Today the CEO of RIM announced the new BlackBerry Playbook.The tablet will run off of an OS created by the recently acquired QNX. RIM also stated the PlayBook’s ability to handle Flash content via Flash 10.1, as well as Adobe AIR apps. The new slate — which Lazaridis described as “the first professional tablet” — will have a 7-inch, 1024 x 600, capacitive multitouch display, a Cortex A9-based, dual-core 1GHz CPU (the company calls it the “fastest tablet ever”), 1GB of RAM, and a 3 megapixel front-facing camera along with a 5 megapixel rear lens (and yes, there will be video conferencing). There was no mention of onboard storage capacity during the keynote, though the devices we just spied in our eyes-on post are labeled 16GB and 32GB on their back panels. The PlayBook will be capable of 1080p HD video, and comes equipped with an HDMI port as well as a microUSB jack, 802.11a/b/g/n WiFi, and Bluetooth 2.1. The device clocks in at a svelte 5.1- by 7.6-inches, is only 0.4-inches thick, and weighs just 400g (or about 0.9 pounds). “The PlayBook is ample evidence that RIM’s been doing its homework,” independent analyst Carmi Levy told the Globe and Mail. “The company targeted virtually all of the Achilles heels of the iPad and ensured the new device addressed them in some way.”The PlayBook, which has long been anticipated and discussed among technology experts, may prove successful in enterprise areas in which the iPad is lacking. As the year comes to a close more news will come to us about this oncoming tablet. Stay tuned!
Source(s): Engadget, Visage Mobile.
~Joel Pederson
AGRS Editor.
