Jun 15, 2011 13:13 GMT  ·  By

BlackBerry PlayBook, the first tablet PC from the Canadian mobile phone maker Research In Motion, is now available for purchase in the UK at Selfridges, and is expected to become available nationwide as soon as tomorrow.

The tablet PC was unveiled to the world last year in September, but RIM did not make it available for purchase until only a few months ago in the United States.

Today, the device can be acquired in the UK as well, with all of its 7-inch goodness and with the new QNX-based Tablet OS that RIM packed it with.

The BlackBerry PlayBook was made available in three different flavors, based on the amount of internal memory they include.

The different versions of the device were made available for purchase at £399 for the 16GB version, £479 for 32GB and £559 for the 64GB variant.

This places the PlayBook better than the Android-based HTC Flyer, which runs under Android and sports the same 7-inch touchscreen display, but which is priced at £479 for 16GB.

RIM unveiled the PlayBook last year as its response to Apple's iPad, but was late with the actual release of the device on shelves, something that might hurt sales a lot.

The PlayBook is smaller than the iPad, and is also a generation behind now that Apple launched the second flavor of their tablet PC, which is available for only £399 as well.

However, RIM's device can still prove a great option for a wide range of users, including business customers who are accustomed with what the BlackBerry solution has to offer.

The PlayBook sports a dual-core application processor, complemented by the aforementioned amount of memory, and a microSD memory card slot for expanding the storage space.

Moreover, the device features dual-cameras, one placed on the front to enable video calling, along with WiFi and Bluetooth connectivity capabilities, GPS receiver, and the usual set of sensors.