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RIM BlackBerry PlayBook (QNX 2.0)

6.7 Verge Score 8.7 User Score Write Review
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Verge Review

When we reviewed the BlackBerry PlayBook back in April, we couldn’t help feeling the device’s insides didn’t match its outsides. The PlayBook is a well-built, good-looking device, but its software was buggy, frustrating, and frankly unfinished. There was no email or calendar app (yes, really), and few apps of any kind to speak of. PlayBook 2.0, a software update released this week, is RIM’s attempt to solve many of those problems. It adds email, calendar, and contact apps, finally...

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Basic Specs

Thickness 0.4 inches
Weight 0.9 pounds
Screen size (diagonal) 7 inches
Operating system QNX
RAM size 1 GB

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Recent Discussions

No recent discussions about RIM BlackBerry PlayBook (QNX 2.0).

Tech Specs

Hardware

Height 7.6 inches
Width 5.1 inches
Thickness 0.4 inches
Weight 0.9 pounds
Color Black
Speakers Stereo

Display

Screen size (diagonal) 7 inches
Technology LCD
Resolution (X) 1024 px
Resolution (Y) 600 px
PPI 170
Touchscreen type Capacitive
Multitouch Yes

Software

Operating system QNX
Notable apps Blackberry Bridge, Android app virtualization

Processor

Clock speed 1 GHz
Cores 2

Memory

RAM size 1 GB

Storage

Internal size 16 GB, 32 GB, 64 GB

Connectivity

Wi-Fi Yes
Wi-Fi support 802.11n, 802.11g, 802.11b, 802.11a
GPS Yes
Bluetooth Yes
Bluetooth version 2.1 + EDR

Front Camera

Effective pixels 3 megapixels
Video resolution 1080p

Rear Camera

Effective pixels 5 megapixels
Digital zoom 4 x
Focus type Fixed
Video resolution 1080p

Ports

Video out Yes
Headphone 3.5mm
Data connections Micro HDMI, Micro USB

Sensors

Sensors Proximity, Ambient Light, Gyroscope, Compass / Magnetometer, Accelerometer

Battery

Capacity 5300 mAh
Removable No
Quoted use time 11 hr

Recent Discussions

No recent discussions about RIM BlackBerry PlayBook (QNX 2.0).

8.7

Average User Review

of 6 total reviews
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  • Design 9
  • Display 9
  • Camera(s) 8
  • Speakers 10
  • Performance 9
  • Software 8
  • Battery life 9
  • Ecosystem 6
  • Dock 8

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  • 9.0
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    Reviewed by tehAnonymous (Currently owns)

    April 24, 2013 07:00 pm

    Well worth it for what it's been selling at.

    The speakers are just the best I've ever had on any tablet so far. Performance is mediocre but that is expected from such an old device running a not-so-recent OMAP 4430. Ecosystem is lacking indeed but with the ability to sideload android apps from OS 2.0 onwards, It has gotten much easier. It does have quite a lot of good games though (along with the euphoric emulators! :D).

    All in all, Everything is extremely good except for the following
    1) Boot-up time. This thing takes horrendously long time to boot but runs rather well afterwards.
    2) Limited Ecosystem.
    3) No bluetooth file transfer.
    4) Browser gets extremely laggy with intense pages (side-effect of having flash enabled).
    5) Keyboard, It gets quite laggy at times.

    The Breakdown

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    • Design 10
    • Display 8
    • Camera(s) 8
    • Speakers 10
    • Performance 8
    • Software 8
    • Battery life 10
    • Ecosystem 6
    • Dock 10
    Show the rest of this review and the breakdown
  • 8.0
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    Reviewed by JRAtk027 (Currently owns)

    September 4, 2012 05:18 am

    You can pick this up for £130 in the UK at PC World (64gb version) and this is a tremendous deal for such a good device. It does have it's drawbacks, but all in all, it's an amazing piece of kit.
    I don't think the Verge gave it the full score that it deserves, but at the same time, it does not deserve the perfect 10 that other user-reviews have given it.
    I think it's great. The UI is fantastic, and this is coming from an Android fan - it is simply the best UI I have ever used.
    The ecosystem isn't great, but it is improving, and with RIM promising support up to BB OS10, it certainly deserves some credit.
    The cameras are great, but I've docked few points for grainy video. They aren't perfect, but they easily trump the Ipad's measly offering.
    The speakers are VERY good. simple as that
    The display looks good, but the PPI isn't as good as the Ipad, so I've knocked a few points off.
    The design is personal preference. I'd give it a 10/10 for it's "stealthy" look, but others might not like this, hence the 8/10.
    Overall, fantastic tablet.

    The Breakdown

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    • Design 8
    • Display 8
    • Camera(s) 8
    • Speakers 9
    • Performance 8
    • Software 9
    • Battery life 8
    • Ecosystem 6
    Show the rest of this review and the breakdown
  • 10.0
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    Reviewed by ti994apc (Currently owns)

    June 8, 2012 04:31 am

    I have every major devise out there. Because of the review done by this website "THE VERGE". I would NOT take anything they review serious and consider this a major FAIL by THE VERGE. The Playbook QNX OS is the very BEST operating system, user interface, and Browser available today. If you ask anyone who has used an IPAD3 and Playbook for a week, they will almost always like the Playbook not just a little but much better. The Playbook UI makes Apple IOS seem like its an older generation.

    The Breakdown

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    • Design 10
    • Display 9
    • Camera(s) 9
    • Speakers 10
    • Performance 10
    • Software 8
    • Battery life 10
    • Ecosystem 10
    • Dock 10
    Show the rest of this review and the breakdown
  • 10.0
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    Reviewed by khomikh (Currently owns)

    April 13, 2012 06:32 pm

    have it for 6 month. Love it. All negative press about Playbook is totally untrue. Number os apps available so many. What apple did to New IPAD, Blackberry did it right in the beginning. The only limmitation i have experienced is p2p vpn not being supported. Love my Playbook. I wish i would get at least 32 GB one. Mine is 16 GB and it adds very fast when you download music and photos and magazines and newspapers

    The Breakdown

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    • Design 10
    • Display 9
    • Camera(s) 9
    • Performance 9
    • Battery life 10
    • Ecosystem 10
    • Dock 1
    Show the rest of this review and the breakdown
  • 6.0
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    Reviewed by Gandalthewhite (Previously owned)

    March 29, 2012 11:40 am

    Although I may not be a developer, I managed to snag one of the free PlayBooks offered by RIM to app developers. I’ve been using it over the past couple of days, and can sum up the experience in one sentence: it is more powerful than the iPad, but not as usable. The multitasking power of the PlayBook is amazing. It runs on a TI OMAP 4 processor similar to the Galaxy Nexus. The OS is usually very smooth, and video playback looks great on the screen. Flash video plays just as smoothly as on my laptop, and I’ve run flash video in the background while running another app - and I can switch back and forth without a hint of lag. However, once you start using the PlayBook a bit more, you discover odd slowdowns and sluggishness that doesn’t fit the tablet’s hardware. Some system menus struggle to scroll, and while web browsing is usually a slick experience, it tends to reload a lot as you scroll around and zoom in. Yes, app selection is a problem. What’s the use of amazing multitasking if you have no apps to multitask? RIM, your YouTube app is fairly horrendous. Just saying. The apps that are available and good, such as Asphalt 6, run fast and look great. The rear camera is fairly blurry, though colors are represented well enough. Video recording is better than the picture taking. 1080p for the win! The virtual keyboard is quite excellent, and I’m writing the entirety of the review on the tablet. In conclusion, the PlayBook is fun and fast until you run out of apps to amuse yourself with. However, if you hate apps or intend to type on it a lot, the PlayBook is the $200 tablet for you.

    The Breakdown

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    • Design 8
    • Display 8
    • Camera(s) 6
    • Speakers 9
    • Performance 8
    • Software 4
    • Battery life 6
    • Ecosystem 1
    Show the rest of this review and the breakdown
  • 9.0
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    Reviewed by theHip (Currently owns)

    March 21, 2012 01:37 pm

    I know a lot of you will see this review and be like, what the hell is this guy talking about, or say that I am a BlackBerry fanboy, but I truly believe this is a great tablet. The fact that RIM released it so early with a lot of features missing was a huge mistake, but now that 2.0 is out I use the PlayBook so much more. (All they need to do now is get BBM on here)
    The only thing that the iPad has on the PlayBook is apps, and iCloud (but one could argue that iCloud is a separate product), and a bigger screen I guess. If that is your thing.

    -The PlayBook hardware is fantastic.
    -The QNX operating system is amazing.
    -The gestures really give the PlayBook a unique and fun experience.
    -The native mail/calendar/contact apps integrate so well with each other, it actually blows my mind.
    -PlayBook features the best multitasking of any tablet.
    -The display is great, watching movies look awesome.
    -I love that I can do HDMI out and use my phone as a remote.
    -The one thing that really sucks is the app ecosystem. It is slowly getting better as more and more apps are added each day, and the fact that you can put Android apps on it helps.

    Don't listen to what the haters are saying and just try it out for yourself. Everyone is talking doom and gloom for RIM, and I think right now the negative talk spreading like wildfire is what is hurting them the most, because RIM is starting to do things right for once. I know probably about 8 other PlayBook owners and they all love it. Even my roommate who has an iPhone and an iPad is surprised at what the PlayBook can do.

    The Breakdown

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    • Design 7
    • Display 9
    • Camera(s) 8
    • Speakers 10
    • Performance 10
    • Software 10
    • Battery life 10
    • Ecosystem 4
    • Dock 10
    Show the rest of this review and the breakdown
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