[ditto1958]

I got a new Playbook for Christmas and my wife got a Kindle Fire. After 24 hours with it, my conclusion is that I am conflicted about it. I will list my major loves and hates about it, but I think that the bottom line at this point is that it simply needs more apps. Now, I'm not talking about having an app store that has bazillions of apps available. I mean just basic ones that people want and need.

There are several major things I would like to be able to do with a tablet and unfortunately my playbook can only do some of them.

1. Browse the web- works pretty well in general. No major complaint at all about the browser.

2. Watch YouTube videos- works fine for that so far, too.

3. Watch streaming video- FAIL. No Netflix or Hulu.

4. Read e-books- FAIL. No Kindle App.

5. Listen to music- don't know yet. Haven't tried to get my iTunes music onto the PB yet.

6. Words With Friends- FAIL. All my friends with Apple and Android can play, but not me.

7. Tethering- excellent feature. Nice to know I can get online anywhere I have phone service and my BB phone. Wish it worked with all phones, though.

8. Setup: FAIL, FAIL, FAIL. My wife booted up her Kindle Fire, registered it with her Amazon account and was up and running in minutes. Playbook? Um... no. I fired it up, went through the setup process and then it started to download an OS update. 2 HOURS LATER the download was finished and the PB tried to reboot. It hung on the bootup screen and none of the fixes here at CB worked.

9. BB Tech Support: A++++. I called BB tech support at around 11 P.M. on Xmas Eve. They not only were open, but I was transferred to a tech with almost no waiting. He spoke unaccented English and solved my problem almost immediately. The update began downloading again, this time using BB Desktop and my laptop, but again it proceeded at a snail's pace. I stressed several times to the tech guy that it was likely going to take a long, long time, but he kept offering to stay on the line with me as long as it took! I did get a ticket no. from him, though, and talked him into hanging up. At last, at about 5
A.M. the update finished and I was able to start using the PB.

While tech support was astoundingly good, this incident was completely unacceptable and BB needs to work on it ASAP.

[ditto1958]

After having a day now to use the PB after all the time it took to get setup, I would say that from a hardware standpoint, the PB is great. Built solid, no creaks. It's the right size for me. The display looks really nice.

The OS runs smoothly and seems to be bullet proof. No crashes or bugs. One thing about BB's- stuff just works.

Browsing the web is fine- no complaints there. Sending emails is fine, too.

I just would like it to do some basic things that just need software to accomplish: watch streaming movies with Netflix and Hulu, get a Kindle reader app, or at least a substitute that will take all my books and sync them with my Kindle, and be able to run popular apps that Android and Apple users enjoy, such as Words With Friends.

BB is not far from having a winner.

[III 4U2NV III]

Sorry to hear it took so long to setup your PB, I was able to set up both mine and my daughter's PBs in minutes and with ease. I also don't knock my PB for lack of certain apps. Yes, if I could VPN and RD to my work PC, that would make my PB totally amazing but eh, I prefer to "work" from a pc. Otherwise, it meets my needs.

For movies, I save movies on my PB when I want to watch em. Music also sounds great esp through headphones.

I've tried the Fire and eh... If you read alot and/or an avid Amazon user, thats the device for you.

GL and hope the PB gets better for you.

[mcws]

After having a day now to use the PB after all the time it took to get setup, I would say that from a hardware standpoint, the PB is great. Built solid, no creaks. It's the right size for me. The display looks really nice.

The OS runs smoothly and seems to be bullet proof. No crashes or bugs. One thing about BB's- stuff just works.

Browsing the web is fine- no complaints there. Sending emails is fine, too.

I just would like it to do some basic things that just need software to accomplish: watch streaming movies with Netflix and Hulu, get a Kindle reader app, or at least a substitute that will take all my books and sync them with my Kindle, and be able to run popular apps that Android and Apple users enjoy, such as Words With Friends.

BB is not far from having a winner.

i had both for about a week and ditched my kindle fire. The screen lagged, the browser was slow, scrolling was terrible. All it did well was being an e reader. The playbook can read all my kindle books through the kindle cloud reader and it works well. When or if OS 2 comes out, at least the app problem will be solved.

That's the risk. Will 2.0 actually happen?

[kbz1960]

Have tried using the kindle cloud reader? Some people say it works with some limitations.

As for netflix etc. have to wait for netflix etc. to support it.

Edit: I guess 3 of us gave the same info about the same time lol.

[III 4U2NV III]

After having a day now to use the PB after all the time it took to get setup, I would say that from a hardware standpoint, the PB is great. Built solid, no creaks. It's the right size for me. The display looks really nice.

The OS runs smoothly and seems to be bullet proof. No crashes or bugs. One thing about BB's- stuff just works.

Browsing the web is fine- no complaints there. Sending emails is fine, too.

I just would like it to do some basic things that just need software to accomplish: watch streaming movies with Netflix and Hulu, get a Kindle reader app, or at least a substitute that will take all my books and sync them with my Kindle, and be able to run popular apps that Android and Apple users enjoy, such as Words With Friends.

BB is not far from having a winner.

Agreed, hopefully OS2 will close that gap

[jamesharmeling]

I have both the Fire and I've had a Playbook from the start. Besides the Fire having Netflix and a month free Amazon Prime, that's where it begins and ends for me. The Playbook as is: awesome. The Playbook potential: amazing.

[bitek]

I never had problem with initial setup. it takes literally minutes not counting os update download

[Barredbard]

I think you are now finding out what several of us who purchased the Playbook have come to realize. I like my Playbook more for its potential than for what it can do right now. While the ability to browse websites that are miniaturized replicas of the same websites on PCs and Macs is great, it doesn't present any viable or convenient alternatives to Hulu, Kindle, Netflix or HBOGO, to name a few essential ones.

All our hopes are vested in OS 2.0 which is supposed to allow access to applications on the Droid universe, but it has been delayed time and again by RIM. Its latest release is now slated for February. This is the main reason why I was only willing to pay $200; I'd hate to shell out $499 only to find that OS 2.0 doesn't bring all that has been promised, or that it will be further delayed while other tablets featuring access to these applications are released almost every month.

The success of Kindle Fire and other tablets has proved what some of us already knew: the success of a tablet is directly dependent on content. With a mobile phone, you can dismiss the fact that there aren't too many apps available by claiming that its primary function is for making calls. With a computer, one doesn't need as many apps because it is almost always connected to an internet source, and because the browser is powerful enough to access all content.

For a tablet, it has always been about apps. No one really needs a tablet if they already have a computer and a phone. A tablet, then, is all about convenience to fill the gap between the two. Apps foster that convenience, and for now, Playbook is seriously deficient on that front. I fervently hope that our patience will pay off. If not, I will declare a bad investment, forego the $200, and get myself an iPad. Holding my nose all the way.

[greatwiseone]

If you want kindle and words with friends, just get the dev OS 2.0. Kindle and words with friends android apps work great on it!

[emtunc]

How is the Kindle cloud reader anyway? Is it that much of a pain to use compared to an official app or...?

[anon3969612]

No one really needs a tablet if they already have a computer and a phone.

Er, I have a computer and a phone and I use my PB in my service truck and on calls because it is better than either for note-taking, on-site pictures, connectivity and remote access to my office PC. It has completely replaced the laptop I used to carry in the truck, it is small, unobtrusive, powerful and doesn't need endless charging.

I fervently hope that our patience will pay off. If not, I will declare a bad investment, forego the $200, and get myself an iPad. Holding my nose all the way.

But why would you do that if you already have a phone and a computer?

[Barredbard]

Er, I have a computer and a phone and I use my PB in my service truck and on calls because it is better than either for note-taking, on-site pictures, connectivity and remote access to my office PC. It has completely replaced the laptop I used to carry in the truck, it is small, unobtrusive, powerful and doesn't need endless charging.



But why would you do that if you already have a phone and a computer?

This falls into the "what the heck?" category.

I own my Playbook for convenience.Tablets had been in existence for several years before the iPad came out, but several people, including yourself managed to get by. You also managed to accomplish the same tasks that you now use your tablet to accomplish. You need a phone to make calls, you need a computer for word processing activities and a host of activities that are too varied to enumerate. "Note-taking, on-site pictures and connectivity" are things easily accomplished by a powerful Blackberry phone. In fact, I prefer taking notes with my 9930; the physical keyboard makes that endeavor unbelievably fast for the initiated. I also prefer taking pictures with my phone; a tablet is too cumbersome for that for me.

A tablet merely does some of what a computer does, albeit in a smaller, more convenient package. This is why I agree that a tablet is "small, unobtrusive, powerful and doesn't need endless charging." Yet, these are conveniences, not necessities. I want the convenience of owning a tablet. That convenience is facilitated by apps. Therefore, I want a tablet that has access to the apps that I need. The logic should be fairly transparent. I hope this has 'unconfused' you. If not, I want you to name one thing that is a necessity, and not a convenience, that a tablet can do, but which cannot be accomplished by a laptop or PC and a smartphone.

[Yamcha]

Yup, some of the things you listed are exactly some of my grips, I actually do regret replacing my iPad with this now.. Not that it isn't a great device, It has always had potential but it hasn't reached it yet..

[Barredbard]

Yup, some of the things you listed are exactly some of my grips, I actually do regret replacing my iPad with this now.. Not that it isn't a great device, It has always had potential but it hasn't reached it yet..

I know; we just have to cross our fingers, and hope that February brings OS 2.0 with all the features promised.

[rotorwrench]

This falls into the "what the heck?" category.

I own my Playbook for convenience.Tablets had been in existence for several years before the iPad came out, but several people, including yourself managed to get by. You need a phone to make calls, you need a computer for word processing activities and a host of activities that are too varied to enumerate. "Note-taking, on-site pictures and connectivity" are things easily accomplished by a powerful Blackberry phone. In fact, I prefer taking notes with my 9930; the physical keyboard makes that endeavor unbelievably fast for the initiated. I also prefer taking pictures with my phone; a tablet is too cumbersome for that for me.

A tablet merely does some of what a computer does, albeit in a smaller, more convenient package. This is why I agree that a tablet is "small, unobtrusive, powerful and doesn't need endless charging." Yet, these are conveniences, not necessities. I want the convenience of owning a tablet. That convenience is facilitated by apps. Therefore, I want a tablet that has access to the apps that I need. The logic should be fairly transparent. I hope this has 'unconfused' you.

If not, I want you to name one thing that is a necessity, and not a convenience, that a tablet can do, but which cannot be accomplished by a laptop or PC and a smartphone.

Thank you for your OPINION, for thats what it is. But to be more accurate, most all technology advances are conveniences to begin with. Thats the evolution of technology. The brainchild is to take a device, function, task etc.......and make a more convenient way of doing it, or way to expand its usefulness. The cellphone is a perfect example. It was NEVER a necessity. We already had phones, but it was more convenient, at first. We had calculators, not a necessity at first either. The cellphone began to CREATE its own necessities, as did the calculator. Hey, make a calculator I can take notes on, convenience, read text on, convenience, do office functions etc.....PDA. Hey, marry the pda to the phone! Wouldn't that be convenient! So on and so forth. The computer is no different. Why a laptop? Convenience. They weren't necessary. The convenience creates new uses and increases efficiency to the point we now consider them necessities. Period. That is the evolution, and the tablet is doing the same thing. It is right now making itself a necessity, mark my words. New tasks for tablets are being created up every day. Especially as they become more powerful. And yes, as more useful apps become available.

Our company used Toughbooks months ago for what we now are using PBs for. The size, form factor and bridging are what did it. It currently has and does what we need, and does it more CONVENIENTLY and efficiently than a laptop. More useful apps will just make it that more indispensable. PBs have made our jobs easier and more efficient, which equates to less overhead, which is a NECESSITY. Currently, no other pad will work for us due to the combination of size, bridging and retention of sensitive communication remaining on the BB phone, with no trace on the pad.

Your opinion of convenience of tablets is very quickly turning into a minority. Just my opinion, of course.

[Foppa_21]

Interesting. I, like many others, can in fact watch streaming videos (on sites that don't intentionally block PB), read e-books, sync with iTunes and run Android apps. Set up was painless with no computer required. No issues here.

[Barredbard]

Thank you for your OPINION, for thats what it is. But to be more accurate, most all technology advances are conveniences to begin with. Thats the evolution of technology. The brainchild is to take a device, function, task etc.......and make a more convenient way of doing it, or way to expand its usefulness. The cellphone is a perfect example. It was NEVER a necessity. We already had phones, but it was more convenient, at first. We had calculators, not a necessity at first either. The cellphone began to CREATE its own necessities, as did the calculator. Hey, make a calculator I can take notes on, convenience, read text on, convenience, do office functions etc.....PDA. Hey, marry the pda to the phone! Wouldn't that be convenient! So on and so forth. The computer is no different. Why a laptop? Convenience. They weren't necessary. The convenience creates new uses and increases efficiency to the point we now consider them necessities. Period. That is the evolution, and the tablet is doing the same thing. It is right now making itself a necessity, mark my words. New tasks for tablets are being created up every day. Especially as they become more powerful. And yes, as more useful apps become available.

Our company used Toughbooks months ago for what we now are using PBs for. The size, form factor and bridging are what did it. It currently has and does what we need, and does it more CONVENIENTLY and efficiently than a laptop. More useful apps will just make it that more indispensable. PBs have made our jobs easier and more efficient, which equates to less overhead, which is a NECESSITY. Currently, no other pad will work for us due to the combination of size, bridging and retention of sensitive communication remaining on the BB phone, with no trace on the pad.

Your opinion of convenience of tablets is very quickly turning into a minority. Just my opinion, of course.

You are right. The above is definitely your opinion. I remember before the advent of mobile phones, when my father's car broke down on his way to Chicago, he was stuck on the road for more than a day because there was no payphone around on the interstate highway, and no one stopped to help or convey him to the nearest phone. My mother cried about what might have happened. So much for highway hospitality.I beg to differ; mobile phones were always a necessity, but no one had figured out how to make them cheap and available to the masses for quite some time. A calculator, again, is a necessity. Without it, many of the scientific advances we now take for granted would have been virtually impossible. NASA would certainly still be gazing at stars without any clue as to how to get there.

To take your argument to its logical conclusion, why wear clothes in the summer, even? Other than for our modesty, we would not exactly melt in the sun the summer, hence clothing must be considered a convenience. How about cups? Presumably we could lap up water with our cupped hands, so why do we need cups? Maybe we should discuss utensils? Eating mashed potatoes and gravy with your fingers is certainly possible, if a trifle messy. Or the automobile? We could ride a horse instead, and cover a few miles per day, making a trip to Chicago for instance last months. Heck, even a horse is a luxury; why not just walk? Why an indoor toilet? You could make do with an outhouse, never mind the smell or creepy-crawlies. Even an outhouse is unnecessary, when you can merely dig a hole and shyte in it at your leisure. I guess all of the above are conveniences too.

Your argument is merely wordplay, better known as semantics. Other than your body and all of its limbs, everything else might be labelled a convenience if you so choose. As a modern man, I consider my laptop a necessity. It allows me to process word documents, and access content online that I would otherwise not be able to. My mobile phone is also a necessity. It allows me to call AAA when I am stuck in a remote area, or the cops when I return home at night to find my front door open, to use some extreme examples. The things that my tablet do, my laptop and cellphone can do. My tablet is just more convenient. Therefore I want it as convenient as could be. Therefore, I want apps that can foster this convenience. If all that the Playbook has is a powerful browser, this convenience is greatly reduced, especially because my Sony Vaio laptop also has a powerful browser, has an 8 hour battery life, and at 13" is certainly not the largest money can buy. Of course, the Playbook offers the convenience of bridging, but that is only if you have a Blackberry phone.

[chrism_scotland]

OS Beta 2.0 will allow you to run the Android Kindle App and it runs brilliantly, another option is the "Book Reader" App in Blackberry App World, this will allow you to read any ebooks that you have (i.e the files) on your PB and again is an excellent app.

[ditto1958]

Hmmm... well I'll be darned. I did not know about Kindle Cloud Reader. I will definitely be trying it out tonight.

[Hgouck]

Cell phones are conveniences. While I am sorry to hear what happend to your parents he was able to drive without it. It would have been nice for him to have one to help in that situation but not necessary. No calculator can compute a function or formula that was not already known and programed in. Just because it would be harder to do does not mean it is necessary to have

[jonty12]

Hmmm... well I'll be darned. I did not know about Kindle Cloud Reader. I will definitely be trying it out tonight.

as mentioned earlier, beta 2.0 has great working kindle and words with friends apps. but, if you don't want to run the beta, kindle cloud works very well too.

[six6xis]

5. Listen to music- don't know yet. Haven't tried to get my iTunes music onto the PB yet.


6. Words With Friends- FAIL. All my friends with Apple and Android can play, but not me.

7. Tethering- excellent feature. Nice to know I can get online anywhere I have phone service and my BB phone. Wish it worked with all phones, though.

8. Setup: FAIL, FAIL, FAIL. My wife booted up her Kindle Fire, registered it with her Amazon account and was up and running in minutes. Playbook? Um... no. I fired it up, went through the setup process and then it started to download an OS update. 2 HOURS LATER the download was finished and the PB tried to reboot. It hung on the bootup screen and none of the fixes here at CB worked.

5. I love the fact that I can just open it up as an SMB share and move music/video files to the playbook.

7. I tether just fine with my Windows phone 7 handset. As long as you have a hotspot you can tether.

8. I bought mine near Black Friday and within the hour I was already playing Dead Space. I didnt think that was too bad considering the tablet had been out since the 1st or 2nd quarter. The Fire just came out so there is probably not much of an update for it if any.

[rotorwrench]

You are right. The above is definitely your opinion. I remember before the advent of mobile phones, when my father's car broke down on his way to Chicago, he was stuck on the road for more than a day because there was no payphone around on the interstate highway, and no one stopped to help or convey him to the nearest phone. My mother cried about what might have happened. So much for highway hospitality.I beg to differ; mobile phones were always a necessity, but no one had figured out how to make them cheap and available to the masses for quite some time. A calculator, again, is a necessity. Without it, many of the scientific advances we now take for granted would have been virtually impossible. NASA would certainly still be gazing at stars without any clue as to how to get there.

To take your argument to its logical conclusion, why wear clothes in the summer, even? Other than for our modesty, we would not exactly melt in the sun the summer, hence clothing must be considered a convenience. How about cups? Presumably we could lap up water with our cupped hands, so why do we need cups? Maybe we should discuss utensils? Eating mashed potatoes and gravy with your fingers is certainly possible, if a trifle messy. Or the automobile? We could ride a horse instead, and cover a few miles per day, making a trip to Chicago for instance last months. Heck, even a horse is a luxury; why not just walk? Why an indoor toilet? You could make do with an outhouse, never mind the smell or creepy-crawlies. Even an outhouse is unnecessary, when you can merely dig a hole and shyte in it at your leisure. I guess all of the above are conveniences too.

Your argument is merely wordplay, better known as semantics. Other than your body and all of its limbs, everything else might be labelled a convenience if you so choose. As a modern man, I consider my laptop a necessity. It allows me to process word documents, and access content online that I would otherwise not be able to. My mobile phone is also a necessity. It allows me to call AAA when I am stuck in a remote area, or the cops when I return home at night to find my front door open, to use some extreme examples. The things that my tablet do, my laptop and cellphone can do. My tablet is just more convenient. Therefore I want it as convenient as could be. Therefore, I want apps that can foster this convenience. If all that the Playbook has is a powerful browser, this convenience is greatly reduced, especially because my Sony Vaio laptop also has a powerful browser, has an 8 hour battery life, and at 13" is certainly not the largest money can buy. Of course, the Playbook offers the convenience of bridging, but that is only if you have a Blackberry phone.

I'm sorry, but you obviously have missed my point but your arguments support my point. None of those devices started out as necessities,none of them. They started out as a better, faster way of performing a task already being done by other means or not being done at all. What started this was your opinion that tablets weren't necessary. They aren't now, or for you. You told the poster he could do what he needed with a laptop. I said the implementing of a device invites new uses for it to the point it becomes necessary. Your father didn't need a cellphone to resolve his delima, but it would have been more convenient. When we become dependent on something, we deem it necessary. Tablets are being implemented to the point they will be deemed necessary.

My father-in-law was an aerospace engineer. He is the first to tell you that a slide rule was more necessary than a calculator when they first came out. They weren't trusted and many engineers and scientists continued to use slide rules for years. Contrary to what you stated, the vast majority of progress and inovation in aerospace was before laptops and calculators. Thats my field. Umm.....First space flight 1958, computers and sliderules, no handheld calculators. First manned space flight, um.....computers and sliderules. NASA formed in 1958, Unix computers and sliderules, no handheld calculators in commercial production until 1967. My physics prof didn't start using a calculator till they had been out for several years. I guess he and NASA didn't know they were necessary at the time.

The point being that tablets are making themselves necessary because they're more practical and efficient for uses previously being done by other devices. Just as necessary as a laptop or calculator. Again, my opinion, you have yours. We disagree.

Sorry members, this got out of hand, I apologize. I'm through.

[PanaSama]

To be fair i had set up 5 playbooks including mine within 30 min, and thats with the horrible mexican internet providers, i wouldn't call the op experience standadard.