When BlackBerry released the original PlayBook it had some curious issues. Native email, contacts and calendar apps were missing, the app store was barren, and the price matched the iPad at £399. BlackBerry has addressed all these problems in the PlayBook 2.0, making this budget tablet a far more appealing option. The PlayBook OS 2.0 operating system incorporates the missing apps, there are more apps to choose from, and the price has been cut aggressively. See also Group test: what's the best cheap tablet PC?
The BlackBerry PlayBook 2.0's 7in screen is housed in a metal casing with a rubberised back, which makes the device comfortable to grip. Everything about the PlayBook 2.0 feels solid and reliable, from the pair of front-facing speakers which produce impressive sound quality, to the compact and well balanced chassis that’s light enough to hold for extended periods but sturdy enough to withstand the occasional knock and drop. See all tablet reviews.
The BlackBerry tablet's 5Mp rear camera is decent for snapshots, but noise spoiled our test photos. Video is captured at 1080p; it's respectable, but not remarkable. Switching to the 3Mp front-facing camera gleans acceptable results for video calling, although the absence of a Skype app in BlackBerry's App World could make this feature redundant for some people (there are alternative video calling apps, though). Group test: What's the best tablet?
The PlayBook 2.0's standout feature is its screen. It displays a 1024x600 resolution, with vibrant colours and impressive detail. Viewing angles are also excellent - an important factor on a screen this small. The touchscreen is accurate, responsive, and we love the touch-sensitive bezel which lets you swipe in from beyond the screen's edge.
Swipe up from the BlackBerry PlayBook's bottom edge and you’re shown the active applications, swipe left and right to move through them and down to access settings. In use it’s fast, simple and one of the best navigation systems we’ve experienced.
The BlackBerry's battery life was better than any budget Android tablet we've seen; we recorded 8.5 hours in our looped movie test.
Our one gripe is the dearth of apps. Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, BBC iPlayer and several games apps are now available for the BlackBerry PlayBook 2.0, but if you want anything more than that - say Kindle, Skype, or decent RSS and podcast apps - then you're out of luck. This budget tablet also lacks a memory card slot, so you're stuck with just 16GB.
Read our original BlackBerry PlayBook 2.0 review on the next page.
Comments
awundrin said: I just purchased two Blackberry Playbooks 64GB for around 240 which I believe is a real steal My wife and I both love the Playbook Its fast smooth and easy to use The cameras are impressive One thing that really impresses me is the sound quality Its great and surprising for such a little tablet I like the 7 size and with FLASH on board this tablet is a much better buy than the bigger iPad thats heavy and doesnt have flash I can see myself enjoying this tablet for couple of years at least
Tjake2163 said: When I bought the BB PB back in Dec 11 I loved the speed but the playtoy features were very lacking It appeared very basic in nature and the os was severely lacking I sold both I had bought and wound up cm7 on refurbed nook colors A friend of mine is selling his old PB amp getting the new one So I am giving the PB another look with the newer os amp supposedly better app world I will inform as soon as I have another view of it
Disappointed said: Not a particularly professional reply Matt as an editor of a magazine and not one that would encourage me to read or rely upon other PCAdvisor reviews If a user complains that a reviewer has omitted factual information that is readily available if they care to dig just a little such as the 32GB and 64GB versions being available but commenting that 16GB seems limiting without mentioning these then as a writer myself I would consider this review as being shallow in terms of research by the writer and not particularly useful to the general tablet buying populace Your response should really be less disappointing and more pragmatic if you want to engender reader loyalty perhaps along the lines of well ensure future reviews by this writer are more balanced and in-depth rather than a dismissive youre entitled to your opinion It gives us your audience that you frankly dont give a toss about us Youd be a wiser man to remember that the readers are YOUR customers and we choose where we spend our reading money which pays your wages
CallMeCynical said: Not that anyone would ever be getting preferential treatment from certain advertisers No sure its all very objective NOT
Guy said: I dont get it - I really dont I bought the playbook for my wife mother and brother Its small fast and convenient The only thing Apple has on the Playbook is the number of applications for the IPAD - thats marketing only The Playbook is way better - you can put it in your pocket and in two seconds connect it to a TV with a HDMI cable 3 from Amazon
Matt Egan said: What detail has been missed We reviewed the 16gb version
Fixer1963 said: If you want more than 16GB I suggest you buy the 32GB model or maybe even the 64GB model When bloggers miss basic details such as this Who hasnt been in a retail store and seen the 3 models side by side it makes you wonder how much effort was put into researching the rest of the postPersonally I have a 64GB PlayBook Best purchase I made in technology last year
Matt Egan said: Thats totally irrelevant to this post and Im afraid I dont yet know enough about it to comment it being a US court case
Joel Jeremias said: httpwwwgmanetworkcomnewsifthey dowith the ebookswhy not do itwiththeir devicesThe suit citesthe lateco-founder ofApple SteveJobs whoreportedly saidWe will changeto a modelagencyfor whichyoupay attentionpricesand wecarry30 and yes consumerspay alittle more butthatswhat you wantanyway
Matt Egan said: Nope Im not a speaker on behalf of Apple I think the fact that Apple is now a 600bn company probably explains how users feel about Apple For the record I personally own one iPhone two Android tablets and a PlayBook And I am writing this on a Windows PC I get as annoyed as the next man about the deification of Apple but with respect youre projecting your bias on to me
Joel Jeremias said: you areaspeakerof the companyAppleSothisclearYou andmany if notrefer to theuserreviewson amazon ebay etc etcI saidusers notcommentators
Joel Jeremias said: Hablo espaol sera por eso y estoy en mi laptop ahahahahah
Matt Egan said: If I could understand your sentence I presume I would be insulted Fortunately a spider seems to have been crawling across your keyboard as you attempted to make sense By all means have another go
Joel Jeremias said: AsyoupayappleI found thatApplehasa monopoly onthe ballsofthe mediaand experts
Joel Jeremias said: Basic Web Browserthen theApple andAndroidbrowsersare a realwasteGarbageBecause theplaybookhas the bestnevagador the only thingisyou open your eyesIknow that a 499APPLEisoverratedPerhapsit is only fairand 199of thePB
Matt Egan said: Dont be sorry thats all good news A counter argument would be that you would be happier if you were installing apps - Apple smartphone and tablet owners install and use a lot more apps PC Advisor is visited by a lot more Android users but the iOS apps are used a lot more But if youre happy youre winning so who cares Im having a play with the PlayBook and will get around to writing a review In summary I must say that I do like it but it is limited when compared to the iPad or the better Android tablets
Jonathansmith709 said: Sorry but I had an iPad 2 and my daughter had the Sony s we both prefer the Playbook and the size is perfect yes it is short of apps compared to the other oss but how many apps does the average person use On my android phone not that many
Matt Egan said: Im using the PlayBook right now to find the positives Keep you posted But for the record that a single app has been better received on the PlayBook than it was on Android is not in itself newsworthy for PC Advisor Nice as it is to hear
Ed Coleridge said: httpappsburlockorgunexpeWhy doesnt PC Advisor report on the positives
Ed Coleridge said: Messaging My folderslabels appear just fine both google and hotmailApps Are coming RIM has signed up 6600 developers in the last 3 weeks and have a backlog of thousands of apps yet to be introduced I agree that the lack of native twitter app isdisappointing but blaq is an excellent alternativeDocs to go Supports boxnetBrowser Other reviewers rate it as the best browser available You fail to mention the new reader featureKeyboard you fail to mention the new keyboard featuring technology that isnt available on some other tablets yet swiftkeyBlackberry Bridge No mention of the excellent remote control featuresDid you even use a playbook