[brianatbb]

"PB10" is coming. In its present state, the PlayBook still performs very well and it's two years old. This is testament to the elegance of QNX. I'm sticking with QNX until or unless the PB truly can't match brand new devices that require twice the processing power to achieve the same performance as a two year old, "ancient" piece of technology.

Amazing to think that an update will give the PlayBook another two year+ lease on life. Will my battery last that long?

Sorry, but wishful thinking isn't a solid basis for proving a point. And pretending the PB can match devices with twice the processing power is beyond ridiculous. As I and others have noted, it can't match the performance of some devices with similar specs, as in dual core and one gig of ram. And no OS update will ever give the PB another two year lease on life, unless you redefine said lease on life as being nowhere near what devices coming out in the next year or two will be doing. Actually, the tablets we'll see later this year will demonstrate just how far the PB is falling behind, no matter how well it might satisfy you.

[Motor_Mouth]

Frankly, what is pushing me over the edge is Chrome. I'm a big fan of Chrome on Windows

Really? I've tried it several times, once for a good few months, and it just seems like a browser to me. In fact, since installing the Win8 Dev Preview I haven't even bothered with Firefox. To me they all seem to be roughly equal in terms of what they do and I can't see a compelling reason to prefer one over another.

Reading your posts gives me nightmares. I haven't felt the need to tweak anything for almost a decade and I am so glad to be as far away from that as possible, which is why I have less than no interest in Android. The only tablet I could see luring me away from my Playbook would be a Surface Pro but given that it is 6 times more expensive, I think my PB is safe for the foreseeable future.

[sexybabe88]

I know what you mean. Rim's attitude towards the pb is the reason why I did not give bb10 a chance.

[irrebkcalB]

Sorry, but wishful thinking isn't a solid basis for proving a point. And pretending the PB can match devices with twice the processing power is beyond ridiculous. As I and others have noted, it can't match the performance of some devices with similar specs, as in dual core and one gig of ram. And no OS update will ever give the PB another two year lease on life, unless you redefine said lease on life as being nowhere near what devices coming out in the next year or two will be doing. Actually, the tablets we'll see later this year will demonstrate just how far the PB is falling behind, no matter how well it might satisfy you.

Sorry, but the PB still matches up very well with devices requiring twice the processing power to accomplish the same results. QNX is simply that much more efficient than android. Remember, the PlayBook hardware is fully capable of running the Z10's blazing fast browser and amazing keyboard. Same too with BB10 apps. Multitasking? Only QNX devices can truly do it no matter the hardware specs of competitors' devices. Another thing that bodes well for the PB is that the BB10 developer alpha ran on specs very similar to the PlayBook's. Probably won't see the Hub on the PlayBook but then again the hub isn't really necessary for a tablet. Looking forward to "PB10" and my Z10.

[Angus_CB]

Overall I am happy with the Playbook but, let's be honest, Blackberry has given up on them. At this point it's a little silly for us to keep promoting them as a viable choice.
Actions speak louder than words. Try to buy a Playbook in Canada, Blackberry's homeland. The Source was the biggest retail supporter of the Playbook and they don't even stock them any more.
I do believe they will release BB10 for the Playbook but that doesn't mean much at this point. They are just fulfilling a promise.

I still like the Playbook but I won't be rushing out to buy any more of them, even if I could. It was an inexpensive choice at the time and it does everything I want it to do. The only reason it does what I want is because of app developers not Blackberry. KalemSoft Media Player and Splashtop are what made the Playbook a great tablet for me.

[rkennedy01]

Well, I'm back on my PB and will likely be taking it with me instead of the Acer Tab. Even with all of the tuning and tweaking, Android still isn't reliable enough for daily use. Just today it locked-up on me when replying to another forum in TapaTalk HD. Had to force power-cycle the device to clear the problem. Fortunately, I wasn't working on anything else important at the time - unlike my PB, where I regularly multitask without concern for such problems.

Bottom Line: In the end, reliability trumps functionality for me. Sort of like when I favored NT over Windows 9x way back when.

RCK

Sent from my BlackBerry Runtime for Android Apps using Tapatalk 2

[mikeplus1]

Everybody should have a second tablet to use and experiment around with a little.

[taz323]

Overall I am happy with the Playbook but, let's be honest, Blackberry has given up on them. At this point it's a little silly for us to keep promoting them as a viable choice.
Actions speak louder than words. Try to buy a Playbook in Canada, Blackberry's homeland. The Source was the biggest retail supporter of the Playbook and they don't even stock them any more.
I do believe they will release BB10 for the Playbook but that doesn't mean much at this point. They are just fulfilling a promise.

I still like the Playbook but I won't be rushing out to buy any more of them, even if I could. It was an inexpensive choice at the time and it does everything I want it to do. The only reason it does what I want is because of app developers not Blackberry. KalemSoft Media Player and Splashtop are what made the Playbook a great tablet for me.

I'm agreeing with you, love my PB, but the lack of PB in the stores is really makeing me wonder, if they are really planning on updating the PB why wouldn't you keep the shelves stocked. its a great combo.
I was so wanting the Z10, but with Sprint not carring it, my contract not up till the end of July, and my 9930 dyeing on me. I've decided to waite an see what they do with the Z10 and the bridge. I've already picked up another touch screen to see if I like it (always had a hard keyboard). if I don't might go for Q10, but If Blackberry dosent keep their word on updating PB and doing better on bridge.
I will hang to the PB to its end and move on.

[irrebkcalB]

By all reputable accounts, the PB will be updated. We, however, should bear in mind BB's position. Handsets are where the money is and as such handsets are key to the future of BB. BB must put the vast majority of its resources into deploying and supporting its new phones. That said, reputable sources have stated that teams are working on implementing BB10 for PlayBook. Furthermore, reputable company sources have stated that the tablet space is definitely important to BB and part of BB's future. TH said that profitability in the tablet space is challenging therefore BB in its current state of declining profitability cannot expend resources on a device space that is not currently able to make money for the company.

The PlayBook got a nice little update a few weeks ago so that should be evidence that BB has not forgotten its tablets. Additionally, they are no doubt well aware that the PB/BB bridge is a very popular combination. Still, in their precarious situation -BB10 is do or die remember - the major effort must be placed on the handsets with the PlayBook moved to the back burner. This doesn't mean the burner has been turned off though. The PlayBook is still simmering in some kitchens in Waterloo. PlayBook owners are hungry for some delicious BB10 soup but a good soup needs to simmer for a time.

If could only munch on a Z10 now but, unfortunately, the kitchen at Verizon is slow and I'm starving.

[RubberChicken76]

The PlayBook is a 2-year old tablet by April 2013

PlayBook WiFi is 2 years old by April '13. PlayBook LTE is not a year old.

[RubberChicken76]

Overall I am happy with the Playbook but, let's be honest, Blackberry has given up on them.

If that were true, they wouldn't have done an update recently, they wouldn't have launched the cellular one in Europe and Canada last year, and they wouldn't be working on BlackBerry 10 now. They may have reduced their channel footprint deliberately (retail is brutal) and put the product to the back burner against BlackBerry 10, but it's not discontinued.

[Orange UK]

Playbook beat ipad or other tablets for me, so.much so my home theater pc is rarely used, gave away my few month old Acer Aspire 725netbook as PB has become my main online resource at home or out and about. Shame the lack of apps but that's just temp,roll on BB 10.

Perfect size, battery is good...intact PB brought me back to BB as my Pearl 3G services no longer work, Orange can't work out why?? But now I have a proper browser via bridge, compressed data and enhanced security online. What's not to love on PB even with a faulty Pearl 3G that no amount of wiping helps.

[RubberChicken76]

but due to inadequate optimizing of software/OS

Out of curiosity, just curious about the performance enhancements that you feel need to be done? Not challenging, just asking.

I've had my PlayBook since just before 2.0 launched, so my experience is different than that of an early adopter in that I saw a good deal and I saw it evolve into what I see as a now decent tablet. I find the OS performs, I find it easy to use, I have many apps I like. My two biggest gripes were its lack of iCloud integration (I'm a multi-device household) and browser crashing. The recent update seems to have added integration for iCloud and eliminated browser crashing for me altogether. (knock wood).

I would like to see a few things. First, the AIR platform that powers a lot of the apps seems really sluggish. Like slow to respond to things like button presses. It's really a contrast when you play something like DEAD SPACE and see all those things happening on the screen and then go to BLAQ and not have it respond to a button tap. Hoping native cascades apps deliver a nicer experience.

The other is JavaScript in the browser. The latest update seems to have eliminated my crashes, reduced the checkerboarding and stalling that plagued me in the past. Generally PlayBook browser is much faster than my iPod Touch (2nd gen) and a bit behind my iPad mini, but within the same ballpark. JavaScript seems to be its weakness.

If BlackBerry 10 addresses those things, I'd be pretty golden.

[Angus_CB]

...
They may have reduced their channel footprint deliberately (retail is brutal) and put the product to the back burner against BlackBerry 10, but it's not discontinued.

Blackberry may not have officially discontinued the current Playbook but when they can't be purchased what difference does it make?
Like I said above, actions speak louder than words.
I do believe they are working on BB10 for the existing Playbooks and that they are probably going to release a new tablet device in the future. I don't believe that disappearing from store shelves is going to build a renewed confidence in the company or it's future products.

[RubberChicken76]

Blackberry may not have officially discontinued the current Playbook but when they can't be purchased what difference does it make?

PlayBook WiFi is getting scarce at retail. PlayBook LTE is available at carrier channels.
http://www.rogers.com/web/link/wirel...led=P15032BLKR

4G LTE? BlackBerry� PlayBook? tablet*|* Tablets*|* TELUS Mobility

I don't believe that disappearing from store shelves is going to build a renewed confidence in the company or it's future products.

While store shelves are extremely visible as a channel, they are also unbelievably expensive to support - from inventory to distribution costs, to margins, POP materials, to retail advertising etc. If BlackBerry is already losing money on the COGS of the PlayBook, it does not make sense for them to build more units at a loss, then stuff them into a brutally expensive channel when there are cheaper, less risky ones .... mocomm, LAR, VAR, carrier, direct ... They can keep it on the backburner and available to customers who really want it without spending a fortune on it.

Even the old one is available if you look

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_no...bUvbUpU8120152

[pythons]

The PlayBook is a 2-year old tablet by April 2013... and from the world of electronic, a 2-year old device is like Cro-Magnon... although they were robustly built and powerful, they were extinct...

Our PlayBook is still existing because we can still charge it... the BB10 will, probably give it another chance to live again - at least, for another life cycle... until then, we look forward for the future where miracles happens i.e. BB10 will be rolled out to PlayBook or nature take it first i.e. our PB will die peacefully...

Nice sentimental btw...

The primary reason the Playbook did so poorly was simply because it wasn't functional compared to the other tablets. RIM / Blackberry could easily fix this by pushing BB10, BBM and a valid app for subscription based media ( Hulu, Netflix ). This has been the whole problem since day ONE. The Playbook is the perfect size, has an excellent U.I. and screams quality as far as the build goes - other than that it sucks compared to a Droid Tablet or an ipad - and it's sales reflect that.

[RubberChicken76]

The primary reason the Playbook did so poorly was simply because it wasn't functional compared to the other tablets. RIM / Blackberry could easily fix this by pushing BB10, BBM and a valid app for subscription based media ( Hulu, Netflix ). This has been the whole problem since day ONE.

Agree with the points you raised, though it goes deeper than that. Out of the gate, it was priced the same as the market leader but had a smaller screen. It was missing key things Blackberry was known for (PIM, messaging, BBM) and it had poor apps as well as 1.0 glitches.

Through its various iterations, it got a lot better, IMO. Email, calendar, contacts were added. The apps picked up some, especially with the arrival of the NDK and the Android player. Many of the initial glitches were ironed out. And the price was cut.

Yeah, would be nice to see BBM and the things you list. Want Skype on it too. But not sure RIM knows how to sell it and make money at it at retail. Tough gig when Apple has its own distribution channel and commands a premium price. Tougher gig when Google and Amazon sell their tablets for peanuts because they make it up other ways (Google with Search, Amazon with content and again ... their own channel).

The market would expect BlackBerry to come out with a quad core PlayBook that has two GB of RAM and a retina display, bundled with BlackBerry 10 and sold for $200-$300.

Not sure they can pull all that off and turn a profit.

[pythons]

Agree with the points you raised, though it goes deeper than that. Out of the gate, it was priced the same as the market leader but had a smaller screen. It was missing key things Blackberry was known for (PIM, messaging, BBM) and it had poor apps as well as 1.0 glitches.

Through its various iterations, it got a lot better, IMO. Email, calendar, contacts were added. The apps picked up some, especially with the arrival of the NDK and the Android player. Many of the initial glitches were ironed out. And the price was cut.

Yeah, would be nice to see BBM and the things you list. Want Skype on it too. But not sure RIM knows how to sell it and make money at it at retail. Tough gig when Apple has its own distribution channel and commands a premium price. Tougher gig when Google and Amazon sell their tablets for peanuts because they make it up other ways (Google with Search, Amazon with content and again ... their own channel).

The market would expect BlackBerry to come out with a quad core PlayBook that has two GB of RAM and a retina display, bundled with BlackBerry 10 and sold for $200-$300.

Not sure they can pull all that off and turn a profit.

We agree then, the 1st step in fixing a problem is realizing there is a problem.....
...The Playbook IS a problem - it's main purpose now is to insult Blackberry phones.
...BB wants / needs to be in a position where it's Tablets advertise for it's phones ( & vise versa ).

If Blackberry can make it's tablet functional it will be just fine...
..The tablet already looks good, it's built like a tank and with BB10 it will be reborn.
..No one wants to buy a tablet that can't run either Netflix or Hulu or Skype.

I'm convinced that if BB could get the minimum functionality of a Droid Tablet...
...They could literally start selling those old Playbooks again and they would SELL.

[FF22]

Then there's the continued speculation that rim/bbry will get out of the hardware side of things:

BlackBerry Will Exit the Handset Market: Pro

[-FlyingDucks-]

Has anyone successfully accessed DocuSign with their PB browser and gotten docs out? Or should I, I'm wondering, go to the dark side? Any Docusign users?

[Angus_CB]

...
While store shelves are extremely visible as a channel, they are also unbelievably expensive to support - from inventory to distribution costs, to margins, POP materials, to retail advertising etc. If BlackBerry is already losing money on the COGS of the PlayBook, it does not make sense for them to build more units at a loss, then stuff them into a brutally expensive channel when there are cheaper, less risky ones .... mocomm, LAR, VAR, carrier, direct ... They can keep it on the backburner and available to customers who really want it without spending a fortune on it.

Even the old one is available if you look

Amazon.com: BlackBerry PlayBook: Electronics

$549.00 for a 32GB LTE Playbook is not a viable option.

I assume Blackberry still wants to compete with the other available tablets. The store shelves are expensive for Samsung and Apple too.
The "old" one is available if I look? Why should I have to look? Apple can get away with making people jump through hoops to find their products, Blackberry can't.
Amazon.com does not ship to Canada.

If you were to check my history I thing you would see that I have always been a Playbook advocate and I still believe it is a great tablet but I am not going to tell people to buy something that they have to hunt for when they can walk into a store and buy something off of the shelf.
The customers who really want it already have it. The point of retail sales is to attract the customers who don't know what they want. Most of the people that ask me about tablets call all tablets iPads.

[MilnerR]

I've also gone over to the dark-side. I was all set to upgrade my 9900 to a Z10 and then await the release of BB10 on the PB.

Then I went and played with a Z10 in my local O2 shop and was a little underwhelmed by it. My eye started to wander in the direction of a Galaxy Note 2 and that was that. I still carry my PB 64GB in my bag but it hardly gets used, which is a shame because it's a lovely piece of kit, even 2 years on.
The issue is that there is so many things that I can do on my GN2 that the PB does less well (web browsing, streaming content, ebook reading, email, etc etc). Having said that the PB makes an excellent media player, so the 64GB is now filled with music films and TV series. When I go away the PB comes out along with a HDMI cable to plug into hotel tvs. Other than that it rarely gets used.

[wjptam]

The seamless way Chrome for Android works with Chrome on all your other computers really pushes Android tablets from toy to something very useful. Being able to continue browsing web pages I have open on my desk after moving to the lunch room or the coffee shop down the street is transformational.

The current PB Browser just sucks in comparison. The 7-inch Galaxy Tab 2 has identical specs to the PB, OMAP 4430 with 1GB of RAM. I don't need benchmarks to tell me which browser is faster running scripts, or even just rendering pages.

[Mickrick]

I love my Playbook the way it is too, but there is nothing wrong with wanting more, and I have also managed with a normal phone for 50 years, and you know what, it was pretty boring.

You see, if you still only had that option you wouldn't say it's boring. Yes you would take it for granted but to be able to call someone anywhere in the world from anywhere in the world is still a pretty exciting achievement. And the pairing of a phone with a camera, games and other applications really doesn't work on paper. In reality it has definitely changed how we live our lives, not always for the good.

For instance, going to the cinema is supposed to be a chance to see a film on a big screen. It is part of that experience that the cinema is dark. Now, every film you go to see is at least a third full of people with the attention span of a goldfish sitting texting or playing games on their phones the payment whole way through. It has ruined the cinema experience as far as I'm concerned.

The same goes for concerts. You're lucky these days to see the stage at all with the amount of idiots intent on recording every minute for prosperity, or ringing their mates who didn't bother going to let them hear the entire show, holding their phones up in your line of sight.

We all know that tablets are going to go the same way, especially with phone bridging. Cinema and concert goers no longer have to rely on a 3 or 4 inch screen when they now have a 7 or 10 inch screen instead.

To paraphrase a famous mobile phone provider - the future's bright, too bloody bright for my liking.

[sad_old_man]

You see, if you still only had that option you wouldn't say it's boring. Yes you would take it for granted but to be able to call someone anywhere in the world from anywhere in the world is still a pretty exciting achievement. And the pairing of a phone with a camera, games and other applications really doesn't work on paper. In reality it has definitely changed how we live our lives, not always for the good.

For instance, going to the cinema is supposed to be a chance to see a film on a big screen. It is part of that experience that the cinema is dark. Now, every film you go to see is at least a third full of people with the attention span of a goldfish sitting texting or playing games on their phones the payment whole way through. It has ruined the cinema experience as far as I'm concerned.

The same goes for concerts. You're lucky these days to see the stage at all with the amount of idiots intent on recording every minute for prosperity, or ringing their mates who didn't bother going to let them hear the entire show, holding their phones up in your line of sight.

We all know that tablets are going to go the same way, especially with phone bridging. Cinema and concert goers no longer have to rely on a 3 or 4 inch screen when they now have a 7 or 10 inch screen instead.

To paraphrase a famous mobile phone provider - the future's bright, too bloody bright for my liking.

That's the first time I've heard anyone apart from me state that!

Perhaps it may be due to having one of the first so called mobile phones ha ha ha. It was to all intense and purpose a car battery in a plastic case with an old land line handset connecting it to the car battery with a curly cable thicker than normal household appliance cable. The battery life was about 2hrs and I'm sure it was responsible for my hernia.

However mobile phones have progressed to where we are today and although I remember with fondness being able to leave the office to attend a meeting and not being able to be contacted until I arrived on site, I like you find it amazing that I can be contacted anywhere by anyone anywhere who has my number. Where this industry lost it for me was when we started installing cameras both video and still, radios and music players. I have a Nikon DSLR if I want to photograph something, it has a video camera built in if I want to video something, I have a radio in my car if I want to listen to music. If the industry had concentrated on the phone and let the music industry and camera industry concentrate on their products, wow what a mobile phone we would all be carrying now and think about all the development costs saved.

Now it turned into a race to see how many gadgets we can fit inside one mobile handset! I personally have never used Skye, voip or any of those technologies because although they may be cost effective to large companies, if I want to call someone I use my mobile and if someone calls me my phone rings.

What else is a phone supposed to do?