Blackberry users all over the country are buzzing about The PlayBook. With its April 19th release almost upon us, it’s finally time to see how the PlayBook stacks up against the market-crushing iPad. The PlayBook will be released with similar storage capacity and pricing to the iPad, so the choice between the two won’t be financially based. PlayBooks will be available in:
- 16 GB – $499.00 USD
- 32 GB – $599.00 USD
- 64 GB – $699.00 USD
So if the playing field is the same in pricing, let’s take a look at where the decisions will be made.
Mobile Apps
Everyone is talking about apps. The new killer app seems to be “any app” at this point, due to the deep market penetration of everything this side of Angry Birds. The PlayBook is hitting a home run here by running apps currently usable on the Android platform, as well as Blackberry apps. While significantly better than starting from scratch, the iPad still has a huge lead over Android in the app department, and there is no reason to believe this will change anytime soon.
Email and Internet Access
RIM went in a strange direction when it comes to Internet Access and Email on the PlayBook. It actually doesn’t do either. The PlayBook released in April will have Wi-Fi capability, but will be unable to access the Internet on its own. RIM is providing a software bridge, appropriately called BlackBerry Bridge, which will allow tethering between the PlayBook and a Blackberry smartphone and give the device access to a cellular network. Once the bridge is in place, web browsing and messaging is possible. Some email functionality passes through to the PlayBook, however it’s really not much more than an advanced sync function. An email can be received on the smartphone, be pulled onto the PlayBook for editing, then sent back via the smartphone. For mail that must leave the Blackberry Enterprise Server, RIM suggests using a web-based client. This isn’t much of an answer for email needs, and if your business doesn’t use a Blackberry Enterprise Server, it’s the web or nothing.
For consumers this may look like an unnecessary pain to set up, but for corporate IT departments it offers a higher level of control than might otherwise be possible. Businesses already running the Blackberry Enterprise Server will be able to set independent controls on PlayBooks that are connecting to their network via the tethering system. The bridge will also allow IT managers to send direct commands to the PlayBook via the Blackberry Enterprise Server, potentially offering easier and faster support to the end user.
Security
With a 256-bit encrypted Bluetooth connection, data passing between the smartphone and the PlayBook is well protected. In addition, Ryan Bidan, RIM’s senior product manager for PlayBook spoke specifically on security saying, “IT managers using BES (Blackberry Enterprise Server) would be able to control how long information is cached on a PlayBook, and that control would extend to sensitive contact information that a company wants to protect. When the PlayBook is out of range of a BlackBerry smartphone, the cache could be set to immediately deplete any data on the PlayBook or the IT shop could dictate that the data remain there for hours, days or even weeks”. This level of control may be just what businesses are looking for, and is certainly a huge selling point to any company already using the Blackberry Enterprise Server.
Size
Weighing in at 0.9 pounds, the PlayBook offers a seven inch screen. By way of comparison, the iPad weighs 1.5 pounds and sports a 9.7 inch screen. If you are looking for a larger screen, then obviously the iPad is the choice – but tablets are about mobility, and the PlayBook is clearly aware of that.
From the looks of things it would appear that the iPad is in no danger of being unseated as the consumer tablet champ, but after looking closely at the PlayBook, this may not have been RIM’s intention. Clearly targeting the business market, the PlayBook brings a lot to the table – especially considering many businesses are already running the Blackberry Enterprise Server. If you already have the BES, then the PlayBook might be just what you are looking for. If you’re a consumer, the iPad will probably offer a more satisfying experience.
About the Author:
Jon T. Norwood is a managing partner at Broadband Internet, a site dedicated to providing information on Mobile Broadband News. Jon can be reached at jon@velocityguide.com.
