BlackBerry PlayBook

The BlackBerry PlayBook (PB) is RIM's entry into the Tablet market. It runs their own Operating System "BlackBerry Tablet OS", which is based on QNX. The physical device has a 7" screen running at a low resolution of just 1024*600, which looks poor compared to the new HD phone screens.

On first inspection the PB looks good and is reasonable to hold (it has a rubberised back). The PB has two standout features, firstly the border area around the screen is active and accepts gestures, therefore the user can interact with the PB in a very intuitive way. This takes a little time to get used to, but is ultimately very powerful. Secondly Adobe Air is baked into the OS, so native applications can be developed either in C++ or Adobe Air, meaning that it is relatively easy to port Flash based developments directly to the PB. A good example is the native Doom game, which is ported from the Flash based version with added multi-touch features.

I found using the PB intuitive and easy, whilst I particularly liked some of the glossy effects that it has, such as loading screens, however the overall impression of the device is that it is quite sluggish. A side by side comparison between my iPhone 4 and the PB over wifi, confirmed that the browsing experience on the PB was a lot slower. The browser as a whole was a real let down, as personally I feel that the browser is the main part of a tablet, the lack of easily accessible tabs, being one of the biggest issues, whilst there was no easy way to background load a link?

The PB is cute and certainly seems to be aimed at a handbag market, given its size, however I am left wondering why I would use it. My wife takes her iPhone with her everywhere and the PB would only appear to do everything that this does already, just slightly slower. The only real benefit is the larger screen, but I cannot see her lugging and extra device around just for that purpose.

• Liked
• Adobe Air support for easy native app development
• Active border and gesture
• Nice design throughout
• Loathed
• Sluggish performance
• Screen resolution
• Buy?
• No