There is a new tablet PC competitor that is making its way into the marketplace. The RIM Blackberry PlayBook is a 5x7 inch tablet with a Blackberry operating system that supports Adobe Flash 10.1, WebKit, Java, Open GL, and Adobe Air and several different video formats. There are front and back facing cameras, and an HDMI output, appealing to consumers who aren’t getting those features on the current IPad. This PC is said to be “professional” going hand in hand with the BlackBerry smartphones. One can actually connect their smartphone to the PC via Bluetooth and transfer their cellular data to the tablet. Both the battery life and price are yet to be established. Several wonder whether there will have to be a contract or carrier agreement as with the BlackBerry phones and have projected the price to be anywhere from $500-$1,000. Even with the features it is hard to compete with Apple’s lower priced, longer lasting tablet.
I think that it is a tough market to try and enter after such a distinguished niche brand released a popular tablet computer. The extra features make it more of a computer which I think is both interesting and appealing. The synching capabilities with the BlackBerry smartphone will be convenient for professional users of the products. The cameras and HD features of the PlayBook will also set it apart from competition, but it will be interesting to see what happens if this is launched around the time that the IPad will release their camera model. The PlayBook has a sleek design and its interface looks easy to use so it may to fairly well in the market.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-20017803-1.html?tag=mncol#ixzz10qRoIHJW
I had not yet heard about Blackberry entering the tablet market. I think it will be very interesting to see if professionals adopt it or not. Cisco was set to release a tablet as well, but I wonder if people will choose to stay with Blackberry since that is what many corporations already use. I also think that the fact that Apple is a niche brand, does not make the iPad a competitor with the Playbook. Very few companies or corporations have adopted Apple products, as far as I know.
ReplyDeleteVery interesting blog. The tablet is the new competition market and what we all are seeing upfront the most. I like how BlackBerry is going to stay with the more professional, business model like their phones. I believe that it is kind of obvious though that this will still fall short of the iPad even with more features. Apple has become a social fad and there is a good amount of consumers who will purchase the iPad instead just because it gives them a better social status. At the same time, BlackBerry currently already have contracts with Verizon which provides better 3G service than the Apple's iPad and AT&T. Apple already knows what they will add to the iPad for the 3rd generation of it when they're only on the 1st generation.
ReplyDeleteI'm definitely curious to see how successful the Blackberry Playbook is. I agree with you that this new invention may not succeed, especially since the IPad is less expensive, successful, and its backed by the world-renowned Apple company. One definite feature that attracted me to this product was that it could be synced with my Blackberry phone. I am not very familar with the IPad so is syncing to the IPhone an option for Apple?
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