Playbook

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Sparky_za

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Hi Guys

So I'm really keen on getting a Playbook. Just the 16GB WiFi model will suit my needs fine. Does anyone have a definite date that it will be available in stores? I know I could purchase it from the many online stores that do have stock, but from what I understand these are "grey" imports so I might struggle should something go wrong and I need to return it.
 
My dad has one and he couldn't be happier.

Not sure where he bought it from though.
 
Ok, just called the BB store in Vodaworld, and they said probably end of August :cry:

I hate waiting for gadgets... lol...
 
I got one from the UK and LOVE IT .... still early days for the PB so there's many new apps coming but as it is stands right now it works really well and has become a welcome extension to the Blackberry phone. Rim has been very forthcoming with updates and is also very eager to listen to what people have to say on their blog. They also released the SDK a few days ago so we're going to see lots of apps coming soon.

What I love most is how the Playbook bridges your email, contacts, calendar, tasks, memopad, bbm to your phone, they even have something called "Bridgebrowser" which allows you to browse through your BB phone and remain within BIS and not pay for any usage .... find me another tablet where that's true :D I use my BB and my my PB for work so I'm really not fussed about the lack of games. For me it is everything I hoped and thought it would be and I hope Vodacom will get their fingers out and bring them into SA quicker.
 
threegee said:
I got one from the UK and LOVE IT .... still early days for the PB so there's many new apps coming but as it is stands right now it works really well and has become a welcome extension to the Blackberry phone. Rim has been very forthcoming with updates and is also very eager to listen to what people have to say on their blog. They also released the SDK a few days ago so we're going to see lots of apps coming soon.

What I love most is how the Playbook bridges your email, contacts, calendar, tasks, memopad, bbm to your phone, they even have something called "Bridgebrowser" which allows you to browse through your BB phone and remain within BIS and not pay for any usage .... find me another tablet where that's true :D I use my BB and my my PB for work so I'm really not fussed about the lack of games. For me it is everything I hoped and thought it would be and I hope Vodacom will get their fingers out and bring them into SA quicker.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I'm also going to be using it for work. Taking notes in a meeting is going to be way easier on the PB for me, than on the 9700 I have. I'm not big on paper and pen. Paper goes missing and people steal my pens! lol. And the BridgeBrowser is the next biggest selling point. I'll also use it to read the odd book and watch a movie or two.

Tell me something, is it possible to see the memory card that's in my phone from the Playbook over the Bluetooth connection?
 
Currently there does not appear to be any way to access the SD card on the phone but I'm sure we'll be able to do that soon with some updates to Bridge.
 
threegee said:
Currently there does not appear to be any way to access the SD card on the phone but I'm sure we'll be able to do that soon with some updates to Bridge.
Click to expand...

Cool, thanks for the info. If the PB came with an SD slot that would have rounded it off perfectly for me, but hey, I think I'm still going to be happy with it as is!
 
Deciding between the 2 (Ipad 2 and PB).

Currently use both BB phone (for work) and Iphone (personal)

On the plus for PB - company is already using BES so think it will be reasonably easy to sync mails etc to PB (but then again because of my bb phone wont be using for work that often)

Ipad - Load of apps avail.

Not sure what to go with? What do suggest is the main benefits on PB comapred to Ipad 2
 
Pynet said:
Deciding between the 2 (Ipad 2 and PB).

Currently use both BB phone (for work) and Iphone (personal)

On the plus for PB - company is already using BES so think it will be reasonably easy to sync mails etc to PB (but then again because of my bb phone wont be using for work that often)

Ipad - Load of apps avail.

Not sure what to go with? What do suggest is the main benefits on PB comapred to Ipad 2
Click to expand...

To me, the biggest factor is the integration between my BB and the PB. I use my BB for literally everything. Having the larger screen of the PB, but the same functionality of my BB is top dog for me. And as stated above, the free browsing through the BB BIS service is just the cherry on top.
 
Sparky_za said:
To me, the biggest factor is the integration between my BB and the PB. I use my BB for literally everything. Having the larger screen of the PB, but the same functionality of my BB is top dog for me. And as stated above, the free browsing through the BB BIS service is just the cherry on top.
Click to expand...

+1 to that statement :)
 
Why is the Playbook not advertised on the Vodafone UK website? What does that say about Vodafone SA (Vodacom) local strategy regarding the release of the Playbook WiFi and/or 3G versions?
 
Like with any new device they take their time to cut through Vodafone/Vodacom red tape to bring it to SA. What's nice about the current version of the PB is that it is network independent. Does not matter what country you are in it will connect with your BB phone and just work. The trick is that the Phone does all the work and the Phone is the device that is linked to the BIS network, the Playbook just bridges that information across. So personally I think it's nothing more than red tape, shipping, customs and stocking stores before they say "hey it's here".
 
Sparky_za said:
To me, the biggest factor is the integration between my BB and the PB. I use my BB for literally everything. Having the larger screen of the PB, but the same functionality of my BB is top dog for me. And as stated above, the free browsing through the BB BIS service is just the cherry on top.
Click to expand...

Whoow free browsing through my BB is a winner. Is this easy to do (connect etc)? How is the apps on PB?
 
Very easy, you just install Blackberry Bridge on your phone (from appworld) then connect the two together ..... could take you the better part of 1-2 minutes to get it working :) Free browsing on a tablet is going to be a big deal clincher for many especially in SA where mobile bandwidth prices are still very steep. Of course there is limits to BIS but for everything I do I don't pay one cent and when I want to view a youtube video or download a file using the Playbook I do that using the WIFI browser.
 
Hi, I have been using my PB for over a month now in SA - JHB. Great tool, nice apps. I have the 32GB wifi version and upon first use i only had like 28GB useable on it... think carefully about what you want to to before you buy the 16GB.
Ask me anything, I have been waiting a year for the launch, all my mates got IPads and i waited it out and in the end, AWESOME!
 
napalmsniPer said:
Hi, I have been using my PB for over a month now in SA - JHB. Great tool, nice apps. I have the 32GB wifi version and upon first use i only had like 28GB useable on it... think carefully about what you want to to before you buy the 16GB.
Ask me anything, I have been waiting a year for the launch, all my mates got IPads and i waited it out and in the end, AWESOME!
Click to expand...

I'm not looking to store much on the PB itself. The odd movie to keep me entertained and mostly books. Other than that its primary function is just to make it easier to reply to emails and such using the BB Bridge to my 9700. I would say a 80/20 split between work/play.

Now if they would just hurry up and release it already!! I hate waiting...
 
Pynet, the apps are coming out daily for the PB, connection works well with BB Bridge and what I also find to work well is that if you connect your PB to your laptop it creates a "Shared" Z:\ drive so that you can copy data accross, no need for the Desktop software.... use it dont use it...
 
napalmsniPer said:
Pynet, the apps are coming out daily for the PB, connection works well with BB Bridge and what I also find to work well is that if you connect your PB to your laptop it creates a "Shared" Z:\ drive so that you can copy data accross, no need for the Desktop software.... use it dont use it...
Click to expand...

You don't even need to connect it via cable. Check the IP address on the PB, and got Start, Run, \\ipaddress from the PC.
 
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