It's here - the PlayBook from BlackBerry maker RIM has launched in India two months after it was released in the USA on April 19.
The much anticipated PlayBook - a strong contender for the iPad's alpha tablet title - has received mixed reviews across the world. While it is intuitive to use with innovative swipe gestures, it lacks a good app ecosystem and does not support email without connecting to a BlackBerry smartphone. However, RIM has announced that updates will be available by the end of this year which will bring in support for email and Android applications.
The QNX powered tablet has a multi-touch enabled 7-inch screen with a resolution of 1024x600. It features a 1GHz Cortex A9 dual-core processor that enables the tablet to support full HD video. The device also features a front and rear facing camera and a micro USB and HDMI out. And there's the Facebook app - the Playbook is the only tablet to have this.
Another important feature of the device is the BlackBerry Bridge. It can seamlessly sync any BlackBerry smartphone to the tablet and gain access to all contacts, messages, mail and more.
The PlayBook also comes pre-loaded with some India specific apps which include Bridal, Commix On The Go, TV On The Go, Bollywood Hungama and Cooking With Tarla Dalal.
The PlayBook will be available in 16 GB, 32 GB and 64 GB versions. It will be priced at Rs. 27,990, Rs. 32,990 and Rs. 37,990 respectively. (
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BlackBerry's Playbook is the second major contender to the iPad 2 to launch in India after the Acer A500, which is an Android Honeycomb based tablet. Future competition will launch in the shapes of the Motorola Xoom and the HTC Flyer.