Blackberry Playbook OS v2 Update Due Today

It’s been delayed and delayed further, but despite no official confirmation from RIM the long-anticipated version 2 of the company’s QNX operating system for the Blackberry Playbook is due to be released today.  AMong the features on offer are native email and calendar apps, something that’s taken for granted with any other tablet operating system.  When the Playbook was first released, Rim saw the principle way to get email and calendar on the tablet would be to pair it with your Blackberry smartphone via bluetooth.  This approach wasn’t entirely successful however with a great many Playbook users being non-Blackberry phone owners.

RIM finally showed off the native email and calendar apps last month but they have still been surprisingly cagey about this operating system update, seen as a major milestone for the platform despite being mostly intended to fix and patch bugs.  The Facebook app is also rumoured to get an update however.  It’s said that the update will be availble to download from 4.01am in the USA, which would mean lunchtime or early afternoon in Europe.

The Playbook has suffered trememdously in the battles against the iPad and Google’s Android operating system, despite the poor uptake of the latter’s recent Ice Cream Sandwich OS update.  In recent weeks the price of the Playbook has dropped in many markets with many people suspecting that it was to go the same way as the HP Touchpad with a fire-sale followed by oblivion forever.  So far RIM have managed to avoid this fate with the Playbook though the company’s own market share overall is dwindling significantly, with many predicting the death of company before too long.

Other new features in the OS update reportedly include Blackberry Balance, which allows users to use their tablet for both home and work, while seperating the two when they’re either working or at home.  The feature will also apparently include additional security to protect work and business data and keep it seperate from your personal data.  This will also allow corporate users to deploy bespoke apps to users personal or work devices, with the user safe in the knowledge that while their activities online and with apps can be restricted during business hours, they are free to do whatever they like outside of work hours without their business data and files being in danger from online activities.

There will also be a Citrix client that will give users remote desktop working, even with Windows or the Mac.  Finally the Playbook will be usable as a programmable remote control for the home or in the workplace.  The aim here is to make the tablet a useful presentation device in the workplace.  As I mentioed earlier, the rest of the OS update is essentially bug fixes and patches.

If you are planning to install the operating system update when it is released, assuming the information that’s been leaked from RIM is accurate, then you should first make sure you have your device backed up.  You can do this in the Blackberry Desktop Software for the tablet.

So will you be downloading and installing the Playbook v2 OS today?  Are you looking forward to the native email and calendar apps or perhaps another feature?  Why not tell us in the comments below.

Enjoyed the article?: Then sign-up for our free newsletter or RSS feed to kick off your day with the latest technology news and tips, or share the article with your friends and contacts on Facebook or Twitter.

No related posts.

About the Author:Mike Halsey is a Microsoft MVP for "Windows Expert". He is also the author of Troubleshooting Windows 7 Inside Out from Microsoft Press and the Windows 7 Power Users Guide, a how-to guide for non-technical Windows users on how to get the best out of Microsoft's new operating system, with step-by-step and quick guides. You can follow Mike on Facebook, Twitter or on his own website The Long ClimbAuthor: Mike Halsey MVP, Tuesday February 21, 2012 -
Tags:blackberry, operating system, os, playbook, rim, update

View the original article here

Blackberry Playbook Tablet Review

Last year I picked up an HP Touchpad in the fire sale that resulted in the model, and all of HP’s tablet plans, being discontinued.  Now RIM appear to be doing similiar with their Playbook tablet, with prices being slashed around the world.  You might think then that now would be the right time to pick up your first tablet, after all a great many people believe that tablets generally are just too expensive at the moment for what they offer.  I thought then that I’d review the Playbook and give my verdict as a seasoned tablet user.

I’ve used quite a few tablets in the last year, and indeed I now own three of them (don’t ask!) including the Touchpad and now the Playbook.  So which is better and how does RIM’s model stack up against the competition?

The Blackberry Playbook has a 7 inch screen, a 1GHz processor, 1Gb of RAM and comes with either 16Gb, 32Gb or 64Gb of storage.  It weighs a dinky 425 grams.  By comparison the HP Touchpad has a 9.7 inch screen a 1.2GHz processor, 1Gb RAM and either 32Gb or 64Gb storage, weighing a heftier 740 grams and the iPad 2, also with a 9.7 inch screen contains a 1GHz dual-core processor, 512Mb RAM, 16Gb, 32Gb or 64Gb of storage but weighs in at a much more reasonable 610 grams.

The Playbook does have certain advantages over the competition however which start with a micro-HDMI socket and include extras such as a touch-sensitive bezel, clearly labelled controls on the outer edge and two cameras, a 3MP affair on the front and a healthy 5MP camera on the rear.  This is compared to the woeful 1.3MP webcam on the Touchpad.  The battery life on the Playbook is also excellent, being a match for the Touchpad, but perhaps not the huge battery life of the iPad 2.

The screen is excellent but the resolution is only 1024 x 600 and this results in a fair amount of scrolling being necessary in order to read a full web page or document.  The included software bundle is generally speaking bog standard with apps for the camera, mapping (using the on board GPS which doesn’t work anywhere near as well as the TouchPad), music and music store, video (and YouTube), pictures, video chat (but only with other Playbooks which seems pointless), Calculator, Adobe Reader, Weather, Facebook, Twitter, Hotmail and Gmail (the last three are simply links to the relevant websites), app store and voice notes.  There is also DataViz’ excellent Documents to go for creating and editing Word, Excel and PowerPoint files.

I encountered a significant problem with my Playbook however in that these apps aren’t delivered in flash memory with the OS itself but are rather downloaded from the cloud and Rim’s own servers.  The update server was down when I got my machine and so for almost an entire day my tablet had nothing more on it than the web browser.  This is the achilles heel of RIM’s services as their servers do seem to go down with some regularity.  To have a hardware device that you’ve bought and paid for so tightly integrated with the company’s own servers is something of a worry.

The software is missing a few key apps.  There are currently no native email and calendaring apps (though these are coming later this month with the next OS release so this shouldn’t put you off buying one) and the machine and screen lock feature doesn’t work properly, it asked me for a password every time I turned the machine on even though I had told it to only lock after 30 minutes.  Hopefully this is something else that will be sorted out.

The app store is well stocked but not quite as well stocked as I might have hoped and it can be difficult and fiddly to navigate and find what you want.  I thought the app store on the Touchpad was fairly barren but the Playbook’s store is not much better.

With the OS itself I found some simple tasks, such as closing a browser window, took two actions where on other devices they would only take one, and the left-right swipe action needed to select a running app on the home screen to open was often over-zealous and swiped straight past the one you wanted.  Despite these niggles though the OS is certainly polished, very fast indeed and very responsive.  I really like it.

One of the problems I faced with my Touchpad was being unable to hold it in one hand when using it, it’s just too heavy and bulky for that, as is the iPad.  I was hoping then that a smaller 7 inch tablet would solve these problems.  Alas it’s still just a little heavy and left my hand aching between my thumb and forefinger after holding it for moderate periods.  Resting it on the knee doesn’t work too much either as it’s just too small for that and suddenly you find it’s too far away.  It can also get a little hot in extended use.

You might think then that I don’t like the Playbook and wouldn’t recommend it.  In fact quite the opposite is true.  For the problems and niggles there is also much to like.  RIM’s QNX operating system is very similar to WebOS in many ways, almost always in ways that make it intuitive and simple to operate.  It’s nice to see that RIM have put a great deal of focus on ease of use and they’ve certainly succeeded.

It is very small and light too, so if you’re looking for something to use on the daily commute this won’t get in the way and will be very comfortable to use in an airline seat too, where larger tablets can be too big.  I’d have liked to have seen a 3G/4G slot on something so portable, and this is a complaint I commonly make about tablets and laptops, but for these new super-cheap prices I couldn’t really complain.

It’s this new low price though that really sells the tablet to me.  In build quality, form factor and weight it’s every bit the competitor to Amazon’s new Kindle Fire tablet, but now it also competes keenly on price.  With that excellent screen it’s a very capable eBook reader but doesn’t have the Amazon Kindle-store-focused front-end.  If you’re after your first tablet you won’t get any better for the price.  If you want a tablet to use seriously though and don’t mind spending more, then you might be better looking at the available Android machines.

Enjoyed the article?: Then sign-up for our free newsletter or RSS feed to kick off your day with the latest technology news and tips, or share the article with your friends and contacts on Facebook or Twitter. Is the Blackberry Playbook Fire Sale Beginning?
Which Should I Keep, an HP TouchPad or a RIM Playbook?
Curry’s cut PlayBook Price by £150 in UK, but why?
How RIM Spoiled my first day with a Playbook
Which is the Best Tablet Form-Factor – Review About the Author:Mike Halsey is a Microsoft MVP for "Windows Expert". He is also the author of Troubleshooting Windows 7 Inside Out from Microsoft Press and the Windows 7 Power Users Guide, a how-to guide for non-technical Windows users on how to get the best out of Microsoft's new operating system, with step-by-step and quick guides. You can follow Mike on Facebook, Twitter or on his own website The Long ClimbAuthor: Mike Halsey MVP, Monday February 6, 2012 -
Tags:blackberry, playbook, review, rim

You are here: Home » Hardware » Blackberry Playbook Tablet Review

Click on the following link(s) to read more about Hardware

View the original article here

How RIM Spoiled my first day with a Playbook

I received a new Blackberry Playbook 16Gb tablet today, actually it’s not completely new as it’s two weeks old and was owned by a family member who bought it because prices had been discounted recently here in the UK.  She liked it so much that she decided she’d rather have the 64Gb one and bought that, giving me her ‘old’ tablet as she felt I was perhaps spending too much time with Windows (on this I did point out I didn’t own an iMac but this was just met with a “nice try” comment).

I was excited about its arrival today.  I already own an HP TouchPad that I picked up in last year’s fire sale and I love WebOS.  It is an extremely friendly and usable OS but, alas, sometimes the 10 inch form factor is a little large and the TouchPad weighs more than its equivalent iPad.  I was looking forward then to trying a dinky 7 inch Playbook and when it arrived I opened the packaging with scant regard for reusing it sometime.

When I turned it on I found that it was still logged-in with the user account of my relative, complete with her settings and possibly even credit-card details for the marketplace.  I decided then to start from scratch and reset the device.  Now you might ordinarily expect a “factory reset” to restore a computer to the point it was at when it left the factory, yes?  On any other device, for example my TouchPad or an iPad, an iPhone, my Windows Phone or any Android tablet a reset would set the machine up for you as you would see it when it was first unboxed, complete with apps for the camera, mapping, photos, music, videos, possibly file management, a few games and of course a web browser.

All I can say is that when I had finished the reset and had created a new Blackberry ID for myself the web browser was there.  I was very alarmed at this point to discover that everything else had been deleted, including all of the apps that you might consider “default” and a part of the operating system.  You can see this in the screenshot above (which I was fortunately able to take despite the camera app being absent).

After a mild panic I hit the Blackberry forums to search for an answer.  Here I discovered a great many people having problems at the same time with, usually new, Playbooks.  A phone call to the support department (at least Blackberry have actual Human beings answering a phone which is an absolute blessing) confirmed my fears, that the company was having yet another server outage, this time to the update servers, following a botched maintenance operation.

The support person informed me that the default apps weren’t on the flash memory in the device, but were instead loaded upon a reset from the Blackberry OS and software update server, which was down, and that as a result I’d been given a corrupt version of the operating system and would have to wait until the servers were repaired and try the whole operation again.

Currently the Playbook is sitting on my desk, switched off as it’s not quite heavy enough to be used as a doorstop.  These server outages at RIM are regularly reported and the achilles heel of the company’s desire to direct all traffic through it’s own closed and secure servers.  The last time there was a Blackberry outage it lasted for several days and affected every country worldwide.  On my very first day with any Blackberry device, here was the evil gremlin laughing back at me.

I’m not saying this isn’t a reason to jump back to my TouchPad, I’ve not turned it on today.  This is a major problem affecting RIM however and its one that is causing them significant problems with lost market share as the 21st century progresses.  I can live without my Playbook for a few more days, frustrating as it might be, but for RIM to survive in the long-term, server outages such as this one simply must be the exception instead of the rule.

Enjoyed the article?: Then sign-up for our free newsletter or RSS feed to kick off your day with the latest technology news and tips, or share the article with your friends and contacts on Facebook or Twitter. Which Should I Keep, an HP TouchPad or a RIM Playbook?
Curry’s cut PlayBook Price by £150 in UK, but why?
Is the Blackberry Playbook Fire Sale Beginning?
BlackBerry Wallpapers
UAE to block the Blackberry? About the Author:Mike Halsey is a Microsoft MVP for "Windows Expert". He is also the author of Troubleshooting Windows 7 Inside Out from Microsoft Press and the Windows 7 Power Users Guide, a how-to guide for non-technical Windows users on how to get the best out of Microsoft's new operating system, with step-by-step and quick guides. You can follow Mike on Facebook, Twitter or on his own website The Long ClimbAuthor: Mike Halsey MVP, Saturday February 4, 2012 -
Tags:blackberry, outage, playbook, rim

You are here: Home » Hardware » How RIM Spoiled my first day with a Playbook

Click on the following link(s) to read more about Hardware

View the original article here

Which Should I Keep, an HP TouchPad or a RIM Playbook?

Which Should I Keep, an HP TouchPad or a RIM Playbook? .download-info .download-button {background-image: url(http://www.ghacks.net/wp-content/plugins/download-monitor/page-addon/downloadbutton.gif);}.download-info .more-button {background-image: url(http://www.ghacks.net/wp-content/plugins/download-monitor/page-addon/morebutton.gif);} HomeWindowsLinuxSoftwareInternet ExplorerFirefoxChromeOperaEmailContactAdvertiseWhich Should I Keep, an HP TouchPad or a RIM Playbook?

As a tech author, blogger and reviewer I get technology sent to me periodically or I pick up bits and pieces myself.  This does mean that I can occasionally find something being replaced when its not too old.  This is about to happen with two tablets, an HP TouchPad 32Gb and a RIM Playbook 16Gb.  Now I’ll start by saying that the actual ‘Gb’ storage volume on each tablet is probably irrelevant as I only store files either on my desktop PC, my laptop or in the cloud.  There’s no point in having two tablets though so I need to choose which one to keep.

This isn’t as easy a decision as you might think.  The HP TouchPad has a very useful 10 inch screen, but there’s a weight that comes with this.  The RIM Playbook is much ligahter as it’s smaller, but the 7 inch screen isn’t quite as capacious.  Then there’s the fact that the HP TouchPad has been discontinued (I picked mine up in the fire sale late last year) which does affect both the number and quality of available apps, and updates to the operating system itself.  That said, the RIM Playbook’s future is also in some doubt and the prices of these tablets are now falling too.

There some fundamental differences between the two machines.  Cameras are one good example where the TouchPad has just a 1.3MP webcam on the front while the Playbook sports both front and rear cameras, with the rear one being a healthy 5MP resolution.  The Playbook also has an HDMI output, which the touchpad lacks.  The Touchpad is a far sleeker-looking device however with an operating system that’s simplicity itself not just to use, but to completely master.  The TouchPad also has a slightly faster processor, running at 1.2Ghz when compared to the 1GHz of the Playbook and the GPS and route-planning on the tablet are lightning fast.

In short though, there are huge numbers of reasons why you might want or prefer one type of tablet over another.  For example the iPad 2 is extremely light and has a big 10 inch screen, while some Android tablets are just as light and come in a wide variety of form-factors and weights.

In short then I thought this might be a great opportunity to kick off a discussion over which of these two tablets is better, and which one you think I should keep.  WebOS is a very effective and highly polished operating system.  Currently QNX on the Playbook isn’t quite there if you don’t have a Blackberry smartphone (I use a Windows Phone) and will continue to miss out some critical apps until the next operating system update eventually arrives.  It’s due this month but has been pushed back many times since last fall.

So which tablet do you think I should keep and why?  Which is the better tablet, the best hardware, the most accessible operating system and the most expandable system?  Which works best with cloud services and has the bext software support?  It will be interesting to hear your views on these two machines.

Enjoyed the article?: Then sign-up for our free newsletter or RSS feed to kick off your day with the latest technology news and tips, or share the articlewith your friends and contacts on Facebook or Twitter.

Related Articles: Is the Blackberry Playbook Fire Sale Beginning?
Curry’s cut PlayBook Price by £150 in UK, but why?
Touchpad Blocker, Block Accidental Keyboard With Touchpad Actions
Disable Laptop Touchpad While Typing Text [Windows]
Automatically Disable The Laptop Touchpad While Typing



About the Author:Mike Halsey is a Microsoft MVP for "Windows Expert". He is also the author of Troubleshooting Windows 7 Inside Out from Microsoft Press and the Windows 7 Power Users Guide, a how-to guide for non-technical Windows users on how to get the best out of Microsoft's new operating system, with step-by-step and quick guides.You can follow Mike on Facebook, Twitter or on his own website The Long ClimbAuthor: Mike Halsey MVP, Thursday February 2, 2012 -
Tags:hp, playbook, qnx, rim, touchpad, webos

You are here: Home » ask the readers » Which Should I Keep, an HP TouchPad or a RIM Playbook?Previous Post: Why I Switched To The Duck Duck Go Search Engine
Next Post: Dashlane, A New Password Manager For Windows and Mac
Click on the following link(s) to read more about ask the readers
Responses so far:Gopal Vanamamalai says: February 2, 2012 at 3:59 pm

I would recommend to keep the hp touchpad. I’m one of those people who grabbed a hp touchpad during the fire sale. Currently i have installed android ICS (CM9) on it and am really enjoying the tablet experience. Even though the CM9 is in alpha stage it is buttery smooth and able to install ton of apps from the android market. There are still some bugs that needs to worked out, but none the less having a $99 android Ice Cream Sandwich tablet is a great experience and nothing can beat that.

ReplyTyler says: February 2, 2012 at 4:46 pm

Unfortunately I can’t be much help… but I really want to know the answer since I was considering a PlayBook! (I have a Blackberry though so that could skew my opinion.)

ReplyBrian Rogers says: February 2, 2012 at 5:22 pm

I’m with Gopal. I’m rocking CM9 on my Touchpad and it’s like butter!

Replypaul(us) says: February 2, 2012 at 5:34 pm

The HP touchpad, not only because the faster processor, the sleeker-looking, the beter service, but also because the MTBF of HP is the best.

ReplySteve Mink says: February 2, 2012 at 5:52 pm

As other have siad, unless portability is your primary consideration, a dual-boot webOS/CM9 HP Touchpad every time.

ReplyLeland says: February 2, 2012 at 6:31 pm

I too would go for the TouchPad since you can install Android. Plus it is possible to dual boot webOS and Android (CM7 or CM9). CM7 is based on Gingerbread and CM9 on ICS. Either way you get access to Android apps in addition to what you get with webOS. To me this seems like a winner.

ReplyMark says: February 2, 2012 at 7:19 pm

What will you be doing with the tablet that you’re NOT keeping?

Just asking; but, to be clear, after all of the soap opera ineptitude that HP heaped upon the world with regard to its WebOS tablets and smartphones, your answer just might sway my vote…

(I had been waiting and waiting and waiting for a North American Pre3 to replace my Pre Plus…Aaauugh!!!)

ReplyKoji says: February 2, 2012 at 8:33 pm

I would keep the PB. 1st, OS2 coming out very soon, RIM stands by the playbook so you can expect future updates still whereas the alternative doesn’t. I don’t have a blackberry and was originally a iphone/ipad supporter, but being able to sideload programs with the Playbook can do is so much better than jailbreaking and risking to brick your tablet. Now I don’t know if the Touchpad can sideload, but I do know that you’ll need to root it if you want to be putting beta OS’s in there which you don’t know if it’ll ever come out of a final version.

ReplyDean says: February 2, 2012 at 9:18 pm

Just send the one you don’t want this way. ;-)

ReplyEdward Murphy says: February 2, 2012 at 10:17 pm

The HP Touchpad is the better Tablet by far and I like webOS better then android, but I am willing to take the PB off your hands.

ReplyVirtualguy says: February 3, 2012 at 3:41 am

Perhaps you should send both back and get the Ainol NOVO Aurora IPS HD screen ICS 4.0 16GB 1GB RAM 1.5GHz CPU HDMI 1080p + Free Hdmi Cable for just $200, shipped.

Faster processor, ICS 4.0 installed, free HDMI cable. I think I’m going to cancel my Playbook order and order this baby.

ReplyVirtualguy says: February 3, 2012 at 3:45 am

Check out the NOVO Aurora at merimobiles.com. It is Chinese made, but has been been very good reviews. Not available in the U.S. yet, can be ordered and shipped from merimobiles.com. This is not an endorsement of said site, just food for thought…

ReplyVirtualguy says: February 3, 2012 at 3:46 am

been been = been getting…

ReplyLeslie says: February 3, 2012 at 5:17 am

You astound me – its obvious that any self respecting IT person would keep both. If you have got no room then you need to either kick the kids out of home or extend your garage.

ReplyLeave a Reply   Follow Ghacks   Subscribe To Comment Rss Click here to cancel reply.

Name

Mail (will not be published)

Website

Notify me of followup comments via e-mail

Subscribe without commenting
E-Mail:

 Ghacks Technology Newsletter Ghacks Daily NewsletterRecent PostsGoogle to Block Per-Country Blogger BlogsAdd-on Compatibility Reporter Turned To Reporting Only Add-onAn Entertainment Boycott Is Not The Right WaySkype 5.8 For Windows ReleasedSpeed Clicker, Computer Aided Mouse ClicksMediaFire Download Links On Google Search Not Working AnymoreIncrease Your Dropbox Space By 4.5 Gigabyte
Follow This BlogGhacks Newsletter
RSS Feeds
Google+ Page
Facebook Fan Page
Twitter



Popular ArticlesData Recovery SoftwareDownload Youtube VideosFree Music PlayerFree Movie SitesHow to watch ABC TVGmail ToolsGoogle BrowserJqs.exeMicrosoft Windows UpdateOpen DocxRapidshare SearchWatch TV with your PCWeb ProxyWindows Backup SoftwareWindows DefenderPopular SearchesOrkut LoginGmail Login PageGoogleupdate.exeFacebook LoginGmail Sign InMicrosoft Download ManagerInternet Explorer 8 DownloadYoutube VideosGmail LoginPlugin-container.exeMicrosoft Security EssentialsOpera Add-onsAtiedxx.exeHotmail loginSkypepm.exePopular TagsBackupEmailFacebookFirefoxGoogleGoogle ChromeInternet ExplorerLinuxLoginMicrosoftOperaSecuritySoftwareWindowsWeb BrowserWindows SoftwareTopicsBrowsingGoogle ChromeIEOperaCompaniesAdobeAmazonAppleFacebookMicrosoftYahooDesktop ManagerEntertainmentCoolFunnyGamesGadgetsGhacksGoogleHardwareiPodKnowledgeMobile ComputingNotebooksMobilesGoogle AndroidiPhoneNokiaMusic And VideoMusic IndustryNetworksServerOnline ServicesOpen SourceOperating SystemsP2PSearch EnginesSecuritySpywareThe WebTroubleshootingTutorialsWeb DevelopmentLinksWindows 7Windows 8Login HelperA Tech Girl's LifeAppnewsAsk VGBrothersoft BlogCypherhacksConnected InternetDonation CoderDottechFreeware GeniusNew Bits On The BlogOne Tip A DayRarstRaymond.ccAbout Ghacks

Ghacks is a technology news blog that was founded in 2005 by Martin Brinkmann. It has since then become one of the most popular latest tech news sites on the Internet with five authors and regular contributions from freelance writers.

ServicesTech SearchArchivesAuthors Martin Brinkmann
Melanie Gross
Mike Halsey
Ryan D. Lang
Jack Wallen

© 2005-2012 Ghacks.net. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy - About Us

View the original article here