BlackBerry maker Research In Motion (RIM) has announced that their playbook will be sell under $500.Now, with iPads and Galaxy Tabs playing in the $400 up to $900 range, it really defines the 7-inch niche for tablets against other competitors.RIM unveiled the PlayBook tablet in September to take on Apple’s iPad. It will hit the market early next year.
Co-Chief Executive Officer Jim Balsillie confirmed that the PlayBook will be available in the US market by the first quarter of 2011, and then move on to global markets by the second quarter. This may be a good move since they did not disclose any pricing point in their last event when they presented the PlayBook.
BlackBerry’s PlayBook tablet will stand apart from Apple’s iPad for not only its size – it has a seven-inch display as against iPad’s 9.7 inches, but also its Adobe Flash for running video and graphic works. Apple has shunned Flash.
Even though RIM has posted 20 per cent growth in the last quarter and is close to reaching 60 million BlackBerry subscribers worldwide, the outlook for the Canadian iconic company has been clouded as Apple has overtaken it in smart phone sales worldwide.
The Wi-Fi only Playbook is already comparable to the pricing of a 16 GB WiFi iPad, so the $500 or below (maybe a penny or a buck below) is sensible. This can put pressure on the 7-inch 3G Samsung Galaxy Tab which goes on sale under Verizon tomorrow for $599.99.
