Tablets

RIM: We'll market the BlackBerry PlayBook to consumers, too

The BlackBerry PlayBook is barely even a prototype and there's already speculation about who exactly will pay for the 7-inch tablet. Will it be business users taking advantage of RIM's secure e-mail and corporate IT policies? Or will it be consumers in the market for a powerful, attractive tablet?

A spokesperson for BlackBerry-maker RIM shared some insight with us, noting that RIM is likely to heavily target consumers in its PlayBook marketing.

From the very beginning, BlackBerry-maker RIM has positioned the PlayBook as a dual-demographic device that can satisfy business requirements as well as consumer needs. The specs, … Read more

Windows tablets delayed until 2011? Remember, they're already here

[Note: Updated below with a new gallery of currently available Windows tablets and slates.]

There's much online chatter at the moment about a financial analyst's prediction that there won't be any tablet computers that run Microsoft Windows until mid-2011. According to Jefferies & Co. analyst Katherine Egbert, says businessinsider.com, it's simply an impossible task right now:

Windows 7 is currently not supported on Qualcomm's popular SnapDragon processor, and Intel's low power Oak Trail processor (part of the Atom family) for tablets is not due out until March 2011. Microsoft could introduce Windows-based tablets … Read more

Report: Dell's 7-inch tablet due in 'next few weeks'

Dell will unveil its second Android tablet in the next few weeks, this one sporting a 7-inch screen. And a 10-inch model could arrive sometime in 2011.

The new tablet's debut was confirmed by Dell Greater China President Amit Midha in a Wall Street Journal interview published today. The news follows CEO Michael Dell's appearance last week at Oracle World in which he teased the audience with a brief glimpse of a 7-inch tablet but was mum on any details.

"It was showed off at Oracle World by Michael last week and we'll be launching very, … Read more

Leaked: Is this the HP Slate 500?

We've gotten our hands on a handful of leaked photos of what is purportedly the upcoming HP Slate 500 tablet. Following on the hands-on video found on YouTube last week, this is the second recent appearance of a Windows version of this much-delayed tablet.

These pics, courtesy of a tip provided to our pals at Buzz Out Loud, show a tablet running Windows 7, along with a docking stand (with USB and HDMI ports), and a leather-like case with a hole cut in it for the rear-facing camera.

If anything, these recent leaks of a Win 7 version of … Read more

Digital City 98: NYC Maker Faire highlights, why we keep our phones longer, and Gilt obsession

We ventured out into the real world this week, with Scott and Joey trekking out to Queens to attend the NYC version of the Maker Faire, and coming back with a slideshow of exotic DIY inventions.

A new study shows we're all keeping our mobile phones longer than ever--is it because they've gotten so good that we want to hold onto them, or because we're locked into onerous multiyear contracts? Later, Dan recalls the moment of horror he experienced last week, when he realized every single item of clothing he was wearing came from super-hot private shopping start-up Gilt.com.

In you're keeping count, we're only two weeks away from the big 100th episode special! Be sure to tune in for all sorts of surprises and giveaways, including the ultimate video game T-shirt collection and the long-awaited downloadable Digital City theme song MP3.

RIM makes a tablet play

SAN FRANCISCO--RIM put the rest of the world on notice that it's not just a boring, yet eminently reliable, buttoned-up smartphone maker anymore.

As was widely rumored, RIM did unveil its first non-smartphone device today at the opening keynote event at its DevCon developer conference here. The company is calling it the PlayBook.

The PlayBook is aimed at people who do more work than play--RIM's calling it "the first professional tablet"--but the company is certainly not ignoring the world outside of the office. In fact, even though RIM is playing very heavily to its reliable, … Read more

BlackBerry PlayBook, first impressions

Judging from the number of times the words "professional" and "uncompromising" came up during today's Research In Motion announcement, we think it's fair to say the PlayBook isn't positioned to take on Apple as a budget alternative to the iPad. Instead, RIM's BlackBerry PlayBook is poised to attack the iPad on the basis of specs, such a 1GHz dual-core processor, 1GB of RAM, micro-HDMI output, symmetrical dual-core processing, and support for 1080p HD video playback. It also features both rear-facing (5MP) and front-facing (3MP) cameras, capable of HD video recording and still photos.

The PlayBook also distinguishes itself from other tablets with its size, featuring a 7-inch screen (1,024x600) that falls right between the iPad's 9.7-inch screen and the 5-inch screen of the Dell Streak. In all, the PlayBook's dimensions measure 5.1 inches tall, 7.6 inches wide, and 0.4 inch thick, weighing just under a pound.

On the software end, the PlayBook runs an OS designed from the ground up by BlackBerry, which is compatible with a number of BlackBerry services and apps. The BlackBerry tablet OS also supports Adobe Flash 10.1, WebKit, Java, Open GL, and Adobe Air. Supported video formats include H.264, MPEG4, and WMV, up to 1080p HD resolution (scaled down to the screen's lower native resolution).

Though it seemingly isn't required for users to have a BlackBerry smartphone to use the PlayBook, it certainly doesn't hurt. Existing BlackBerry users can pair with the PlayBook over Bluetooth to provide them with a secure gateway to connect with their BlackBerry e-mail, contacts, calendar, and tasks. In theory, pairing with a BlackBerry phone also allows the PlayBook to take advantage of the phone's cellular data connection for surfing the Web or streaming media, though carriers have yet to weigh in on how far users can take this tethering capability. On its own, the PlayBook features an integrated 802.11 a/b/g/n Wi-Fi connection.

With all of these specs, the PlayBook has rocketed to the top of our list of the iPad's most legitimate contenders. Of course, there are a number of details RIM neglected to mention that may make the tablet a nonstarter. … Read more

RIM introduces BlackBerry PlayBook tablet (live blog)

Editor's note: We used Cover It Live for this event, so if you missed the live blog, you can still replay it in the embedded component below. Replaying the event will give you all the live updates along with commentary from our readers and CNET editors Donald Bell, Jessica Dolcourt, Nicole Lee, and Josh Lowensohn. For those of you who just want the updates, we've included them in regular text here. To get the key points from today's announcement, you can check out our summary of what got announced, in our story here. We've also embedded a short video clip of the PlayBook's introduction.

SAN FRANCISCO--A developer conference can be kind of a snooze for non-programmer folks, but Research In Motion had some rather interesting news to reveal today. After a smattering of reports of an impending BlackBerry tablet hit this spring and summer, RIM took the opportunity during its keynote address at RIM DevCon to show off the BlackBerry PlayBook, which it calls the first professional tablet.

Transcript of live blog starts here:… Read more

HP's Bradley: We're not trying to be Apple

SAN FRANCISCO--Hewlett-Packard is going through a lot of changes as it searches for a new CEO and digests Palm's Web OS, but don't expect it to follow Apple's lead.

"Emulating Apple is not part of our strategy," said HP's Todd Bradley, executive vice president in charge of the company's consumer products division, at TechCrunch Disrupt 2010. Bradley was being asked about whether or not its purchase of Palm's WebOS earlier this year was done in hopes of creating a portfolio of portable devices with unique packages of hardware and software, much like … Read more

Kno hedging bets with single screen tablet

Kno, which showed off a fancy dual-screen tablet for education earlier this year, said today that it also has plans for a cheaper, single-screen option.

The company is aiming at the education market and had touted the two-screen option as a great way to read and take notes at the same time. However, in announcing the new model on Monday, the company acknowledged that the added glass also adds cost to a product aimed at a cost-sensitive market.

"Even though the Kno pays for itself in 13 months, the smaller up-front investment of the single screen version will allow … Read more