The BlackBerry PlayBook is a unique Tablet PC in a couple of ways. It is a tablet with a 7 inch screen when the majority of tablet offerings are 10 inches. And it is also Research In Motion’s (RIM) first Tablet PC. Also, RIM is displaying the underlying strategy and software they hope will return them to their former spot atop mobile OS platforms. Before the iPhone, the RIM mobile phone OS, particularly in the super-popular BlackBerry phones, was far and away the mobile market leader. Then along came the iPhone, and it roared to the market share lead with its iOS. Finally, Android arrived and eclipsed both, and RIM finds themselves in the unfamiliar third spot in the mobile phone OS hierarchy. Does the BlackBerry PlayBook Tablet PC have the goods to attract more mobile tablet and phone users back to the RIM BlackBerry OS fold? We find out below just how the 7 inch PlayBook tablet compares to other tablet offerings in the objective, in-depth BlackBerry PlayBook review below.
Hardware and Design
This is one solidly built tablet. The PlayBook was designed with the business user in mind, and it is clear that this is one of the more rugged, durable big-name tablets. This 7 inch Tablet PC certainly looks and feels different than the wafer thin, paper-weight iPad 2 and Galaxy Tab 10.1 that feel as though you could snap them in two. There is a soft, rubberized texture all over the casing, and this feels good to your hand, while also providing a no-drop easy-grip feature.
The power for this versatile tablet comes from the processing powerhouse that is gracing the fastest, most powerful tablets and smartphones. With a dual core Cortex 1 GHz A9 CPU and PowerVR SGX540 GPU graphics engine, the BlackBerry PlayBook adds 1 full GB of RAM to deliver a three-way power, speed and graphics handler that is not matched by too many tablets. Adding customary dual cameras, one 5 mp for 720p HD video recording and pics, and a surprisingly spry 3 mp for self-portraits and video-chat, the Blackberry PlayBook is above average in performance here.
HDMI out, 3.5 mm headset jack and mic are also onboard, and at 10 mm with all that hardware, RIM did a good job of keeping the PlayBook as slim as possible. The Samsung Galaxy Tab, in comparison, is the thinnest tablet at 8.6 mm. The display is a beautifully rendered 1024 x 600, more than 20 % better than the average tablet, and colors are rich, with great contrast. The stereo speakers on either side of the display are the best I have tested in tablets, very loud and clear. You will not find a better sound system in any tablet.
However, no one is perfect, and RIM is no exception. The power button is flush with the case, and you need a stylus or pen to access it. Also, the skin and folding case that RIM offers for the BlackBerry PlayBook make it even worse. But if that is the only design / display complaint, then the PlayBook is overall strong in these areas.
Software and Performance
The old BlackBerry OS is gone, and QNX is here. BlackBerry purchased QNX a year ago, so the addition of this much-better OS was not surprising. QNX has since built an OS just for tablets, and the resulting OS on the BlackBerry PlayBook is very nice indeed. Compared to the many Android variations, it is much more user friendly. Also, a second acquisition, The Astonishing Tribe (TAT), is a user interface specialist, and their contributions have made the PlayBook pretty smooth to navigate as well.
It does take some getting used to, as the QNX / TAT OS is a brand new creation, but once up and running, this is a simple system to operate, and very intuitive. And if you are a BlackBerry smartphone user, look out. This UI, OS, processor trio absolutely flies. For non-BlackBerry users used to a very fast smartphone, you will not lose any speed in transition.
I like the sleep mode the PlayBook hits when not in use, and this keeps you from having to battle the power button issue. Just pick it up and it refreshes. But there are some downfalls in the software set that need to be mentioned. When the BlackBerry PlayBook is paired with any BlackBerry device via the BlackBerry Bridge option, it is a top 10 tablet. But as a standalone tablet, it is just above average. There is no native email app, contacts or calendar, and while downloadable apps are available, they just feel clunky. For a 7 inch tablet, the software is right up there with the best, but in competition with the entire tablet marketplace, the software is little better than average.
Wrap-up
The BlackBerry PlayBook Tablet PC was certainly the right play call for RIM in their first tablet offering. It is a solid Android tablet, and belongs in any conversation about the Top 10 tablets overall. Being new to tablets, RIM made a few mistakes, but I like where they seem to be headed, making an OS effective for both their tablets and smartphones. The Android OSs have proven hard to use in both devices, and tweaks are being made all the time. Kudos to RIM for their OS-compatibility between portable phones and tablets.
Priced at less than $499 for their 16 GB model, they are competitively priced, but the low number of apps, 3,000, needs to be addressed. While that is many more apps than any one consumer could use, numbers are everything, and with Apple’s iPad 2 recently hitting the 50,000 mark for iPad apps, and Android apps numbering over 200,000, appearances are that users can’t find what they want. Also, the BlackBerry PlayBook needs to escape its business reputation. This is a very good stand-alone tablet, forget the BlackBerry Bridge and RIM integration. Is it better than the iPad 2 in performance? No, but no other tablet is either. With several software upgrades already performed, and extra apps arriving every day, the BlackBerry PlayBook is definitely an above average tablet that gets better with time.
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