a futuristic BlackBerry OS on board that appears very consumer friendly, RIM isn’t ignoring its base of enterprise users either. While tablets are considered (or assumed) to be mostly consumer devices, the company made the smart move to give it business like qualities that should appeal to any enterprise user. From video conferencing to multitasking and exchange support, not to mention the business-friendly BlackBerry email servers, the company certainly went the extra mile for the consumers that made its smartphones famous.
It was long past time for RIM to announce a BlackBerry that has the specs and aesthetics that would appeal to the masses of potential consumers. The company’s recent pathetic excuses for innovation were just unsustainable in comparison to its competition. For now, however, it looks like Research in Motion scored a winner with PlayBook.
For other interesting Tablets, you could always check out more info on the Apple iPad, the Viewsonic Viewpad 7, or the Asus EP121 or EP 101.
Via Engadget and CrackBerry
