As a CEO, it is vital that I have information readily accessible at all times. For quite some time though, it meant carrying around a laptop, a cellphone, folders, USB flash drives, hard drives and more. With the necessity to carry so many gadgets, I had to then remember to pack chargers, memory cards and more. Essentially, I needed an entire bag just for all of my gadgets! This seemed hardly convenient - more like inconvenient. The whole point of technology is to improve upon past technology by making it faster and smaller, not to add more gear.
In 2010 though, things finally changed. Cellphones became smartphones, convergence devices that could make calls but also take pictures and videos. Laptops became tablets, and everyone seemed to want in, with Apple making a huge splash with the iPad,
Then in 2010, Research In Motion (RIMM), announced the Blackberry Playbook -- another tablet coming to market to compete with the Apple juggernaut. While reviews made it sound surprisingly good (and who wouldn't want a Blackberry product, they make great devices for handling email), so far, I'm not sold. There are two main reasons why I'm not sold.
First, who wants an unfinished product? The device apparently ships without an email client. While RIMM promises an update shortly after, we all know what that means, we give them our greenbacks and wait for them to push out an update. For someone that makes such a great device for handling email, how can they not have an email client ready? That perplexes me.
Second, apps! What makes the Apple iPad so successful isn't the fact that it does so much more. Instead, it is the apps experience. Apple has some 350,000 apps while RIMM has well, a few thousand.
It seems like they're coming out with a band-aid for a product, just so they can keep people interested until their "real" product is ready. For most consumers, dropping $499 for a base model, unfinished product is a stretch. I plan on waiting it out - what about you?
Will you be picking up a Blackberry Playbook or do you already have a tablet that meets your needs? If so, which one and why did you choose it?
Leave a comment.
Keep growing. I believe in you.
JR
