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Neon Tommy - Annenberg digital news

RIM's PlayBook Beats iPad, Galaxy Tab Tech Specs

Daniel Lee |
September 28, 2010 | 4:43 p.m. PDT

Staff Reporter

Blackberry's PlayBook.
Blackberry's PlayBook.
On Monday, Research In Motion's CEO Mike Lazardis announced the upcoming release of the Blackberry-maker's new tablet, the PlayBook. In direct competition with Apple's iPad and Samsung's Galaxy Tab, this impressive newcomer has the capacity to have a significant presence in the tablet battle.

In terms of hardware, the PlayBook has an overwhelming advantage over both the iPad and the Tab. To begin with, the 5 megapixel camera on the back and 3 megapixel camera on the front marks a distinct difference between its competitors.

With Samsung's offering nearly half the resolution (3.0 megapixels back, 1.3 megapixels front) and the iPad lacking any cameras, there is no doubt about the PlayBook's superiority. To make matters worse for the two, it can also record 1080p HD Video, with a complementing built-in microHDMI port for viewing on a television.

Getting more technical, the PlayBook has a dual-core 1Ghz processor, as opposed to the 1Ghz single-core processor offered by both the Tab and the iPad, giving it an edge in processing power.

RIM's new device also boasts 1GB RAM and Adobe Flash support, while the iPad has only a quarter of the RAM and no flash support, and the Tab half the RAM and also offering Flash support. The support for Flash implies a much wider variety of functions that the iPad doesn't have, a weakness that both the PlayBook and Tab exploit.

All three devices possess similar internal storage capacities, screen resolution, and 3G capabilities. However, RIM has promised for 4G support in the future and the iPad does not support Smartphone tethering, an increasingly desired feature. In addition, the Tab can use external memory in the form of microSD cards up to 32GB, while whether the PlayBook will have it or not is still unknown.

Although many things were revealed at the Blackberry developer conference, there were also questions left unanswered. We still don't know the price range of the PlayBook, which will be crucial in its performance against competition, and the battery life is still a mystery.

For now, on paper, it seems that RIM's PlayBook will be able to beat out the current undisputed leader of tablets, the iPad. However, there will be an initial lack of cellular support, and we still don't know if the new Blackberry mobile OS will be up to par with that of Apple's.

Up until now, what has really brought in the public's money is the iPad's extremely user-friendly operating system and sleek design. On top of that, there are rumors of a redesigned iPad to be released in 2011, and if this along with the rumored spring release of the PlayBook are true, it may struggle to come out ahead in the tablet race.

But who knows? RIM's line of Blackberry phones has always been of high-quality, and undoubtedly the PlayBook will be no less. If it lives up to its hype, maybe for once Apple won't come out on top.

To reach reporter Daniel Lee, click here.

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