Is it Risky to Purchase a Playbook Given the Problems that RIM is having?

The latest financial report from RIM is not a good one. With a loss of approximately 30% in sales, the question that begs to be answered is...

How risky is it to purchase a Playbook that may not have a company supporting it one year from now?

I have been researching tablets and the Playbook by far has received the most accolades of any tablet excluding the iPad. That being said, I decided that the Playbook is the device that best suits my business and personal needs. From its seamless document integration and powerful business tools to "the best" tablet browser on the market, IMHO- this is the best overall value in the tablet market today.

But what is the real value of the device if a year from now RIM files bankruptcy protection and us users don't have anywhere to turn for support or a company backing its product?

I would love to hear thoughts and comments from the community on this issue before i go out and purchase one

Peace,

Slider

I doubt that the company, or whoever takes over it, will discontinue their support of the tablet.

As for "seamless document integration and powerful business tools to "the best" tablet browser on the market"", this may not be entirely true. The Playbook has the least of integration and fewest business tools among the major platforms. Its web browser is decent in terms of page rendering and speed, but tremendously basic (it lacks quite a few fundamental features). With this said, you really need to know what you will use the tablet for and do research before purchasing one.

Edit: Check my signature ;)

In the tech world.... a year is a lifetime...... All talblets begin a "sunset" time.... My Ipad 1 will not enjoy many features IOS6 will offer IPad 2 & 3..... I still use my HP Touchpad and I get no support from it at all.....

Your question is moot if the tablet doess what you want right now... RIM could close tomorrow and my Playbook is loaded to the hilt with apps that makes it usefull to me for the forseeable future..... would miss Bridge Apps if RIM stopped supporting it... however unlikely....

Yes, they are risky to buy now. If you have one, you really should sell it now! To me!;)

Seriously, I see no risk, especially at current prices. Touchpads are still selling for more than their firesale price. But I personally think it's ridiculous to choose an electronic device based on it's potential resale. You will always lose. Choose what you like and fits your needs, use it until you tire of it or it no longer serves your purposes and move on. The estimated lifespan of a consumer device like a phone or tablet is 2 to 3 years, so keep that in mind also.

Originally Posted by kennyliu

I doubt that the company, or whoever takes over it, will discontinue their support of the tablet.

As for "seamless document integration and powerful business tools to "the best" tablet browser on the market"", this may not be entirely true. The Playbook has the least of integration and fewest business tools among the major platforms. Its web browser is decent in terms of page rendering and speed, but tremendously basic (it lacks quite a few fundamental features). With this said, you really need to know what you will use the tablet for and do research before purchasing one.

Edit: Check my signature ;)

While I will agree, almost all platforms are lacking in both "seamless document integration " and "lacking quite a few basic fundamental features" in browsers, no tablet will be 100% effective or efficient as a PC....mobile just isn't there yet, until POSSIBLY windows 8, possibly.

Also, the Browser on the PlayBook is know to be quite powerful and as close to desktop experience as possible.

The stock "office" may not be full featured but the app "smart office 2" which is 10$ is actually quite impressive.

Just to give you more info.

Sorry to see you go kennyliu. Always thought you were quite informative in your post and not biased towards any of the OSs. Good luck.

Originally Posted by Jeovex

While I will agree, almost all platforms are lacking in both "seamless document integration " and "lacking quite a few basic fundamental features" in browsers, no tablet will be 100% effective or efficient as a PC....mobile just isn't there yet, until POSSIBLY windows 8, possibly.

Also, the Browser on the PlayBook is know to be quite powerful and as close to desktop experience as possible.

The stock "office" may not be full featured but the app "smart office 2" which is 10$ is actually quite impressive.

Just to give you more info.

What do you mean the browser is as close to desktop experience as possible? Bookmark management or search on page? Or Flash that almost half tablets in the world support?

Also, if smart office is the only worthy office solution, I must say it's easy to impress you. As we talk about documents and productivity apps, don't forget that pathetic Adobe Reader.

Also, whatever document integration means, cross-integration of apps and OS on the Playbook is virtually non-existent.

But thanks for the information.

Originally Posted by Hawnz

Sorry to see you go kennyliu. Always thought you were quite informative in your post and not biased towards any of the OSs. Good luck.

I haven't laughed so hard in my life! Thanks for making my day :D:D:D:D

The playbook screen is too small to do serious office work on. You can read your documents and maybe make small changes. With the HDMI cable hooked to a TV monitor, a bluetooth keyboard and a bluetooth mouse you can probably use it as sort of a desktop. Docs to Go and Smart Office sure aren't up to Office 2010. Smart Office still listed in my app world at $0.99 promotional and is sure worth that. Couldn't get my bluetooth mouse to work with it. Maybe Kenny will tell us where he is going and which forum we should watch for his insightful comments.

Re: Is it Risky to Purchase a Playbook Given the Problems that RIM is having?

Well, for me, whatever that risk is, it is too late for me to worry... I already overcome the risk for more than a year now... and by the way, is there really still significant inventory of PlayBook need to be disposed of? or are we speaking here the new PlayBook that (even) the existence is questionable?...


Sent from my LT26i using Tapatalk

The biggest risk in buying anything Blackberry right now revolves around the services that they provide, and will RIM be around to keep providing them (BES, BIS, BBM...)?

Since the Playbook doesn't actually depend on any of these services, I wouldn't sweat it.

It's an awesome device for the money. OS2.1 will be dropping in a matter of weeks, and that's guaranteed.

Risky? I wouldn't worry too much especially when you can get one (16GB) for less than $150.

My Toshiba HD-XA1 still plays my HD DVD's. LOL *I can't believe I paid almost $1k for it. :(

I say pull the trigger. The Playbook is still vastly superior to the el cheapo competition in the sub-$300 tablet space. It has better wifi (dual band), better speakers (2x for true stereo), and HDMI output, all of which - when coupled with a digital projector - makes it a great portable presentation device. It also features more storage (32GB or 64GB) than comparably priced tablets and is built like a tank (no squishy plastic).

I'm especially fond of the magnetic quick charger option which saves wear and tear on the USB port. It's the little things like that that you come to appreciate about the device and end up missing when you try the alternatives.

Overall, a very intelligently designed device that reeks of quality thinking. And with OS 2.1 in the pipeline, you have the most polished software experience on a PB to date, with class-leading web browser compatibility and improved support for Android apps. I use mine every day and can't imagine leaving my home or office without it.

RIM isn't going anywhere anytime soon, IMHO, so the PB is still a safe bet...

RCK

for as cheap as you can find one its not really a risk IMO.

Just look at what your needs are when you think of buying a tablet, if the PlayBook answers to all of those, then go for it.
If you feel that it doesn't live up to your expectations, then try a different brand.
The PB will stand for a long time to come, it's a solid neat device, you can't beat the form factor-price combo and plethora of goodies it comes with :)
I say go for it!!

A few points of clarification on my part

1. Regarding the docs comment. My wife owns an iPad and to try and attach a document to an email or a job application is virtually non-existent. One has to download a secondary browser in order to be able to attach a simple word type document to an email - pathetic.

2. I am not a big social media guy i.e. Facebook, but she is and she is unable to change her own profile pic with her iPad. Again, pathetic

3. Let's not even talk about Flash or the inability of the iPad to open and read PDFs. A friend sent her a one page PDF attachment - could not be viewed on the iPad.

4. The virtual keyboard on the iPad is a pain in the . Although quite large, it constantly misses letters, spacing, etc. She is a great typist so I don't think this can related to human error.

5. Here in NYC, I can pickup a brand new 64GB Playbook for under $300. That in itself is amazing.

6. As for the competition, I see the Galaxy as the "known" competition. It is too early to comment on either the Nexus 7 (decent price but 8GB is a joke) or the Surface (probably priced similar to the iPad)

Peace,

Slider

A few points of clarification on my part

1. Regarding the docs comment. My wife owns an iPad and to try and attach a document to an email or a job application is virtually non-existent. One has to download a secondary browser in order to be able to attach a simple word type document to an email - pathetic.

2. I am not a big social media guy i.e. Facebook, but she is and she is unable to change her own profile pic with her iPad. Again, pathetic

3. Let's not even talk about Flash or the inability of the iPad to open and read PDFs. A friend sent her a one page PDF attachment - could not be viewed on the iPad.

4. The virtual keyboard on the iPad is a pain in the . Although quite large, it constantly misses letters, spacing, etc. She is a great typist so I don't think this can related to human error.

5. Here in NYC, I can pickup a brand new 64GB Playbook for under $300. That in itself is amazing.

6. As for the competition, I see the Galaxy as the "known" competition. It is too early to comment on either the Nexus 7 (decent price but 8GB is a joke) or the Surface (probably priced similar to the iPad)

Peace,

Slider

"risky?".....a playbook costs less than a nice dinner out these days.

Go for it.

You won't be out much when you dump it.

That's just it - I cant afford to drop $300 now and a year down the road have to "dump it" That's ridiculous. I buy and keep my toys as long as they work and are viable

I love my playbook. It is great at many things, but let's not gloss it over.

- file management is terrible, folder support poorly executed
- picture manager etc doesn't recognize folders at all, shows oldest first and buries new pictures at the bottom
- media player is as basic as could be, no folder support, eq, poor playlists functions
- podcast app, bb news app etc. Core apps very slow and laggy
- document integration from email to files is annoying - multiple clicks to open a pdf etc
- still no acceptable pdf viewer support
- very few productivity apps with depth - good collection of basic apps

All of the above are software issues that could be overcome with time and updates. For example, we know TAT has shown off a way better media manager in demos. Here's the thing - will any of that ever get released now? Is it truly vapourware?

I see a lot of Rims best and brightest heading straight out the door, so my confidence in any further software improvements is rapidly evaporating. With sales tanking, this also means less reason to keep investing in support - and to develop / maintain apps.

RIM just wrote off its goodwill. That should tell you all you need to know.

Originally Posted by spatialmongrel

I love my playbook. It is great at many things, but let's not gloss it over.

- file management is terrible, folder support poorly executed
- picture manager etc doesn't recognize folders at all, shows oldest first and buries new pictures at the bottom
- media player is as basic as could be, no folder support, eq, poor playlists functions

There are android apps available to perform these functions without the limitations noted.

Originally Posted by Bmilano3161

A few points of clarification on my part

1. Regarding the docs comment. My wife owns an iPad and to try and attach a document to an email or a job application is virtually non-existent. One has to download a secondary browser in order to be able to attach a simple word type document to an email - pathetic.

2. I am not a big social media guy i.e. Facebook, but she is and she is unable to change her own profile pic with her iPad. Again, pathetic

3. Let's not even talk about Flash or the inability of the iPad to open and read PDFs. A friend sent her a one page PDF attachment - could not be viewed on the iPad.

4. The virtual keyboard on the iPad is a pain in the . Although quite large, it constantly misses letters, spacing, etc. She is a great typist so I don't think this can related to human error.

5. Here in NYC, I can pickup a brand new 64GB Playbook for under $300. That in itself is amazing.

6. As for the competition, I see the Galaxy as the "known" competition. It is too early to comment on either the Nexus 7 (decent price but 8GB is a joke) or the Surface (probably priced similar to the iPad)

Peace,

Slider

I am not grandstanding for the iPad, more pointing out that a couple of your complaints are app complaints, and you are going to run into the same situation with other tablets where the 'stock' apps won't do the job you want them to and you will need alternatives or apps that will add functionality to the stock apps. Tablets are tablets and they each have their limitations at this point.

You can change your Facebook profile photo from the Facebook iOS app. It's just it's not overly intuitive, and this is a Facebook app issue, not an iPad issue. If you do a Google search, you will find out how. I have done it.

As for the attachment issue, what are you trying to attach? Pretty much any app running in iOS has the option to "Share" the file through email which is attaching it. EG Pages has this as well. You can also copy and paste items into an email. A quick search also brought up the app "Phone Drive" which you may want to look up.

Again, I am not saying one tablet is 'better' than the other. Just that they all have their issues. I like my Playbook, but it has MANY issues of it's own. It's PDF support really isn't any better than the iPad, and some of it's media functions (like podcasts player) are worse.

The Playbook is a great value still, and depending on your needs can be a better choice. But, I don't think it addresses many of the issues you have with the iPad other than the Flash one.

if you buy a Playbook the only risk you run is you don't like it, so as long as you take care of that you are OK, and even if you buy one and you don't like it chances are pretty good you can return it, so......fair to say that just about anything you have done before or will do later in your life will be riskier:D:D:D

The internet aint disappearin. So even if rim disappears. The playbook gives a great internet experience reducing the needs for many apps that the others must to compensate for their lack of good browsers. I have my playbook so jacked now that if I didn't add one more game it will still do what I need for many years to come

And damn buy a playbook we need your money. Lol

Sent from my BlackBerry 9930 using Tapatalk

As I mentioned in a similar thread/question:

Questionable warranty support if they fold. Similarly, appworld could implode.

Sideloading might sub in some cases.

Spatialmongrel has noted some of the glaring limitations.