Engadget has put up a fairly extensive hands-on with the Blackberry Playbook, and if you watch it you have to be fairly impressed. It's actually hard to believe that Research in Motion is the company behind this new iPad competitor, but it seems they are getting a lot out of their purchase of the QNX software platform. These types of hands-on demos can often be more impressive than actually using the device extensively when they come to market, but QNX is a fairly well-established platform in terms of reliability and performance, and RIM has never suffered in making quality hardware when they have the right idea. The basic interface for the Playbook looks like a copy of HP Palm WebOS, which is a great thing if you take note of what we had to say about WebOS 2.0. This will likely set up a real question for HP Palm when they introduce new devices in February. If another platform has emulated your compelling interface, what is the main selling point of WebOS?
If the Playbook delivers on this promise, it will still face a number of issues in the next year. They have to hit their stated mark of shipping a WiFi version in the first quarter. When they do, it will be interesting to see how it's marketed, since the only 3G connectivity will be through Blackberry phones, an odd combination and one that may not speak to the masses and the types of people who might buy iPads. If you have a Blackberry, is that brand likely to push you towards a multimedia device by the same company? Engadget also reports that Sprint is set to carry a 4G WiMax version of the Playbook in the Q2 of 2010, which seems a little late to start pushing a connected version of the device. Hitting those dates will be crucial.
Even if they do ship on time, however, this all has to be looked at in context of the upcoming Android tablets and, more importantly, the second generation of the iPad. Apple will likely have a second iPad out in March or April and will have a more refined product and approach on top of massive market recognition. As impressive as the Playbook looks now, will it still seem as flashy when the new iPad is introduced? Palm fell into a similar situation in 2009 when they impressed everyone with the Pre and WebOS, only to be lost in the shuffle when the iPhone 3GS came out around the same time with drastically improved performance. RIM's partner relationships should enable them to get the Playbook on more carriers quickly, but the question will probably be how quickly.
Finally, if nothing else, Apple has proven that an ecosystem is important. The synergy of their iPhone with iPad and the rest of their line of products is a compelling reason for consumers to continue buying Apple products. If RIM can't get their smartphones remotely competitive, it will hurt the use-case for a tablet that is partially designed as a Blackberry companion. Now that dual-core processors are in phones here at CES, where is RIM to bring QNX to their phones as promised? They can't afford to wait much longer. The Playbook certainly looks like a good device, but it takes more than just being "good" to survive in the rapidly-accelerating mobile space.