Customer Reviews

Blackberry Playbook 7-Inch Tablet (64GB)

5 star:		(202)
4 star:		(91)
3 star:		(40)
2 star:		(28)
1 star:		(35)

 

 

A bit about me first - I am a techno-nerd. I LOVE gadgets. Large, small, you name it. After eyeballing many tablets, including the iPad, Xoom, Samsung and others I chose the 64GB Blackberry Playbook. Why? For one, because it is the right size. I can put it in my purse and carry it about with me. More reasons - it has spectacular graphics - true 1080p HD and it supports flash. It has a camera and an HD camcorder. It has a solid feel in your hands, the touch screen is very responsive and intuitive. After playing with it for a short span of time I now zoom from app to app. One of the (many) things I find amazing is that the tablet does not lag while running many concurrent apps - I'm not talking small apps, but processor intensive ones. The battery life is pretty good too - I've played for over 10 hours before I had to recharge it. The screen is spectacular - I said that already didn't I?

One thing I have read on various sites is that there aren't "many apps" available. HELLO - it is new - just released actually. How many apps were there for the iPad when it first came out? New apps appear daily and this summer it will run Android apps. That just exponentially increased the quantity of fodder for app hounds like me. The Android apps will be available through Blackberry App World. Read more about this on Android Central. Angry Birds anyone? It's also a boss gaming tablet for you gamers out there.

I have a huge iTunes library. One of the reasons I purchased the 64GB version was for the music. RIM made it so easy to import tunes from iTunes. First download Desktop manager and install. Plug in the Playbook. It installs the drivers and voila! It sniffs the installed iTunes and asks you what you would like to sync to the Playbook. I also read a lot of technical magazines I get electronically. I have these saved off to a folder on my PC. Now I copy them to my Playbook and read them where ever I am.

I can connect to the internet a few ways - with the wireless ability it has, or tethering to my mobile phone or, if you have a Blackberry running version 5 or above you can use the Bridge to gain access to the internet while about. I have scratched just the surface of this amazing tablet. It has so much more I could talk about.

I love my Playbook. I am so glad I waited for its release. WOW

Update 7.01.2011

I've had the Playbook for over two months, use daily and have taken it with me everywhere I go. As such, I have more information and thoughts to share.

My Playbook recently traveled to Universal Studios and Disney's Magic Kingdom. Beautiful pictures and video were captured. I am a camera fiend - my Nikon D80 was left at home by an oversight and panic (withdrawal is more like it) set in. I must say that my Playbook saved the day. Would this completely replace my Nikon? For me, no. I am a lover of SLR/DSLR's. However it does a very nice job rendering photographs in a pinch. I shot beautiful 1080p video as well.

Apps - I have 183 apps so far on my Playbook and the choices available increases daily.

The browser is something to behold on this thing. It is fast, renders pages beautifully and the flash content looks incredible. As the Playbook supports flash, a great deal of things can be had directly via the browser without the requirement of an app.

RE: the noise about the 'too small' power button - non-issue really. You turn the Playbook on by swiping the screen from top to bottom. If the timeout is too long, you can alter this through the settings. About the only time you ever have to touch the button is to turn it on from a total power down. It's more an issue of a habit to use a button than anything else. Once you drop the button desire, the puny size is perfect.

RE: the noise regarding it wasn't ready - I've used my tablet daily for well over two months and I haven't encountered a single issue. No freezing, nothing at all. Ask me how many times I've had to reset my iPod or my PC/laptop?

RE: the noise regarding the immediate OS update - as a software engineer I appreciated the fact RIM had an update issued right after the tablet shipped. That means they fixed/added new features that the initial install didn't contain. This doesn't mean the OS wasn't ready - it was. They just were able to roll out an update soon after the release. How often is iTunes updated??? How often is Windows OS updated? Why is RIM bashed for a standard process? Ah, the Bizarro World we live in...

I own the iPad 1. I like it. I don't love it. The apps are great. But it is large and cumbersome. It doesn't really multi-task. And I hate the way it handles email. I use a Blackberry Torch phone. I love the way it handles email. And the apps are very good. Fewer. But very good.

So it was with some trepidation and excitement I bought the Blackberry Playbook. The trepidation was because of the advanced reviews which universally panned it. I looked at it, held it, and bought it. And I will tell you it is one piece of stunning equipment.

The build is much better than the iPad. In fact it is extraordinary. The screen is absolutely stunning. The machine loads the applications fast but NOT as fast as you see on the commercials. The browser blows the iPad Safari browser out of the water. It is very fast and of course has Flash. The camera front and back are very good.

But do you know what makes this tablet? The OS. It is extraordinary. You bring out Apps with a touch. You scroll through open apps by beginning at the left or right bezel and swiping toward the center. The context menus are opened by swiping down when the application is open. See a subtle alert in the top left hand corner, swipe diagonally from the the bezel to the center and viola there is a notification of your email. To wake it up swipe from the top bezel to the bottom. No more clicking a darn button. Thank you Blackberry. That alone was genius.

As I said I carry a Blackberry so through the Blackberry Bridge it tethers to my Torch. Emails and files. Everything, except the apps (different OS of course) is available on my Playbook. And I don't have to add on a data plan for 3G. A 3G phone Playbook is coming out in the summer they say for those who do not carry Blackberry phones.

I am waiting for the following apps - Dropbox (although I can transfer files in and out via the web), a free hand note taker and a better PDF program or a more beefy Adobe Reader app. And I am sure they will come.

Now to the reviews: They claimed the OS was not finished. Not true. They claimed multiple shutdowns and freezes. Not true. They poo-poo'd tethering through Blackberry Bridge. OK I am saving myself $30 a month up here in Canada or $360 a year in not having a 3G capability under a separate plan. And the tethering is flawless for both email and web surfing since the Playbook comes with a Bridge Browser that uses your phones' plan. So a person saves $360 a year and it gets criticized? Unbelievable! The apps. Yes there are fewer but there are new ones appearing everyday and they are above average and to my mind are as good as or better than the iPad. The negative reviews are baffling; truly, truly baffling.

I couldn't wait to get the iPad. I was enchanted. With the new iPad 2 I wasn't enchanted. In fact it is anything but.

The Blackberry Playbook on the other hand is simply astounding. I throw it in my briefcase. And away I go. I pull it out at a meeting or airport and it is understated and private. Will it take its rightful place in the tablet market? Not if jingoistic reviewers have their way. But it should. It should if build, function, cost effectiveness, reliability, and fun mean anything to anybody.

"It's coming soon" is a refrain you will hear quite often with respect to the BlackBerry Playbook. I have had my 32GB wifi model for about a week. (I bought it from Staples for less than you see here.) The physical tablet is four and half stars. It is a perfect size, the screen is beautiful and the weight is ideal. It is roughly the same size as a 3d generation Kindle. Half a star deduction for the top buttons which do not feel like they are very high quality.

Included in the box are some brief instructions, a folding blade charger, a micro-usb cable, a nice foam pouch case, and a screen wipe.

There are a few negatives: (1) a lot of websites think the browser is for a blackberry phone and auto-direct you to the mobile version of their website; (2) the browser does not allow you to rename bookmarks, reorder bookmarks, or put bookmarks into folders; (3) the GPS is not yet functional - it's in there, but has not been enabled by the firmware - this feature is "coming soon"; (4) there are two very high quality cameras, but the software is limited only only permitting you to chat with other PlayBook users; (5) there is no Kindle App.

When linked to your blackberry smartphone via bluetooth you get a mirror of the email, contacts, calendar, to do, BBM and memo pad found on your phone. You also get access to files on your blackberry (even the microSD), but cannot open video or audio files - just documents. There is something called the "bridge browser" which allows you to surf the internet through your phone's web browser and 3G connection. This is different from tethering because the carriers don't charge for it. The PlayBook also allows tethering which gives you full data access (although not to app world for some reason). Some carriers charge for tethering, some don't. Apparently AT&T doesn't even allow their customers to use the Bridge - which is a HUGE drawback if you happen to have AT&T.

The lack of apps is the largest drawback. As of this writing, there is no Kindle app (a huge drawback), no Skype app, no Netflix app, and no MLB app. You cannot watch Netflix videos on the browser or your MLB.tv subscription. You CAN watch amazon instant videos. They look beautiful. The app content is neither quality nor quantity.

There is a huge amount of potential, but unfortunately a lot of that is "coming soon" - and isn't there right now. When is "soon"? Nobody knows. One good thing is that firmware updates come out every few weeks and each adds functions. Since there are no carriers involved in rolling out firmware, RIM has full control and can do it quickly.

Some have mentioned problems with battery charging - I haven't had that. My battery charges pretty quickly and goes to 100%. I can use it for nearly 15 hours before I get a low battery warning with about 10% left. Some have complained about the power button being hard to push. Mine is small and recessed, but I can easily push it.

The screen is absolutely beautiful.

You can use your existing blackberry charger, but it will take much longer to charge. The included charger can charge your existing blackberry (micro USB) without harm. There is also an available quick-charging stand - it is expensive but works really well (I have it).

The BlackBerry PlayBook could be an amazing tablet - five stars. However, it is now a bit of a work in progress at this point and I can only give it three stars as it currently stands - It is only OK.

If you're like me - then you've probably been waiting for a while for RIM to enter the tablet market with their long-overdue BlackBerry Playbook. RIM's been touting a couple of features that were a first for any tablet at the time - namely two cameras, one front and one back, HD output and a mini-HDMI port, along with finally releasing the new QNX OS (which RIM badly needed).

Well, unfortunately for RIM, they once again took their time getting this to consumers, and the end result is once again a whole bunch of those new features aren't really new anymore. IPad 2 introduced the two camera system for Apple, and I believe the new Galaxy 2 tablet coming out in a few months will have it as well. A bunch of tablets are also now HD-capable, and a bunch also have HDMI ports.

Anywho - I picked this device up today from Best Buy, and to sum it up in a sentence: classy, but expensive.

For a more detailed review, here goes ---

PROS:
1) The OS. By George, RIM finally has a decent OS!! If anyone has ever had or messed around with a Blackberry phone, one of the biggest gripes you'll have is that the OS is just... well, crappy. OS 5 and 6 were big improvements - but they still each leave alot out (like the browser - god, does Blackberry's browser suck at times), especially when you check out an IPhone or Android phone. The QNX is RIM's newest OS, and I hope they move their phones over to it ASAP. Clean, snappy, and doesn't actually use all that much memory - if you delve into the settings of the device. I will add, though - that as soon as I turned on my device, it had to update the OS. Nice RIM - already pushing out updates.... Doesn't bode well, but we'll see.

2) Screen. I'll give RIM credit, they did awesome here. The screen on the Playbook is nothing short of stellar. I played the movie Megamind (great movie) in HD on it, and it looked fantastic. Even better, hooked it up via HDMI to a projector, and it looked fantastic on the wall too. 7" may be a little small to people - IPad's is almost 10", and so is Galaxy 2 (supposedly - we'll see) - but I like the 7" screen personally. I don't really need a bigger screen - that's what I have a laptop for.

3) Weight. This also might be a touchy subject - but again, I personally like a device that feels solid in my hands. The Playbook definitely fits this bill. Although it only technically weighs 1 pound, it feels much heavier. The construction seems excellent - putting pressure on various points, the device barely bends.

4) Blackberry Bridge. Hell yeah RIM - I do NOT want to pay extra for another 3G data plan. Instead, what RIM does is by tethering your Blackberry phone to the Playbook, you can use the data plan on your phone to get the internet on your Playbook - and it works right out the box!! You don't even need a cable - it also works via BlueTooth!! Only problem - just works with Blackberry phones. If RIM updated this to work with all phones, that would make it literally perfect.

CONS:
1) Price. Jeez, 499 for the base model - 16 GB. 64 GB rings in at 699. (These prices come from Best Buy). It's a nice device, don't get me wrong, but 500 bucks for the base model?? There's a bunch of cheaper options out there. Especially with the size of the device - it's a little hard to justify. I hope RIM fixes this problem soon, for their sake.

2) Apps. Always seems to come back to this as well for RIM. The apps for the device - at the time of this - equal less than 100. Yeah, that's right. With the new OS, that means that all apps have to be rewritten to be able to work with the device - and be able to handle the bigger screen. I believe the IPad has over 25,000 apps specifically made for it, and the Galaxy and XOOM both use Android - and have its market to work with. Clearly RIM has an uphill battle here. Hopefully RIM supporting Flash on the Playbook will help the apps roll in, but I wouldn't hold my breath...

3) No e-mail support. As of right now - the Playbook does not work with BES servers. That means no enterprise e-mail support, or ability to control the device via IT policies. You must be joking RIM. Seamless e-mail support is the main reason people get Blackberries, and you can't make the Playbook to support this?? Fail....


There's a couple other things too I can think of - for both categories - but these delve deeper into the enterprise features of the devices, so if you're interested, leave me a comment and I'll reply
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The Blackberry Playbook is definitely a good entry for RIM - worthy of giving some of the other tablets a run for their money. RIM has of late been really lagging behind when it comes to keeping up with the tech of the day, but with the Playbook, they've finally stepped up to the plate. As for hitting a home run - ehhh, I've give them a double. The Playbook shines in a number of areas - but the key feature to me is the Blackberry Bridge. This is something that I hope a bunch of other tablets start incorporating - being able to use your phone's data plan on your tablet, without having to pay an extra 50 bucks for a separate one.

RIM, fix the weak spots on your device (either by updates or in the 2nd generation), and you could have a real winner here.

As far as recommendations go - for the average user, if you're feeling adventurous, go ahead and get a Playbook. It's a great device at what it does, but expanding those functions are difficult, especially with so few apps. For everyone else - stick with the IPad, XOOM, or Galaxy - at least until the apps get rolling on this device.

-- I'll update this periodically as more information and my usage time with it increases - so check back every so often --

UPDATE: Someone asked me in a comment if the Playbook had a memory card slot - which I forgot to include in my review. Unfortunately, the Playbook does NOT have an SD card slot - although, by using the Blackberry Bridge software, you can get the SD card that's on your phone to work with the Playbook. But as far as plugging in a card to the device itself - no. Thanks to J. Scheider for asking.

UPDATE (5/4/2011): RIM has announced that they'll be releasing the Video Chat app - a video conferencing app that will take advantage of the front and rear cameras, very much like Apple's FaceTime. It's supposed to be part of an OS upgrade that will get released sometime this week - I'll let you know how it is once I've tested it out.

OK. First off, it is a tablet with a fast dual core processor and 1GB of internal memory. So, its up to the task. The issue really is, what's the task?

I am a BlackBerry user and, truth be told, lover. However, I didn't get here by blind loyalty. I followed the advice of others and researched/used the products. So, I assume that's why you are reading this, both general user on the fence and RIM loyalist alike, for perspective.

The real deal is what can this tablet do right out of the box, independent of a BB device (AKA cell phone)? The answer is a lot but not as much as other tablets (specifically Apple or Android). The Playbook is poised to strike but lacks the refinement of options and applications enjoyed by other tablet types. For someone taking it out of the box and using it, they will find a smooth and effortless operating environment. All the menus flow and the graphics fly. No hesitation on most all switching of applications and functions. Screen orientation is fluid and not clunky. The Playbook gets a bad rap for lack of apps and, as i have mentioned, this is true. To be honest though, most people are surfing the web and checking email. The Playbook excels at these tasks with one large caveat, for email you need to use your e-mail provider web interface (mail.yahoo.com, gmail.com, aolmail.com...etc)or the mysterious "...BlackBerry Bridge." As of this posting, there is no email function native to the PlayBook nor is there an application for it.

If you don't own a Blackberry cell phone, don't plan to own one or don't ever use (or plan to use) the email function then wait for RIM to deliver the impending software update to the Playbook that will carry with it a native email application like you see on all other tablets. If you do own a BB cell and use the email function then the BlackBerry Bridge is for you. The BlackBerry Bridge is a native function that runs out of the box. The bridge function is awesome and it basically extends your phone features (mail, tasks, calendar, BBM and some file management) to your Playbook. What this really means is you admin your email and such through the Playbook via BlueTooth to your phone. This is good and bad. The good is you can hop on and generate emails, appts, tasks and xfer some files. The bad is it requires a good BT connection and both items relatively close together and charged to the point they can use the BT radio. The real solution for this is RIM should allow your Playbook, via a native app not a bridge, to use your BIS or (if company sanctioned) BES information. Plain and simple. They have to conquer the one PIN per account issue that currently requires you to bridge to the phone, the device that holds you PIN to the BIS or BES services. Is the bridge function enough to entice someone to buy a BB device along with a PlayBook or enable emailing on their current BB at a price to the provider? No. To finish the thought, they should include with native email all the PIM functions (tasks, calendar, notes...etc) that provide a fluid information chain that is accessible and completely sync'd with a BB device (or other smart phone through Google apps or something).

The web experience is excellent. Fast and uses Flash. Not much you cant do. It has its tablet downsides like sometimes you get an ad or some other in window pop up that just about requires a mouse...but that issue exists on all tablets.

Unless you're a news, movie or media junky, the applications (available via a native PB application called AppWorld) will most likely fail to impress you. The news, weather and media stuff is solid. The PB comes with the music store. The store isn't as extensive as iTunes of course but there are other services you can use (BestBuy just announced a cloud based music service for PB, iPad and Android). You can rent movies from Amazon and YouTube via web. No Netflix streaming app yet for PB. The good news on the app front is the supposed addition of Android applications that will run on the PB. This happens via a virtual machine (meaning its not native Android processing on the PB so it can't be as fast for sure) so it remains to be seen how good it will be. Angry Birds is coming as well.

The final deal is what do you want? If you want a smaller tablet then this is a good one...but if you want a smaller tablet with tons of apps then either go Android or wait for the supposed Android App player that will allow PB to run them. The real deal is this tablet surfs the web with the best of them and, lets be honest, most people want that. They hate a hot laptop and want something lighter, cooler, easier and with less of a footprint. Secondly they want apps that probably enhance what they can do on the web. so if its news, media or movies, you're good.

Some people have complained about the power and volume buttons. They are a bit of a pain but you get used to using them pretty quick. Something you shouldn't have to deal with but not a show stopper.

The PlayBook is expensive and does less than the iPad; unless you actively use your BB device. Android bridges the gap in price and physical options but is still clunky in app switching and fluidity of operating environment. Final word, the PlayBook is as fluid and dialed in as the iPad as far as use and operating environment but lacks the options, a gap partially bridged by use of an existing BB device enabled for email and internet use.

5 stars for BB users who aren't app junkies
3 stars for someone buying now without a BB and waiting for native email, Android Apps compatibility (and more native apps in the BlackBerry App World) and using your BlueTooth Headset (not possible as of this posting). The PlayBook is evolving leaps and bounds with every automatically delivered software update. But should someone pay top price for a comparatively lacking product now?

these are the things i do:

Surf (native)
Watch rented movies on Amazon/YouTube (web, native)
RSS news (app)
News 360 (app)
Podcasts (native)
BB Bridge Email, BBMessenger(native) -- must have BB device and email accounts configured
SSH to servers (if you don't understand this it's OK...its for techies) (app)
VNC to my home machine for admin use (app)
Video chat via ReelPortal (app)
Word, Excel doc editing (app)
File share to and from the PB on my home network (native)
Play "Need for Speed" (native) its fun :)

I bought the Playbook since it seemed to be a good fit for my use. I carry a BB Bold (AT&T service) for work and thought this would be my best option for productivity and as a useful 'toy' when traveling. I read the reviews and was slightly worried that it was too early to buy, but I went for it.

So far, after a week of use I am very pleased with the PB. Some of the issues mentioned in reviews here do exist but they are either minimal impact or can be worked around.

Positives:
The size and weight are perfect for me. I added a leather case and find it the right size. It seems slightly heavier than I expected, but I think this makes it feel solid.
The touch screen and responsiveness of the OS is great, better than I expected from the reviews that called it sluggish. This is the first time I've used a touchscreen beyond demos at Apple, etc and I found it very easy to use.
The video quality is great, the demo videos and a few downloaded videos look great.
The collection of loaded apps and those available on the app store are pretty good for a device that just came out a few months ago. There is little I have looked for that is not available.
Bridging to my BB is wonderful. I read reviews that this was difficult to establish and that the links drop constantly and so far that is not true, expect for the initial loading which I describe below.
The bridge browser connects very well to my company's intranet and is already proving very useful. The BB browser was always hit or miss and extremely slow, so I rarely attempted to use it. The PB bridge browser works very well for looking up intranet websites. It also works perfectly for external websites when I am not connected to a wifi network.
The internet tethering is something I didn't expect. I must have missed the description of that as I was concentrating on the BB bridge connections. I had assumed that I could use my BB to access email, calendar, and the bridge browser but I thought I would be out of luck when using applications on the PB that use wifi when I was not in range of a wifi network. By tethering the PB to the internet through the BB (a separate connection setting than BB bridge) all of the applications work perfectly. This is a great feature since I have an unlimited domestic tethering feature on my corporate cell phone plan. If you don't have this feature, then it would incur additional fees, which is clearly stated when you set up the connection. I understand this may not be great for many people, but compared to a 3G version of competing tablets I think this is no worse and with the BB bridge option it is quite a bit better.

Some issues:
As mentioned in other reviews and on the BB support forums, AT&T does not `support' the BB bridge. If you attempt to load the software via the PB's barcode it will state that and leave you `unbridged.' It is not difficult to load the bridge software from links in the BB support websites, and once I loaded it manually on my BB the application worked perfectly. I expected a bit more work to get everything to synch up, but it worked on the first try.

The app store is not as extensive as other tablets seem, but there is a plan to add android apps this summer. There are also a large number of apps that are available for the BB that are not ready for the PB yet, but I imagine that will also come in time.

There is no support for Bluetooth audio at this time. I found this out by trying to pair a BT stereo headset and failing repeatedly. I found out on the support forums that this is a "known" lack of support. For me, this is a minor annoyance at best since there is a headset jack and I just used that for now. If you plan to link to BT speakers or stereo headsets this might be a reason to wait. Regular BT earpieces seem to pair fine but I typically pair mine to my phone so not sure what I would use the earpiece for on the PB.


Overall I am very happy with the Playbook, especially as I believe it is early in its lifecycle. I wouldn't recommend it to someone who does not have a BB, as that was one of the biggest draws for me, but if you do it is a great alternative to the other pads.

I read at the time all three Amazon reviews of the Blackberry Playbook and decided to take a chance. The reviews were so favorable I wondered if RIM had planted the reviewers. Anyway, this will be my first ever product review.

I got the Playbook tonight after work. I had no problems setting it up. The "blackberry bridge" works great. The screen and display are unbelievable. The operating system is intuitive. The glass keyboard (I'm typing this on the glass) is the best I've ever used. Apple's OS for the ipad seems crude compared to RIM's Playbook. I bought it for traveling, but I can tell I'm going to be using this thing a lot more than I thought.

I've had my playbook for over a week now, and I feel like I can finally write an objective review. I'll have to admit, I am a blackberry "fan boy", I have had a blackberry for years now, and I currently have a Bold 9700, so I am able to bridge my devices, but this is an in-depth look with as little "bias" as possible.

Pros :
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Hardware - This is truly an impressive piece of hardware. The construction is fantastic, its easy to hold, its light, and it feels solid in my hands. The screen is fantastic, very crisp and displays images/videos/text with very sharp clarity. I loaded up a bunch of pictures on my playbook just so I can look at the beautiful screen. Everything is so clear, its such a pleasure to look at. The device is also very fast, launching applications, loading web pages, and switching between apps are blazingly fast. The camera is also good. The back facing one is 5 MP and it takes good pictures, and HD quality video (however no flash :( )

Ease of Use - I have to admit when I first tried it out at Best Buy, I had no idea what I was doing, and I couldn't figure out how to do anything. I've had plenty of apple devices so I thought the missing "Home" button was an issue, and it left me scratching my head. However, once I read up on it a little more, and found you can do everything with some simple gestures, I was hooked. I multi-task a lot, and switching between applications is so easy, just a simple swipe from the bezel in and you're in a different app. Bringing up the "Home" screen, closing apps, getting to the status bar are all easily done with some simple gestures. I have to say, now that I've gotten used to it, I love it and could never go back to the "Apple" way!

Multi-tasking - As I mentioned, I am really used to multi-tasking, so switching between applications is just what I do. I might read some articles, then browse a site, change the music, and then go back to reading the news. This is all a snap with the playbook, and the speed at which it does it is seamless.

Form Factor - This is a preference but for me the 7" form factor is great. I don't really like watching videos on handheld devices (or even my laptop) so this was not a big requirement. I tried out the Xoom and iPad 2 and I have to say, it was stellar at showing off videos. But, I felt it was a little cumbersome, and if I wanted to just grab a device, check up on some scores, and look at some news, I wanted it to be easy to hold in one hand. Also, due to its size, its very easy to carry, and I don't feel like I am holding a laptop.

Browser - This is great. Every page I normally go to loads perfectly, and with the flash support, I get the full web experience. Also, going to foreign sites renders the characters properly as well. The only issue I've seen is on some of the more advanced sites, the pages will complain that I am on an "older browser" but that also means I am getting the full version of the site, and not a mobile version.

Battery Life - I wanted to call this out because before the 1.0.5 OS update, this was a HUGE issue. The playbook would drain power like nobody's business, and I couldn't even leave it on standby overnight. However, this was all fixed with the recent update, now I can browse around and use apps for a few hours, and still have plenty of battery. Just the other day, I left my playbook on standby overnight, and it only drained a few percentage points. So what was a huge negative has become a positive with a simple update. This also goes to show you, RIM is committed to releasing updates quickly and getting the OS up to par with other devices out there.

Cons :
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Lacking Apps - This is probably the single biggest complaint you read about, "not enough apps". This is a real issue. A lot of my favorite apps are missing, including Pandora, Kindle, KeePass (password management) and SSH (sys admin software). These are key apps I use on my bold every day, and without it, it is a big issue. However, one recent addition to the app world has boosted the score for me, and thats the blackberry news reader. I was using GeeReader since that was the only decent RSS feed reader available, but blackberry just released the news reader, and it is fantastic. I do see new apps crop up everyday in app world, and the Android app reader is going launch soon, so I think this will improve. (the FB app, word and acrobat apps are great as well)

Lack of Connectivity - If you're on wireless, the playbook is great, but without it, it is seriously disabled. I tried to take it to the gym to try it out while I work out, and I couldn't do much even when bridged. The reason being, the bridge browser is so slow, I couldn't use it. This could be partly due to my bold, but still, it was unusable. I did get tethering to work, but I tried to install an app, and that didn't work either, so there were some limitations there as well. I think if you're not on wifi, there will be some issues with using it.

UPDATE 2
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I mentioned that the small power button was an issue due to coming out of standby, but there's actually a "swipe" shortcut. All you have to do is swipe from bezel to bezel, and that brings the playbook out of standby, so no more fiddling around with the small power button! Previous comment is below for reference

(Small Power Button - When I first read complaints about this, I thought people were being nitpicky since how often do you use the power button? Well as it turns out quite a bit. The reason is, its the only way to come out of standby for the playbook. I setup my device to standby after a few minutes to conserve power, and so whenever it goes to standby, I have to press the power button, and I end up doing it at least 2-3 times to get it right.)


UPDATE
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I originally commented about the bad memory management, but it looks like this was also fixed in the 1.0.5 OS release. Now, when there are no apps running, there is almost 700 MB of free memory, and even with the browser open, I still have 500+ MB free. This should allow me to run way more apps at a time, and see less of the "automatic" closing that I saw before. Previous comment is below for reference

(Bad Memory management - This is a big sticking point for me. The playbook has 1 gb of ram, so I didn't think it would be an issue but boy is it ever! First off, when you start up the playbook, there's only 450 MB of memory free. Then, if you launch the browser, another 200+ MB is gone right there. So, if you have more than a few apps open and the browser, the playbook will just start closing apps automatically. When this first happened, I thought pages were crashing because of the flash or lots of media content, but after some poking around, I realized it was because of the "low" memory. Also, when I say "low" memory, its not like 50 mb, its more like anything under 150 MB and the playbook could start closing apps automatically.)

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Overall, I love my playbook, and I want to give it 5 stars, but I just can't. Once there are more apps available, this will be a solid 5 stars. Also, for non blackberry users, the lack of a native mail client will be a big turn off. But because the browser is so capable, it should ease the pain slightly. The playbook is a great device for RIM to build off of, and I think the next coming months will be key for them, and if they can address some the issues, it will be a true force in the tablet market.

I am an admitted Apple fanboy. I have 3 Macs, 2 iPod Nanos, 2 iTouches, and 1 iPad (1st gen).

I purchased an iPad right out of the gate, but after the novelty wore off I wound up giving it to my wife. Why? I found the iPad to be a very capable device - not a single complaint - but it was just too big to cart around (might as well bring your laptop) and I always felt awkward pulling it out in public.

I ended up carrying my iTouch around more often and leaving the iPad at home. I mean, imagine walking around the mall with your wife and sitting in the "man area" while she shops endlessly for another pair of shoes and pulling out the iPad you've been lugging around the whole time. I prefer to be a bit more discreet.

I absolutely love the iTouch, but it is just too small. I really want something in between.

Enter the Blackberry Playbook. . .

What drove me to look at the Playbook was actually the announcement about the Amazon Fire (I also own a 2nd gen Kindle). There were several references to the fact that the Fire looks to be a repackaged Playbook. I looked into it and indeed they appear to have been cut from the same mold. So my mind began to turn. . .

What if instead of thinking of the Playbook as a rival to the iPad I viewed it as a 3rd or 4th generation Amazon Fire? Wow. That put the unit in a whole new light for me.

You know what's going to happen with the Fire, right? Amazon will release a 2nd, 3rd, 4th generation Fire, each with increasing capabilities until you basically arrive, hardware-wise, where the Playbook currently is. Maybe even still below the Playbook.

Add to the mix the fact that places like Staples and Best Buy have significantly slashed the price of the Playbook and the opportunity was hard to resist. So I bit on a 32GB unit (or basically a 4th generation Amazon Fire).

Read carefully through all the reviews to understand what you can and can not do with the Playbook. There are some shortcomings and limitations, especially with regards to apps. But again, look at the device from the standpoint of an Amazon Fire and it suddenly becomes a fantastic device that will provide useful service for years to come and then some.

So far I've been surprisingly impressed with the hardware. Well-built (except for maybe the power button, but learn to turn on with finger swipe), fantastic graphics, nice audio, responsive, stable, and just the right size. It truly is an amazing device. I absolutely love the gestures they've designed to bring up menus and apps, and to move around. Brilliant!

As for the lack of apps, here's the kicker. . . when I first got my iPad I went into "app frenzy," downloading lots of cool apps. But the truth is I never really used most of them on a regular basis. Also, the wave of the future is HTML5. Everything will move more and more to the web and HTML5 will bring with it all the cool animation and effects you could want right inside your browser.

So, no app for Evernote? No problem - evernote.com. Music? Rhapsody.com. Todo? Rememberthemilk.com. No Kindle app? No problem - I read all my books off Amazon Cloud on my new 4th Gen Fire. More and more robust apps will be moving to the cloud, so don't get overly-fixated on apps or lack thereof.

I am already using the Playbook for most of the things in the above list and more. At this point I feel that even if RIM totally walked away from the device today I will still be able to happily use it for years to come. Or at least until Apple wakes up and comes out with a 7-inch iPad. :-)

What can I say. I am so glad I waited on the ipad 2. As a result I was introduced to the playbook by a friend and I fell in love with its size. After a bit of research I concluded it was just perfect for my needs.

I waited a while to do this review, so I could have some time with it and like a lot of playbook owners, I am just baffled by how this device got all those bad reviews. This thing is just pure pleasure to use.

I have been using a bb smart phone to keep my life organized & the addition of the playbook has made it even better. Being able to access my email accounts, calendar, tasks, files and even bbm from the playbook is sweet. My phone battery lasts for days now even with wifi & bluetooth on because I hardly pick it up.

One of the complaints was the lack of 3g, but IMO I think I have a sweet deal. I can surf the web through the bridge browser which doesn't cost me a cent more. In fact I could tether it to my phone & use the regular browser or whatever if I am desperate without having the expense of an additional data plan to manage.

Lack of apps was another complaint. Again, the device was brand new, so I didn't expect a lot of apps. Hell, the ipad went through the same thing. That being said, apps are coming out daily and I have been able to find quite a few useful ones. That should get better with time.

Blackberry's support seems pretty good as well. Since I have had it, there has been a few updates to the OS that unbelievably makes it better every time.

I'll finish by stating I have no loyalty to blackberry, but I have to call a spade a spade. This tablet is as good as advertised and I am very happy with it.
Really happy with this purchase.