14 DAY TRIAL // Canadian mobile phone maker Research In Motion should bring to the market during the ongoing year its first tablet PC, the BlackBerry PlayBook, which is expected to become one of the most popular devices of the kind in 2011.
Some of the latest predictions on the device suggested that it might ship a number of one million units during the first quarter alone, although it should arrive on shelves only in March.
The tablet PC is expected to appeal a lot to BlackBerry users, especially since it would come with a series of features and services that would connect it with the BlackBerry handsets.
To be more precise, users would have to sync the PlayBook with their BlackBerry devices in order to take full advantage of their email, calendars and memos.
Although it is an appealing device, the “PlayBook is not a fully standalone device,” Current Analysis Research Director Avi Greengart writes in a research note, adding: “it is astonishing that RIM would go this route.”
But RIM disagrees. The company says that it designed the PlayBook so that it would prove a great device for all users, whether BlackBerry owners or not.
“On its own, this is a great standalone tablet,” said Ryan Bidan, a RIM senior product manager in charge of the PlayBook, in an interview, a recent article on Forbes reads. “This is not a device that is reliant on a BlackBerry.”
“Some people view tablets as an extension of the mobile experience,” he says. “Some think it’s an extension of the laptop experience. We want to build a platform that meets both of those needs.”
Basically, it means that anyone would be able to purchase a new PlayBook, and Bidan notes that it can be easily used as any other Wi-Fi tablet PC.
However, the tight connection between the two is not denied. Alec Taylor, RIM’s vice president of product marketing for business alliances, explains that the PlayBook could easily prove a great option for businesses already using BlackBerry, as it would allow for keeping sensitive information on these devices.