This one comes with a health warning: even if the leaked screenshot above is legit, it’s easy to over-interpret. Nevertheless, it purports to show the account setup page from BlackBerry Tablet OS 2.0 and it distinctly lacks any option to sync with BlackBerry Enterprise Server or Internet Service. Instead, you’re able to configure Exchange/Active Sync, IMAP, POP, CalDAV and CardDAV accounts, which suggests that RIM is switching to the same integrated email, contacts and calendar solutions as everyone else. Of course, it could be that the BES/BIS simply isn’t enabled on this particular device, or that it’ll be added in a later version of the OS. Then again, we can’t help but recall those Colt rumors which also hinted that RIM’s in-house service would be incompatible with QNX.
Another juicy tidbit: a second screen shot after the break reveals a green robot icon in the far left. So, even if its Android integration has been delayed, at least it hasn’t been forgotten.
One of the biggest gripes from BlackBerry users is the lack of apps, which is why RIM hopes to boost sales by adding Android compatibility in future devices — DroidBerry, anyone? According to Bloomberg, sources familiar with the matter say RIM may add support for Android apps on future QNX-based devices, enabling access beyond RIM’s relatively limited App World. The feature is said to go live in the QNX-powered PlayBook tablet by the end of the year, but there’s no word yet whether the 2012 line-up of QNX phones will get a Google-friendly makeover. Rumor has it that anyone who bought the most recent batch of BlackBerrys won’t get to have a taste of Gingerbread, Honeycomb or any other mouth-watering Android flavor for that matter. Guess they’ll have to settle for plain old vanilla.
Whoa there, RIM — not so fast. Despite an earlier commitment from Sprint, the Wall Street Journal reports that the Now Network has cancelled its plans to bring WiMAX to the BlackBerry PlayBook, leaving Research in Motion to continue selling WiFi-only models of the half-baked tablet. Sprint representatives cited poor adoption rates among business customers as one reason for the move to cancel PlayBook sales, along with an already crowded tablet market, also adding that the decision will have “no impact” on the carrier’s relationship with RIM. We can’t say that a WiMAX-capable PlayBook would have topped our back to school wish list, but this latest move is somewhat shocking nonetheless.
Update: RIM wrote in to share the following statement:
RIM has decided to prioritize and focus its 4G development resources on LTE. We remain excited and committed to delivering innovative and powerful 4G tablets to the US market together with our carrier partners. Testing of BlackBerry 4G PlayBook models is already underway and we plan to enter labs for network certifications in the US and other international markets this fall.
Gmail for mobile was looking a little tired around the eyes, so Google went ahead and gave the ol’ web app a cosmetic lift. The update, announced on the Gmail blog, packs a hat trick’s worth of tweaks aimed squarely at iOS and QNX (read: BB PlayBook) users. Email messages can now be manually refreshed with a top-down pull and release — a feature similar to Twitter’s own drag-down approach. The team also added a bit of finesse to inbox navigation with new sliding transitions, and even beefed up the graphical interface, taking full advantage of that Retina Display. Curious to see these tune-ups in action? Then head to the source for your own hands-on.
Screen Grabschronicles the uses (and misuses) of real-world gadgets in today’s movies and TV. Send in your sightings (with screen grab!) toscreengrabs at engadget dot com.
You know those pictures of smiling people and happy families that come with frames when you buy them from department stores? We’d like to submit this image from USA Network’s White Collar to RIM as a possible preloaded wallpaper, should it ever want to go in a dramatically different direction with its marketing for the PlayBook. Standard business customers are only so exciting. But white collar criminals and the people tasked with stopping them — now that’s where the action is. Side note to the gentleman on screen: you’re holding it wrong.
RIM previously announced that its PlayBook tablet would be able to run Android apps by the summer, but we’ve just heard something to the contrary. A reliable source told us that this highly anticipated feature of the BlackBerry slate now won’t arrive until “late fall.” With RIM struggling against ever-stronger competition, delays like this are bad news — the PlayBook needs this new lease of Android life as soon as possible.
RIM’s 7-inch PlayBook may be lovely to hold, and that gesture area along the bezel is downright genius, but the QNX-powered slate hasn’t had the easiest time taking on the likes of Samsung’s Galaxy Tab 10.1 and Apple’s iPad 2. Still, RIM’s following is amongst the most loyal in the industry, and those who wouldn’t leave the house sans a BlackBerry handset may have been inclined to give this guy a go. If that’s you, we’re overly interested in hearing how you’d do things differently. Would you have preferred a larger screen? Android app support right out of the box? A beefier software store? Go on and get creative in comments below — something tells us RIM isn’t exactly in a position to turn a deaf ear.
We’ve already seen the Android App Player leak out, and now the BlackBerry PlayBook has taken one more (unofficial) step towards being a full-fledged, psuedo-Android tablet. While it’s described as a “proof of concept,” the video above from CrackBerry forum member Lawguyman shows that the tablet is at least capable of running the Android Market and downloading apps, albeit with a few PlayBook-induced obstacles — check out the furious swiping around the 1:30 mark. Here’s hoping for a slightly more official solution before long.
A leaked version of RIM's Android app player running on a BlackBerry PlayBook. Photo: N4BB.com
RIM can’t seem to get its act together. First, it rushed the release of the BlackBerry PlayBook tablet, a product that many agreed felt unfinished. And this morning, the company accidentally released an incomplete version of its app player for running Android software.
PlayBook makers Research in Motion posted the Android application player to its website, allowing eager BlackBerry fans to download the app before its official release. The player was quickly taken down shortly thereafter, but not before a number of users downloaded the application. The N4BB website first reported the app player’s appearance.
A RIM spokesperson confirmed to Wired.com that the app player was posted in error, and that the version available isn’t what we’re going to see after its official release.
“We recommend that users refrain from downloading and installing this software since it is outdated and non-functional in many respects,” a RIM spokesperson said in a statement provided to Wired.com.
The BlackBerry PlayBook needs a Hail Mary to survive in today’s crowded tablet market. Dozens of newAndroid-poweredtablets have debuted this year, all of which are competing for customers who want an alternative to Apple’s tablet device. HP’s recent release of the TouchPad touts webOS, an underdog operating system still espoused by Palm evangelists. The iPad 2, of course, continues to dominate the industry, representing approximately 83 percent of all tablets shipped in 2010, according to research firm IDC.
The PlayBook also faces challenges on the application front. The PlayBook launched with over 3,000 apps, far more than Google’s current number of tablet-optimized apps (around 250), as well as HP’s (about 300). Apple’s tablet app selection remains far ahead of the pack at around 100,000.
So instead of putting all its eggs in bolstering BlackBerry App World — RIM’s app download store — RIM expects to boost its user base by attracting Android lovers with the Android app player.
Today’s accidental leak is the first we’ve seen of the Android app player since the company demoed a version at its BlackBerry App World in May. RIM recommended against downloading the Android app player.
Despite RIM’s pleas, many have already uploaded copies of the leaked application to file sharing web sites, allowing those who missed out to test the early version.
“I think they realize that their app store hasn’t really taken off,” said BlackBerry app developer Gurbir Sidhu in an interview with Wired.com. ”More developers are interested in Android apps, and there is more effort being put into Android development.”
Some say, however, that the Android application player may not be enough to save the PlayBook.
“Even with the Android app player, it does not support every app out there, and most apps still need to be ported over to work well,” Gartner mobile analyst Phillip Redman told Wired.com. “So though the intent is to open up [the PlayBook] to a wider variety of mobile apps, it will still be limited.”
Redman speaks to a larger issue in application development: Native versus ported apps. When an application is written in a native language — or a coding language created specifically for a particular operating system — the programs generally run smoother, faster and with less system hiccups. When an application is ported over to a non-native environment, reliability and performance isn’t always up to par.
“In the end, native apps work best on each device and I think this will have limited impact overall,” said Redman. “There are very nice Android tablets out there if a user wants to go that direction and get the best performance and choice.
Of course, the PlayBook has other issues to deal with in its uphill battle. The device still doesn’t have native e-mail, calendar and contacts applications — three items we’ve been promised would be coming since the PlayBook’s debut three months ago.
Whether or not the Android player attracts more users for RIM is a lingering question for after the program’s official release.
Hope, however, remains. Some who have downloaded the program early seem to enjoy the Android app player experience on the PlayBook, even using the early version.
“It’s a little early to make a judgement based on an early beta but it’s not bad,” wrote one early user on a BlackBerry enthusiast forum. “I’m actually surprised that any apps worked, pleasantly surprised too as it bodes well for sideloading apps in the future,” the user wrote.
The official beta release of the Android App Player for the BlackBerry PlayBook is scheduled for release later this summer, according to RIM.
Check out the video below for a demo of the Android app player running on the PlayBook.
If it’s going to try and compete in the tablet world, whether or not it wants to be known as the enterprise-friendly slate, RIM will have to step up its multimedia game. The company clearly understands this, that’s why it’s snatched up the online video-editing service JayCut. It’s obvious the startup’s expertise will be used to create a video editing app for the BlackBerry platform, but we wouldn’t be surprised to see some sort of sharing and cloud storage service built on top of it as well. Obviously we’re just speculating for now. Check out the brief announcement posts at the two source links.
This is site is run by Sascha Endlicher, M.A., during ungodly late night hours. Wanna know more about him? Connect via Social Media by jumping to about.me/sascha.endlicher.
