BlackBerry PlayBook (Research In Motion) co-CEO Jim Balsillie finally gave a crucial bit of information about the BlackBerry Playbook's price, or at least a threshold. According to a Korean interview, Balsillie said that RIM's 7-inch tablet will be "very competitively priced" with Bloomberg quoting the man saying that it will be "under" $500 when it hits North America in the first quarter of 2011, expanding globally in Q2. A price that should at least match the 9.7-inch WiFi-only iPad (16GB) and undercut the 7-inch 3G Galaxy Tab which goes on sale on Verizon tomorrow for $599.99.
Announced just a few week ago, the BlackBerry PlayBook is RIM’s answer to the iPad. From its dual-core CPU and dual HD cameras to its new-look OS and ability to pump out video, the PlayBook has a lot to offer in the hardware department while offering a fresh new operating system (it does not run BlackBerry OS 6).
The OS on the PlayBook is a new frontier for BlackBerry devices. The QNX-built (a company recently acquired by RIM) webOS-looking BlackBerry Tablet OS promises to be multitask-friendly. Furthermore, RIM already has an App World for its BlackBerry smartphones, so the company has experience when it comes to delivering applications to consumers. Sure, the RIM App World has its pros and cons when compared to Apple’s App Store, but it’s certainly a good start. Other pros for the new OS? Support for Abobe Flash 10.1 and AIR-based applications, and HTML5 support.
src: enzine article, bloomberg, engadget.com
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