[hopper76]

To make my post short I convinced a coworker of mine to get a PB for her dad. She was thinking of getting him a nook or a kindle fire HD but once I showed her that PB can have multiple windows and jumped or switched to the other window smoothly she was totally impressed. I also mentioned that BB10 will be coming by early next year and the PB will get even better and more cool apps are coming. I did tell her that "for now" (I put this in quotation mark bcoz not sure yet) Netflix and Skype are currently not supported by the PB. Didn't really matter to her so a few days later she told me she bought the 64g for $189 at Office Depot and was lucky enough to be able to get it at the store. Now I am tempted to update my 16g to maybe 32g or 64g......well that's my story and I'm sticking to it!!! BE BOLD!!!

[kill_9]

If Research In Motion can get its act together with BlackBerry 10 on the smartphones and tablets and the developers create high-quality applications, the year 2013 might indeed be the turn-around year for the company and the BlackBerry brand. The BlackBerry PlayBook is an amazing tablet hardware-wise but its potential on the application-side remains under exploited. I use three BlackBerry PlayBooks (2 professional-use and 1 entertainment-use) with another two of them in a drawer in reserve. With the release of the BlackBerry PlayBook NDK I hope application developers bring much needed software to the tablet.

[eddy_berry]

Amazing isn't it? hehe. For an outdated tablet, people still get surprised by it. I'm back in college these days and I've had my PlayBook on me since day one. Already there is 2 people with new PBs in the course since showing it to them. I didn't even talk them into it, they just liked it and bought one. One of them had one lying around since OS1.0 and never thought he'd see a playbook do anything useful. He dusted it off the following day and upgraded it. So strange.

[dave_h_946]

Same story here OP.

Story 1: The laptop of a colleague of mine is dying. He is not much into technology and he only wanted a device to browse the internet, read online newspapers and email. I showed him my PB and I advised him that he may not need to buy a new laptop, just a tablet. I also suggested him to look in the market first and check other tablets and how they fit his needs. A month later he came back with a shiny new PB 32GB. He said he was very impressed and it's exactly what he needed. He is now going to buy a BB to bridge them together and have internet everywhere (he told me that he was really surprised that people cannot see what a functional tablet the PB is)

Story 2: Another friend and businessman was looking for a tablet to use it while on business trips. He was more familiar with BB as he was already an owner of a 9900. I showed him the tablet and gave him an one hour demonstration. Needless to say he was so impressed that he bought one the very next day. He said that now his trips are more productive and pleasant as he can now review his presentations on the go, make notes and organise his calendar on bigger screen, watch movies on the plane or read magazines (on zinio), and he even connected his PB to the TV and showed his wife some of the pics he took while in China for a meeting some time ago. Now he is trying to buy some PB accessories but we both have difficulties finding a mini keyboard in UK. Anybody has any idea?

[jhanks64]

Do you charge your reserve Playbooks sometimes? It seems that if you let them drain too far, it's hard to get them working again.

[madman0141]

Great post you should get a 64g PlayBook it has the most. Glad PlayBook can still impress. Should RIM have acted like apple and put out a new device yearly with minor upgrades the people that buy this tablet now could not afford it. Good or Bad.

[bambinoitaliano]

Do you charge your reserve Playbooks sometimes? It seems that if you let them drain too far, it's hard to get them working again.

Yes. That's one of the issue I had with the playbook. I use it twice to upgrade and put it back in the box until one day it starts chiming for running out of battery. Compounded by my use of an Idapt 4 charger (It's not powerful enough to recharge playbook if it's less than 2% of battery left). It never did come back regardless of going through all the suggested methods from this site. I finally send it to BB for repair (by the way , excellent and super fast service!!). Now I have to watch out for low battery and remember to charge it.

[joshua_sx1]

Same here. I didn't even promote it, but these two nerdy guys got interested after letting them play with my PlayBook... and the last thing I've heard, another two of their friends bought another units...

RIM should have "guys" like us...

[FF22]

Do you charge your reserve Playbooks sometimes? It seems that if you let them drain too far, it's hard to get them working again.

I have a "reserved" 32gig. I do try to remember to charge it about every 4th or 5th day. But I will also say that when I went away for a two week trip, I just powered it fully off. When I returned and powered it on, it had lost very little power. So, that is another way to handle a "reserve/spare" pb - charge it and power it completely off. Obviously, you will still have to charge it at some point but I don't know what that time limit would be.

[Nikki_G]

Since I took my PlayBook to annual field assessment (I am a Royal Marine Cadet adult instructor so we have a lot of activities based in fields in the middle of military training bases in random parts of the UK!) I have had three of my colleagues ditch their iPads in favour of PlayBooks out in the field because they are smaller and can fit into daysacks and map pockets more easily. Also with the PlayBooks being tougher, they aren't as afraid to bash them unlike their iPads. They are also finding it easier to read Warning Orders and exercise plans in the field on the Docs to Go rather than the iPad apps. so the PB has proven to be a bit of an unexpected hit.

I have had some people comment that it must be a pain not to be able to get 3G coverage, I have pointed out to them the advantages of all you can eat data plan and the iPhone ability to act as a wireless hotspot...problem solved!

I only brought a PB because I simply couldn't afford an iPad, the only thing that frustrates me with the PB is that I can't get the Tunein radio app. While the Nobex radio one is good there are some of my favourite Canadian radio stations I can't get on Nobex but which you can get on Tunein (which I have on my iPhone). A bit of a pain but I can live with that.

[fanchettes]

Yeah, I'm back in school, too, and my PB is always on me. It has come in real handy in science labs, where there just isn't room for a laptop. The thing that gets me is the look of surprise people get when I tell them it's a Blackberry device. No one seems to know RIM even has a tablet. And then when they see what real multitasking looks like, they do that unconscious thing where they clutch their iphone or ipad close as if in protection mode.

[Gooseberry Falls]

I have a "reserved" 32gig. I do try to remember to charge it about every 4th or 5th day. But I will also say that when I went away for a two week trip, I just powered it fully off. When I returned and powered it on, it had lost very little power. So, that is another way to handle a "reserve/spare" pb - charge it and power it completely off. Obviously, you will still have to charge it at some point but I don't know what that time limit would be.

I heard the best level for long term storage of Li-ion batteries is ~45%. So maybe not fully charge it and turn it off?

[pengam]

I live in the UK and have recently taken delivery of a PB mini-keyboard delivered from the USA. I ordered it on Crack-berry and it arrived in 3 weeks. Beware of Customs Duty which has to be paid before it is released for delivery i.e. Royal Mail Parcels. Once paid it arrived next day. Excellent service - mini-keyboard not available in UK on any www sites.

[dave_h_946]

I live in the UK and have recently taken delivery of a PB mini-keyboard delivered from the USA. I ordered it on Crack-berry and it arrived in 3 weeks. Beware of Customs Duty which has to be paid before it is released for delivery i.e. Royal Mail Parcels. Once paid it arrived next day. Excellent service - mini-keyboard not available in UK on any www sites.

Can you elaborate on that a bit? I was looking for a keyboard from crackberry too (I am in UK) and I was wondering how much it will cost me. It says the final price will be $159.90 (incl p&p) which is roughly �100 (I think). How many extra � is the customs Duty?

[BB_Bmore]

189 for a 64G is a deal of a lifetime. Get the 64 and don't look back!

[312Lorden]

[QUOTE=hopper76;7705825]Didn't really matter to her so a few days later she told me she bought the 64g for $189 at Office Depot and was lucky enough to be able to get it at the store.
_________

Bwaaahhahaa! And I thought I got a pretty good deal at OD for $199!

[moloko velocet]

Yes. That's one of the issue I had with the playbook. I use it twice to upgrade and put it back in the box until one day it starts chiming for running out of battery. Compounded by my use of an Idapt 4 charger (It's not powerful enough to recharge playbook if it's less than 2% of battery left). It never did come back regardless of going through all the suggested methods from this site. I finally send it to BB for repair (by the way , excellent and super fast service!!). Now I have to watch out for low battery and remember to charge it.

Juliette Lewis's character in Kalifornia. �He only hits me when I deserve it."

I think blaming yourself for a tablet that needs to be sent for service when you, horror of horrors, let the battery fully discharge is not healthy. It's OK. Stand up for yourself. It is not your fault. There is another tablet out there somewhere for you.

You are not alone. I have heard this many, many times before here. F2, it's OK too. It's not your fault either. Let that sucker die in the drawer. It is only worth about $75. Barely beer and pizza money anymore.

[thecsman]

Juliette Lewis's character in Kalifornia. “He only hits me when I deserve it."

I think blaming yourself for a tablet that needs to be sent for service when you, horror of horrors, let the battery fully discharge is not healthy. It's OK. Stand up for yourself. It is not your fault. There is another tablet out there somewhere for you.

You are not alone. I have heard this many, many times before here. F2, it's OK too. It's not your fault either. Let that sucker die in the drawer. It is only worth about $75. Barely beer and pizza money anymore.

You totally sound like someone who feeds on beer and pizza! At least $75 are well spent on a high quality device instead of ending up down the urinary and the toilet!

[TommyBB]

Hopper,

I would snag a 32gb LTE PB simply for the added processor speed or a standard 64gb PB.

GREAT JOB on selling someone on a better piece of equipment!

[moloko velocet]

You totally sound like someone who feeds on beer and pizza! At least $75 are well spent on a high quality device instead of ending up down the urinary and the toilet!

I am slain by your rapier-like wit.
Ouch?

Answer honestly. Do you think a "high quality device" should need to be sent for repair if the user allows it to completely discharge?
The PlayBook is fine for a game of Tetris or anonymous arguments on Crackberry. For serious use? I think not.

[HugoFernandes1992]

I am slain by your rapier-like wit.
Ouch?

Answer honestly. Do you think a "high quality device" should need to be sent for repair if the user allows it to completely discharge?
The PlayBook is fine for a game of Tetris or anonymous arguments on Crackberry. For serious use? I think not.

"Dont hate the Game, hate the player"
If you cant get to do serious use in a playbook i think u must consider have another tablet. So why the hate?
Its normal when a battery run out and u dont charge she gets f***d up.

Tell me what u can do on a ipad that u cant do on a playbook!

Sorry for the bad mood xD

[kbz1960]

I am slain by your rapier-like wit.
Ouch?

Answer honestly. Do you think a "high quality device" should need to be sent for repair if the user allows it to completely discharge?
The PlayBook is fine for a game of Tetris or anonymous arguments on Crackberry. For serious use? I think not.

While I agree with letting it discharge causing you to need to stand on your head and twirl left once and right three times is a bad issue that should've been fixed by now and how many have had this happen out of how many that have been sold?

But the PB can be used for serious work.

[ThaSwapMeetPimp]

I am slain by your rapier-like wit.
Ouch?

Answer honestly. Do you think a "high quality device" should need to be sent for repair if the user allows it to completely discharge?
The PlayBook is fine for a game of Tetris or anonymous arguments on Crackberry. For serious use? I think not.

I discharge mine every so often to recalibrate the battery, and I have yet to have a problem with getting it to restart. Implicating that the PB is not a high quality device because of a few users anecdotal evidence is ridiculous. Flip side of the coin, saying it is a high quality device because of a few users anecdotal evidence is also ridiculous. Objectively, I guess one should ask: spec and possibility wise, when it came out, was it a high quality device? Was it made with high quality materials? We all know it had glaring flaws, and was missing key native components (and I don't mean Skype or Netflix, or whatever app others may drag out as a glaring flaw because it doesn't have what they want), but was it powerful enough to compete when it came out and still be viable for a few years afterwards? I would say, objectively, that for the time it came out, it was pretty high quality, and continues to be a viable high quality tablet. I'm sure at this point there are tablets with better specs and native capabilities. But the Playbook is awesome for being the tablet that it is, and it is just getting better. Can't wait for BB10!

You want to see a low quality device, look at my sisters WonderMedia tablet. Now that's low quality. Can't do anything on it, and the materials are crap to the eye and touch. Thumbs down!

The Playbook is great for more than games or anonymous arguments. I use it to whip up beer recipes, find food recipes, research everything (I am a historian and an info junkie), diagnose problems with my home network, stream video from my computer (since there are no 250 gb PlayBooks and USB OTG isn't enabled or whatever), read Manga, read various books I find on the Internet in .pdf format, turn by turn GPS with OSMAnd, watching videos and listening to music. And I'm sure there are other great uses, but thats most of what I personally use it for.

[BlackStormRising]

I finally ordered my PlayBook to get to work now that it got its 2.0 grade point average. Week 1 is done. Full marks to the bridge remote keyboard for allowing me to hammer on real keys while making notes on the calendar. And even though it has a small footprint and is very unobtrusive in meetings, every director noticed it and asked "so what does it do?" My response? "It'll only set you back $150 to find out." So 3 people bought one this week.

[aha]

If Research In Motion can get its act together with BlackBerry 10 on the smartphones and tablets and the developers create high-quality applications, the year 2013 might indeed be the turn-around year for the company and the BlackBerry brand. The BlackBerry PlayBook is an amazing tablet hardware-wise but its potential on the application-side remains under exploited. I use three BlackBerry PlayBooks (2 professional-use and 1 entertainment-use) with another two of them in a drawer in reserve. With the release of the BlackBerry PlayBook NDK I hope application developers bring much needed software to the tablet.

How do you know which one you are picking up before entering your password?
(BTW, the sentence above was typed almost completely with PB's predictive keyboard ... Forgot how great it was)