1. 2FunR1's Avatar
    Hey guys should I buy a playbook. I see they are so cheap.. will it sync with my BlackBerry passport? Can I sideload all my favorite apps like instagram. Snapchat etc? Will it connect to my BBM with bridge?

    Posted via CB10
    Necronas likes this.
    02-07-15 11:48 AM
  2. jack1059's Avatar
    You can have mine with a case and dock cheap. Dont use it anymore. If all you want in a tablet are the basics. PlayBook is still adequate.

    Posted via CB10
    02-07-15 01:23 PM
  3. 2FunR1's Avatar
    Can I side loads apps? And use my passport with bridge for bbm?

    Posted via CB10
    02-07-15 01:26 PM
  4. jack1059's Avatar
    I've never tried to side load apps to be honest. I don't own a windows computer so no way to try it. A friend of mine did with his though.

    As for bridge I never used that either.

    Sorry not being much help to you here. I suppose a quick Google search would answer those two questions though.

    Posted via CB10
    02-07-15 01:52 PM
  5. Drenegade's Avatar
    Yes you can bridge with your passport for BBM.

    No you can't have instagram.

    Side loading takes a bit of trial and error but if you accept the PlayBook for what it is and all of its limitations, then you will be happy.

    It won't run newer apps and the app selection is very limited.

    That being said, the price along with the superior quality of the PlayBook makes it a great purchase in my opinion.

    Remember that in order to be satisfied with the PlayBook, you absolutely must accept it's many limitations. It is no longer supported by BlackBerry and it simply cannot run newer apps.

    Powered by Z30
    andy957 likes this.
    02-07-15 02:00 PM
  6. a_bateman's Avatar
    I use my Playbook on a daily basis alongside my z10.

    If I want to use Snapchat or instagram or whatever else that it doesn't support I use my phone.

    I often use bridge so that I can leave my phone plugged in to charge. The browser has flash support. Between it and my z10 I've replaced my laptop for most uses including office documents.

    I've had arguments over its ability to work as an office type replacement but I have a Bluetooth keyboard and find it to be very useful.

    I would say if you want a cheap, useful, and beautifully designed tablet pick one up.

    Posted via CB10
    02-07-15 02:19 PM
  7. JP Yow's Avatar
    I'm hardpressed to think of a good reason to buy one anymore. Mine sits in a drawer ever since buying a Z10, and since my local paper discontinued its PlayBook support. It just can't do much. The only reasons I can think of to buy one would be to browse websites, read email, and maybe show pictures and movies. I used mine for a while to display photos and clips from trips to my friends, but even that really only makes sense when a tv/hdmi isn't available. It does have a very nice screen, and since it's a nice and large it's pretty good for reading, but don't expect it to offer new apps or integration with new OS features - anything you get is in my opinion a bonus.
    brianatbb likes this.
    02-07-15 03:39 PM
  8. edwinsberry's Avatar
    I can't recommend getting one at this point. However, yes as mentioned you can still sideload. I have Kindle, Evernote(which is still working as of today so far), Pandora among other items sideloaded. I've read where their are some bridge features to the Passport but I do not know if all. Its a four year old tablet, no even basic support anymore. I actually think if I went to a passport I would no longer use it at all. c
    02-07-15 03:49 PM
  9. johnny_bravo72's Avatar
    No. Waste of money.

    Posted from a D618
    02-07-15 04:00 PM
  10. grandam30's Avatar
    I have one. There are a few games in BlackBerry world and the browser works.

    Posted via BlackBerry Z30 
    02-07-15 09:06 PM
  11. Tre Lawrence's Avatar
    Why not?

    For the right price (and reasonable expectations) you can't go wrong. Still fire mine up every now and then.

    The key, IMHO, is going in with the right expectations.
    02-07-15 09:15 PM
  12. anon(9188202)'s Avatar
    FYI: Last I checked, Amazon.ca still had some new 32Gb PB's for $119.

    Posted via CB10
    02-07-15 09:23 PM
  13. AWB70's Avatar
    I think if you have a BB phone its still worth picking up purely for the bridge feature. I like a previous post like to sit on mine while my z10 is charging.
    Most stuff I do still functions the way I want it. Its ok as an ereader, playing a few games and hdmi out to tv. The price of tablets these days, if I was looking for a tablet that kept up with most new apps for around �100 bracket then no I wouldn't buy one but as a large screen display and general sidekick to my Blackberry phone, if I had one for around �50/60 then yes.

    You can pick them up second hand now for a decent price. I have two, a 16gig and a 32. One I keep in the car for music and knocking out emails or viewing documents while on the road and the other I keep in the house. Comes in handy when working away in hotels while the phones on charge at night so I can watch a movie or read.

    So a sidekick for your phone yes. Main Tablet no. IMO
    02-08-15 12:14 PM
  14. Gooseberry Falls's Avatar
    If you are an audiophile and don't like to use headphones, a def yes. If your cell plan charges for hot spot capabilities, bridge will allow you to share Internet if you have a BlackBerry phone, so yes. If you are a serious app person, the no.

    Posted via CB10
    edwinsberry and anon(9188202) like this.
    02-08-15 01:55 PM
  15. 2FunR1's Avatar
    I can pick one up on local classifieds for 80$,. 16gb in excellent condition....

    Posted via CB10
    02-08-15 02:28 PM
  16. AWB70's Avatar
    As long as the battery is good then why not. I'm on mine now and have been most of the night. It still gets by. Under no illusion that it still cuts it with what's available now. I was going to get a new tablet in the January sales, Probabably a windows tab/laptop combo along the lines of a transformer purely for compatibilty, especially when 10.3 eventually gets here for my phone to run blend. To be honest though, with the combination of my phone and Playbook I fail to see the benefit right now. When I hit the point where I feel restricted Ill get something else but my Z10/playbook do what I need.

    Tapatalk On Blackberry PlayBook
    02-08-15 05:38 PM
  17. lokomotifbag's Avatar
    Hey guys should I buy a playbook. I see they are so cheap.. will it sync with my BlackBerry passport? Can I sideload all my favorite apps like instagram. Snapchat etc? Will it connect to my BBM with bridge?

    Posted via CB10
    do not buy PB if bb10 not coming to it... i have one at home, not even touch it...
    02-09-15 02:23 AM
  18. willowbeast's Avatar
    Our 2 are used to stream music to a tabletop radio and another in the kitchen for recipes. When we travel the kids use them to watch shows or movies. That's it.

    Posted via CB10
    02-09-15 04:28 AM
  19. svelt's Avatar
    This guy: Good e-Reader App Store ? Playbook and BB10 still maintains a good shop for Android apps you could possibly plug into your PlayBook. Snapchat and Instagram won't work and never will. I think the only Android apps I used consistently on it were Flipboard, Dropbox, Tapatalk and Evernote (the native Evernote was always horrible).

    As for what you could do with it... I checked and responded to emails and looked at my calendar. More comfortable than reading on even the Z30's screen. You can browse on it but it's very slow and unreliable. Flipboard, Zinio and the Economist are slow but serviceable for reading. A few bridge features remained useful, even with Blend being released - BBM and texting using the BBID on your phone and the sharing of links and documents directly from phone to tablet.

    I sold mine for like $40 and that was almost half a year ago. No way I'd pick one up now for any more than that, any version. For that matter I wouldn't pick up any Android tablet either, the use case just isn't there. The PB does make a decent companion piece to a BB phone when you're riding the subway.
    02-09-15 11:13 AM
  20. MozThaGreat's Avatar
    Please no. Just save up for something that can do more than be an mp3 player.

    Posted via CB10
    02-09-15 10:44 PM
  21. AWB70's Avatar
    Please no. Just save up for something that can do more than be an mp3 player.

    Posted via CB10
    Haha, how could you possibly say that? That's in the same league as the more commoner door stop clich�. Fair enough it's not in the same league as most modern Android tabs sub �100.
    With my PlayBook here's what I do most nights..
    Works seamlessly with all my email accounts, syncs calender, syncs contacts, Evernote, Manage it, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn , Hdmi out movies and TV shows to my TV, alarm clock, edit documents and view construction drawings in pdf when my eyes are too tired for my phone, bridge with my phone so I can carry on texting and bbm while phones on charge, edit pictures and post them to the majority of online storage accounts I have, browse the Internet, have Internet access on my tablet using my phones data plan so I incur no extra cost, sat nav, countless games which most I haven't even tried yet and Oh, nearly forgot, PLAY MP3's.

    So if you want to draw a comparison with a mp3 player I suppose it is. If you can pick one up below �50 in good condition and you have other means of running modern day apps then pick one up and just keep it kicking around. Anything higher than that then yes I'd probably be looking at a low end DROID tab.






    Posted via CB10
    02-10-15 03:01 PM
  22. TOphotog's Avatar
    For $50, I just picked up my fourth PB, a 32GB. I live in a three storey house, now I can get up to the minute weather radar on each floor, let alone read email, watch movies, etc. I just love it, and love the size of it. I use them for presentations for work - beats cramming up next to the client to show them on one device. I use it with Advanced Camera for time lapse movies of snow (what else are you going to do while waiting for spring??), as a radio player, mp3 player. I can hook it up to the big screen TV to watch a movie and use my BB as a remote. Still finding it useful. Also, got Calibre on my PC and I can get all the newspapers and magazines - for free! Transfer to the PB and use PlayePub Book Reader... very handy.
    02-13-15 04:46 PM
  23. vanrickman's Avatar
    Yup, still use mine everyday too.
    Doing all the same as above plus YouTube.
    Connects to my 30 perfectly.

    My Canada My BlackBerry My Z30
    02-13-15 04:58 PM
  24. blakviper's Avatar
    Well, I still have mine, although I never use it anymore, it has become my 4 yrs old movie player (pacifier), it's a great help when driving and in the house.

    I bought my 11 yrs old an iPad mini in 2013, last year I bought her an iPod touch. I bought an iPad mini for myself, to learn how to use it, and I honestly liked it. I'm planning to buy a 64 GB iPad air in the near future, including a BT keyboard.

    I had an Android Tablet 2 yrs ago, but I didn't like it.
    02-13-15 11:44 PM
  25. nevertoofar's Avatar
    Do not waste your money buying a BlackBerry PlayBook in 2015.

    Posted via CB10
    02-15-15 12:03 PM
44 12

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