[UrbanGlowCam]

Theruined beat me to it with his thread. Just giving another perspective for anyone interested. We were actually going to meet there but I didn't want my gf to suffer too long since she wanted to go shopping. But she was a trooper at the training and was bragging about how she knew how to use the Playbook after!

When we entered the Sheraton, a rep greeted us and had us sign in on touchscreens with a very brief survey, then gave us personal lanyard tags. Each tag had its own barcode to be scanned for points after completing various walkthroughs around the show. The points would then be put towards a drawing for a free Playbook. So they stressed we go to each station and complete the tasks in order to increase our chances. Upon entering, we noticed that weren't that many people at the event. I think we it's because we came early before many people got off work. There was tons of free food and drinks as well as lounge chairs to make yourself comfortable. It all looked very nice and organized.




The walkthroughs were divided in stations where reps were there to help out. Each station had live Playbooks on hand to be handled in order to complete the task. Some examples were gaming, pairing to your BB handset, guide for using gestures, and using presentation mode.

I think the presentation mode was the most impressive. Theruined posted a great video on it I noticed. The speaker for this station had me and my girlfriend use individual Playbooks at their own pods. He then used his own which was attached to a large projector for everyone to see. We were guided through the different ways of multitasking and it really showed the power of the device. He was running an HD Captain America trailer while showing us images and various other things. We did the same on our own Playbooks and I gotta say, the thing is a BEAST.

An interesting scenario was brought up by one rep which I never thought about. Students could literally have the Playbook recording lectures in class while typing on Words to Go. It's not like this was a surprise to many of us but when you actually see it in action, it really is impressive.

Another station showcased the accessories for the Playbook that would be offered at launch as well as in the summer. I noticed the convertible case was one of the ones that is coming. A little pricey but there will be several third party vendors creating them too as we're already seeing. A mini bluetooth keyboard was shown on an image and looked nice. We were told that a bluetooth keyboard and BB pair could be simultaneously done. So that was a sigh of relief.



We also went to a quick 15-20 min private presentation that pretty much told us everything we've already known. The speaker took a quick Q&A at the end. I suppose it was more useful for those that weren't as familiar with the device.

As far as the Playbook itself.....

It felt very sturdy. It wasn't the same aluminum feel of the ipad but had it's own sense of sturdiness. The back had a matte finish with a grippy rubber feel. The surface of the screen felt like the glass you would expect on your Storm or Torch. The screen was extremely clear and touch sensitivity was great. I also managed to quickly grab a screenshot of App World since we haven't seen much of that.



The only complaint I had was flash in the browser was sometimes glitchy in but I'm sure they will improve on that. We were also told that there were several devices connected through their wifi network so it put a toll on their network. That definitely made sense because I saw SEVERAL live Playbooks on hand.

I'm really stoked to receive mine on the 19th. I'm more excited now after going to this. My gf even seemed slightly interested and she could care less about electronics. Just using her as an example for your average consumer. I'm curious how these will sell on release. I think RIM should really push their marketing to get this out there because it's really the dark horse in the tablet space. The Playbook really felt polished and I hope people see the work RIM has been putting into it.




Edit 11/7/11: Added some pictures of some of the things I recieved.

[anon(728548)]

Awesome Cameron

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[Intosh]

Thanks for the great summary!

Can you elaborate on Flash being a bit glitchy?

As for the example of students recording lectures while taking notes, I assume you'd need to attach an external camera for that, no?

It's amazing that everyone who got their hands on a demo PB walked away impressed. I don't know if it's because they are Crackberry members but it's really encouraging nevertheless.

[UrbanGlowCam]

Thanks for the great summary!

Can you elaborate on Flash being a bit glitchy?

As for the example of students recording lectures while taking notes, I assume you'd need to attach an external camera for that, no?

I think the slow wifi network in the area could have been apart of it. At times the flash would blank out with a white area and there would be some visual glitching. However, I loaded formula1.com and everything seemed to be running smoothly. There are even parts of the site where you can click an image, and it will pop up over the site as a floating image gallery and it did it just fine. Pinch zoom worked amazingly too.

For the lecture scenario, you would not need to attach an external camera since the Playbook has a 5MP camera in the rear. You would however need something to stand it up unless you want to hold it the whole time.

[howarmat]

Thanks for the great summary!

Can you elaborate on Flash being a bit glitchy?

As for the example of students recording lectures while taking notes, I assume you'd need to attach an external camera for that, no?

It's amazing that everyone who got their hands on a demo PB walked away impressed. I don't know if it's because they are Crackberry members but it's really encouraging nevertheless.

i was thinking use a BT keyboard maybe, not sure if you can hook external camera up, i doubt it.

Thanks for the great write up Cameron

[Intosh]

i was thinking use a BT keyboard maybe, not sure if you can hook external camera up, i doubt it.

Thanks for the great write up Cameron

BT kb. Makes sense. I couldn't figure out how you'd do that if you were typing on the PB itself.

I think the slow wifi network in the area could have been apart of it. At times the flash would blank out with a white area and there would be some visual glitching. However, I loaded formula1.com and everything seemed to be running smoothly. There are even parts of the site where you can click an image, and it will pop up over the site as a floating image gallery and it did it just fine. Pinch zoom worked amazingly too.

For the lecture scenario, you would not need to attach an external camera since the Playbook has a 5MP camera in the rear. You would however need something to stand it up unless you want to hold it the whole time.

Thanks for the answers!

[UrbanGlowCam]

i was thinking use a BT keyboard maybe, not sure if you can hook external camera up, i doubt it.

Thanks for the great write up Cameron

You're welcome! I hope I helped for any of you thinking about attending any of the events elsewhere. It's like Crackberry heaven and it's a nice place for many of you to meet if you're in the same area. Like theruined mention, the reps are really nice and helpful. They were just walking around talking to people and answering questions.

The agency RIM hired did a great job in my opinion.

Also forgot to mention I won a Blackberry t-shirt just for winning a race in Need for Speed. Racing's my thing! lol

[Jake Storm]

...Also forgot to mention I won a Blackberry t-shirt just for winning a race in Need for Speed. Racing's my thing! lol

You know we're going to need to see a picture of that t-shirt

[UrbanGlowCam]

You know we're going to need to see a picture of that t-shirt

I gave it to a friend since it was an XL. Wayy too big for me. If you guys get the chance, try to see if they have other sizes. I should have checked there but there was so much going on.

It's basically all black with a white Blackberry logo in the center. Nothing crazy.

[psiclne]

Im assuming these events are Invite only?

[howarmat]

wow there wasnt many people there. but then again no one knows about the device either or about these events

[theruined]

Theruined beat me to it with his thread. Just giving another perspective for anyone interested. We were actually going to meet there but I didn't want my gf to suffer too long since she wanted to go shopping. But she was a trooper at the training and was bragging about how she knew how to use the Playbook after!

When we entered the Sheraton, a rep greeted us and had us sign in on touchscreens with a very brief survey, then gave us personal lanyard tags. Each tag had its own barcode to be scanned for points after completing various walkthroughs around the show. The points would then be put towards a drawing for a free Playbook. So they stressed we go to each station and complete the tasks in order to increase our chances. Upon entering, we noticed that weren't that many people at the event. I think we it's because we came early before many people got off work. There was tons of free food and drinks as well as lounge chairs to make yourself comfortable. It all looked very nice and organized.


The walkthroughs were divided in stations where reps were there to help out. Each station had live Playbooks on hand to be handled in order to complete the task. Some examples were gaming, pairing to your BB handset, guide for using gestures, and using presentation mode.

I think the presentation mode was the most impressive. Theruined posted a great video on it I noticed. The speaker for this station had me and my girlfriend use individual Playbooks at their own pods. He then used his own which was attached to a large projector for everyone to see. We were guided through the different ways of multitasking and it really showed the power of the device. He was running an HD Captain America trailer while showing us images and various other things. We did the same on our own Playbooks and I gotta say, the thing is a BEAST.

An interesting scenario was brought up by one rep which I never thought about. Students could literally have the Playbook recording lectures in class while typing on Words to Go. It's not like this was a surprise to many of us but when you actually see it in action, it really is impressive.

Another station showcased the accessories for the Playbook that would be offered at launch as well as in the summer. I noticed the convertible case was one of the ones that is coming. A little pricey but there will be several third party vendors creating them too as we're already seeing. A mini bluetooth keyboard was shown on an image and looked nice. We were told that a bluetooth keyboard and BB pair could be simultaneously done. So that was a sigh of relief.

We also went to a quick 15-20 min private presentation that pretty much told us everything we've already known. The speaker took a quick Q&A at the end. I suppose it was more useful for those that weren't as familiar with the device.

As far as the Playbook itself.....

It felt very sturdy. It wasn't the same aluminum feel of the ipad but had it's own sense of sturdiness. The back had a matte finish with a grippy rubber feel. The surface of the screen felt like the glass you would expect on your Storm or Torch. The screen was extremely clear and touch sensitivity was great. I also managed to quickly grab a screenshot of App World since we haven't seen much of that.

The only complaint I had was flash in the browser was sometimes glitchy in but I'm sure they will improve on that. We were also told that there were several devices connected through their wifi network so it put a toll on their network. That definitely made sense because I saw SEVERAL live Playbooks on hand.

I'm really stoked to receive mine on the 19th. I'm more excited now after going to this. My gf even seemed slightly interested and she could care less about electronics. Just using her as an example for your average consumer. I'm curious how these will sell on release. I think RIM should really push their marketing to get this out there because it's really the dark horse in the tablet space. The Playbook really felt polished and I hope people see the work RIM has been putting into it.

well done man! I relived the experience!

@howarmat - yea not many ppl 2 hours later either. Maybe 10-15 at the most. Was invite only. One of the reps mentioned they wanted to blast the event all over CB and other BB websites but the execs quickly shut that down...I told him I found out about it through CB and he was surprised...then I mentioned it was through the forums.

[howarmat]

right, that would have been the only way i would know about it too. serious why doesnt RIM want everyone to known about this. what are they hiding that are really only wanting to sell to companies using the client/rep channels

[theruined]

right, that would have been the only way i would know about it too. serious why doesnt RIM want everyone to known about this. what are they hiding that are really only wanting to sell to companies using the client/rep channels

I asked that same thing and got an "I don't know" type response. A lot of the employees here today were awesome, but a few echoed the fact that the company sometimes runs a direction counter to that of what they suggest. And at times it can get frustrating - we can kinda relate huh?

What was interesting was they actually brought out the fact that "Hey have you noticed RIM has been awfully quiet over the past year" and they basically chalked it up to the fact that their M 'n A's speak for themselves.

I think they'r really focusing on a core app explosion + OS explosion to just really rally te troops and have the devices sell themselves.

And from what I managed to gather from a few of the reps was that the new devices are beyond amazing...and we may be seeing a 6.5 before we see a 7...

[tumer]

Do you think it has to do about how many are available maybe the number is way smaller them they thought
Has anyone herd if there doing this type of event in toronto ???

[tumer]

Ooooo no you said the flash was a bit buggy now CIVIC is going to start a thread about why she hates rim because of the flash !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[zebroller79]

Can't wait for this device to come out!

[drethos]

God I wish they would do on here in NJ I would take a day off. As far as glitch flash meh at least our products are getting it. I can't wait to get my hands on one.

[jacmeister68]

Props to the professional review. Thank you very much for sharing your day,

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[jacmeister68]

God I wish they would do on here in NJ I would take a day off. As far as glitch flash meh at least our products are getting it. I can't wait to get my hands on one.

I believe that there is a similar day coming for you in ny, check the forums here for a date

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[The_Engine]

This is really making me wish I had more $$$ at this time. If you hear of any robberies in NY/NJ where the guy just took the retail price of a playbook....wasn't me.

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[dkingsf]

This is supposed to be gorilla glass right? I remember seeing a YouTube vid when the Storm came out with someone scratching the glass with nails, keys etc. and it didn't scratch at all. HOWEVER, one drop face down from my desk DID break the glass (insure, insure, insure!), as should be expected.

Has anyone tried anything like that on the Playbook? Any vids showing how tough this gorilla glass really is?

[drjay868]

As for the example of students recording lectures while taking notes, I assume you'd need to attach an external camera for that, no?

The first thing I thought of was lying the PB down on the table and just recording the lecture audio while typing (of course you'd have to turn of the "click" sound when you type a letter)... then no keyboard or stand needed. Recording video is also a good idea, but now you need peripherals.

[TBone4eva]

This is supposed to be gorilla glass right? I remember seeing a YouTube vid when the Storm came out with someone scratching the glass with nails, keys etc. and it didn't scratch at all. HOWEVER, one drop face down from my desk DID break the glass (insure, insure, insure!), as should be expected.

Has anyone tried anything like that on the Playbook? Any vids showing how tough this gorilla glass really is?

theruined said in his thread that he keyed the glass hard while no one was looking and it didn't scratch or bend.

[UrbanGlowCam]

In the private training room someone asked the speaker what materials it was made of. He said he didn't know but another rep dropped his own 2 times that day and nothing happened. Of course they were on carpet.... But like I said, it felt like glass. If not it was a strong plastic!

Also I tried asking some people about battery and they were still saying it was being optimized up to release. One rep said he uses his moderately and it lasts 2 days for him. Obviously that's not with straight usage. He said mostly just browsing the web here and there. I don't know if he was exaggerating or not but it sounded impressive.

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