1. ultra07's Avatar
    I was in the Best Buy store in Paducah, Kentucky today and their demo Playbook was dead. The screen was black and the red light would flash twice every few seconds. I asked one of the employees what was wrong with it. He said it just went dead one day! He also said this was happening to a lot of Playbooks that was why RIM was reducing the price. He said the forums were full of people complaining about this and RIM tech support would not return calls or help. I LOVE my Playbook! When I got home I did some searching on the forums and found a few suggestions for this problem. The most frequent answer was that the OS had been deleted off the Playbook! This makes me wonder if maybe a Best Buy employee did it! Of all of the tablets they had only an HTC and the IPAD2 were working! All the rest were dead!
    10-01-11 07:23 PM
  2. peter9477's Avatar
    It's become a stereotype that sales people in these stores don't have a clue. I was picking up a rapid charger in Staples the other day and asked if the PlayBooks were really on sale (since no signage, etc). The guy looked at me a bit funny and said "They're being discontinued. It was all over CNET."

    I did try to set him straight on that, but the point is that what store people tell you is useful for entertainment purposes only. They shouldn't be allowed to use live ammo, that's for sure...
    10-01-11 07:30 PM
  3. blkyanni's Avatar
    I absolutely agree. the best Buy in Rochester, MN didn't even have one on isplay, only the sign. When i asked they had to dig one out and it wasn't even set up. At least at Staples it was on display and working but they couodn't tell me anything about it.
    10-01-11 07:39 PM
  4. Bearcatrp's Avatar
    Saw a dead one at best buy in St cloud. The charger cord bent so had to hold it in place to fire it up. Still dead after about a minute. Was thinking about grabbing the deal but the screen is just to small for me. Hopefully, they come out with a 9 or 10 inch version.
    10-01-11 07:42 PM
  5. williamsbh76's Avatar
    I saw the same thing in staples when i picked up my Playbook that i ordered online yesterday. They had it and a xoom, both were dead. The only thing working were the kindles. Hard to sell something like that if you cant demo it. Fail for the retailers!
    10-01-11 07:58 PM
  6. blackjack93117's Avatar
    More likely the USB connector got damaged from abuse misuse and it lost it's charge - try making sure it is plugged in and hold the two volume + and - keys along with the power button for ten seconds. Suggest they put it in a rapid charging dock.
    10-01-11 08:01 PM
  7. shootsscores's Avatar
    Saw a dead one at best buy in St cloud. The charger cord bent so had to hold it in place to fire it up. Still dead after about a minute. Was thinking about grabbing the deal but the screen is just to small for me. Hopefully, they come out with a 9 or 10 inch version.
    Don't worry about the screen size. The display is amazingly vivid. If the demo video had been running for you to check out you'd know exactly what I mean. This display is not a compromise. It is the best one on the market.
    10-01-11 08:13 PM
  8. kill_9's Avatar
    Was thinking about grabbing the deal but the screen is just to small for me. Hopefully, they come out with a 9 or 10 inch version.
    Have you compared the 7-inch BlackBerry PlayBook and 10-inch Apple iPad side-by-side and actually used them for say a week to determine if you really need a 10-inch screen given the super crisp, high-resolution video display of the BlackBerry PlayBook? watching movies on my BlackBerry PlayBook while laying in bed or with it sitting in the rapid charging dock while I am working at my desk (workplace and home office) is easy on the eyes and provides better resolution than my 22-inch television. I doubt Research In Motion will release a 10-inch tablet in the foreseeable future so you might have a long wait for a 10-inch BlackBerry PlayBook. It is entirely possible you need a 10-inch tablet. As I said, choice is good and there is a tablet on the market for almost every use-case and preference; maybe the BlackBerry PlayBook will never meet your requirements. Make no mistake Apple set the standard for tablets in many respects and no other tablet can match the Apple iPad in sales at this time but even the Apple iPad was not built in a day. Enjoy your quest for the perfect tablet.
    10-01-11 08:27 PM
  9. ultra07's Avatar
    More likely the USB connector got damaged from abuse misuse and it lost it's charge - try making sure it is plugged in and hold the two volume + and - keys along with the power button for ten seconds. Suggest they put it in a rapid charging dock.
    Blackjack93117, I tried this several times on their dead demo. Nothing! This is why I think the OS has been deleted!
    10-01-11 08:46 PM
  10. ultra07's Avatar
    Blackjack93117, I tried this several times on their dead demo. Nothing! This is why I think the OS has been deleted!
    When the USB cable charger was pulled the demo went completely dead! No flashing red light or anything!
    10-01-11 08:48 PM
  11. III 4U2NV III's Avatar
    I too have been to a couple Best Buy in my (DC) area and their PBs were dead as well. It's like no one cares. If I were RIM, I'd make sure retail stores had their products at least functioning. I have also had a few friends tell me they tried out the PB at stores saying how much they lagged.

    As for the size, personally I think the 7" is perfect, not too big and not too small. I have used 10" tablets before and the PB is "just right". I am loving mine!
    10-01-11 08:53 PM
  12. mafia16#IM's Avatar
    i saw that too the first time that i demo the playbook at bestbuy mobile store the playbook was dead and i call a employe and he conect another usb and turn it on

    Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com
    10-01-11 09:09 PM
  13. guerllamo7's Avatar
    The sales people at Staples were a disappointment as well. The guy told me that the Playbook was running on old technology and it was hard to operate. The Playbook was also not working at the store.
    I got my Playbook on day one and love it. My wife loves hers and I was there to buy another one due to the sale (for my brother - Christmas present). The Playbook actually has better specs than the iPad2 and is not old but new technology being applied to the tablets.
    I love video chat with my wife, full flash web, video taping my kids with something of manageable size, the dual stereo speakers rock. All we can do is help people understand that the PB is awesome. Everyone I show it to loves it.

    By the way, Steve Jobs said that the 7" form factor was doomed. Really? then why did a content delivery outfit like Amazon put out a kindle fire that looks just like the Playbook? The 7" form factor is part of the reason I like it.

    Sales people have yet to impress me.
    10-01-11 09:34 PM
  14. solsticegt1's Avatar
    [QUOTE=ultra07;6724613]I was in the Best Buy store in Paducah, Kentucky today and their demo Playbook was dead. The screen was black and the red light would flash twice every few seconds.

    I had this happen to me. I had to do a security wipe on my PB and instead of wiping back to factory default it wiped the os and I had to do a full os reload through DM. So I think people may be playing with the PB's and they perform a security wipe and it goes wrong like it did for me.

    Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com
    10-01-11 09:37 PM
  15. FF22's Avatar
    I was at a Mobile BestBuy at a mall today and the playbook was actually well-displayed and working. I tried seeing what OS was loaded by it was password protected in Demo Mode. Funny, though, the price was not reduced on the sign. I had not seen a MobileBestBuy before - just cell phones, tablets and a laptop or two.
    10-02-11 12:40 AM
  16. ferganer's Avatar
    I don't know if folks at RIM aver read this forum, but I really hope so as this is alarming.

    I can report that the demo unit in Bloomington, IN Best Buy has been non-functional for many months. the Playbook was the only broken tablet among like 10 other brands/models. If you asked them, Best Buy employees would simply tell you that the unit doesn't work and they have no other unit to show.

    Same is in Bloomington, IN Staples. The unit turns on but you can't really play with it as they didn't do the initial setup.

    These are the only two stores that carry the Playbook in the area. Considering that most people first want to see a product like a tablet in action, I am not surprised the Playbook hasn't sold well, if this is the case in some/most brick&mortar stores.

    As others noted, if you ask a Best Buy employee to showcase an Apple product, there will be at least a few of them happy to give you a tour of all the features of the iPad/Mac/iPad, and all demo units are in a great shape/working condition as if they put a new one out every day. I am just saying that RIM could learn from Apple on how to deal with the retailers.
    10-02-11 01:10 AM
  17. axllebeer's Avatar
    Where I live on Ohio, the local Walmart here has had one on display for months, dead from the start. Got mine the day they came out so messing around with this one i noticed the USB plug wiggled a lot. Plugged the cord into my BB and was charging fine. The charging port was broke on PB. They were selling a rapid charger and I told them to just charge it with that so it would be at least usable. The employee told me he wasn't allowed to. As if thats not sad enough, months later they replaced/repared it. Now it sits there at the setup point, with no WIFI available to do so. Sooooo frustrating for me to see this. I love my PB and this isn't giving it a chance. The Xoom to the left works great, and some cheap *** unmarked one to the right is all setup too. WTF is the problem here?!?!? Why is this kinda crap happening everywhere?? I take my PB in with me a lot just so when people see me looking at the broken one I can say, "Here, mine works great. Don't judge it by this broken one that has sat here unnoticed and unappreciated..."
    10-02-11 01:30 AM
  18. LLAC00's Avatar
    This news is actually pretty interesting. The best buy out here in Woodland Hills, CA had one playbook on display and it wasn't even connected to their wifi network. The sales associate said a Blackberry Rep had to come out and connect it because of security reasons. Not to mention the Staples in Van Nuys first told me that they don't sell the PB. But i know they do because i go there pretty regularly. then another staples rep said they do sell them but are just out of stock and didnt know when a new shipment would come. this happened the day before their recent PB price drop lol
    10-02-11 01:30 AM
  19. tomo63's Avatar
    went to two Best Buys in suburban Chicago area and an Office Depot, all 3 had them hooked up, yet were INOP and when I pulled a sales associate in, they were not able to resolve and didn't seem to care. To bad for RIM
    10-02-11 09:32 AM
  20. easydoesit99's Avatar
    Costco in Edmonton, Canada has had them on display since April. Like other stores though, they are dead due to no power. Get this, i asked them last week if they will price match and they told me that they are no longer selling the PB. But they still had the dead one on display! That's a lack of respect for a product in my opinion. Oh well, I still love my PB and I am excited for OS 2!
    10-02-11 09:47 AM
  21. Economist101's Avatar
    As others noted, if you ask a Best Buy employee to showcase an Apple product, there will be at least a few of them happy to give you a tour of all the features of the iPad/Mac/iPad, and all demo units are in a great shape/working condition as if they put a new one out every day. I am just saying that RIM could learn from Apple on how to deal with the retailers.
    This isn't an issue of RIM dealing with retailers. The sales people at those stores are familiar with the Apple products because they have to be. People come in all the time asking about them. Based on the information we have, people aren't coming in asking about the PlayBook or using the demo models, hence them often not working with staff around that can't answer the simplest question. If RIM could generate some demand for the device you'd see retailers quickly adapting, making sure their people were prepared. But with demand as it currently is, what's the point?
    mustangv8 likes this.
    10-02-11 09:48 AM
  22. cl8baller's Avatar
    A few BestBuys I have visited in the Bay Area in California have the same issue with the USB charger damaged and the device just sitting there for holding purposes while others were stuck at the registration screen.

    When it comes to technology, sales representatives are useless and you are better off walking to a working PC/Mac and doing research on your own or at home.
    10-02-11 12:19 PM
  23. Economist101's Avatar
    By the way, Steve Jobs said that the 7" form factor was doomed. Really? then why did a content delivery outfit like Amazon put out a kindle fire that looks just like the Playbook? The 7" form factor is part of the reason I like it.
    As I remember it, the quote was something like "we believe these 7-inch tablets are D.O.A." In that instance, "these" tablets referrer to the GalaxyTab and the PlayBook. As both have struggled to even sustain enough demand to keep prices in place, I'd say he nailed it. As far as I know, he hasn't commented on the Kindle Fire, but it's not like it would be all that difficult to outperform the PlayBook and the GalaxyTab.
    10-02-11 12:19 PM
  24. CrackedBarry's Avatar
    Galaxy Tab has done pretty well, as has the HTC Flyer.

    I know it seems to be a popular myth on crackberry forums that "There is no tablet fad, only an I pad fad" but its not really the case. Android tablets are sitting on 20-25% of the tablet market, according to some of the latest reports. So Android tabs are selling, and selling well in some cases. Its true however, that none of them have been a smash hit like the I pad yet.
    10-02-11 12:46 PM
  25. jtfolden's Avatar
    This isn't an issue of RIM dealing with retailers. The sales people at those stores are familiar with the Apple products because they have to be. People come in all the time asking about them. Based on the information we have, people aren't coming in asking about the PlayBook or using the demo models, hence them often not working with staff around that can't answer the simplest question. If RIM could generate some demand for the device you'd see retailers quickly adapting, making sure their people were prepared. But with demand as it currently is, what's the point?
    Indeed. If there were actually any real interest from the general consumer then BB would make sure to have running demo models front and center. As it is, no one asks about them, the employees make no money from them, and so they sit neglected by salesperson and tablet buyer alike.

    It's up to RIM to make it a valuable and wanted device, not BB.

    Out of all the times I've been in the local BB, hovering around the Tablet displays to get a hands on with the latest models, I've never heard anyone else come in and ask about anything but the iPad. When people talk to a salesperson about alternatives, the other tablets rarely get a mention (more or less, "if the iPad won't work for you then just go with a notebook"). I was actually shocked last week when one sales guy pointed me to a Toshiba Thrive, saying it was attracting some interest (as a non-iPad tablet).

    My partner bought an ASUS Transformer yesterday, which seems to be a fairly "okay" selling tablet as far as Android models are concerned, and it took them 20 minutes just to find a 16GB model...
    10-02-11 01:07 PM
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