Comments on: Blackberry Playbook Reviews and the Premature OS

By: Jared Newman

Jared Newman — Fri, 15 Apr 2011 13:22:57 +0000

Multitasking and folders weren't features of the iPhone when the iPad was announced (not until iOS 4 was revealed in June 2010). The expectation was merely that a computing device that launched in 2010 would have those capabilities. Also, the iPad had memory problems too. Apps crashed.

RIM never promised tons of apps or the emulator at launch. No promises broken, just promises unfulfilled.

I totally get that if you compare the iPad and the Playbook launches, Apple released a more polished, finished product. My point is that both products shipped with missing features and improvements to be made. iOS has gotten better since April 2010. Playbook OS will get better in the coming months and years.

By: David

David — Fri, 15 Apr 2011 13:11:46 +0000

Almost no one ships finished products,else you wouldn't have improvements of any kind. However, I'm hard-pressed to think of any incomplete products. Here is what we said we said would be the features vs. what was actually delivered.

By: David

David — Fri, 15 Apr 2011 13:09:17 +0000

There is more missing than email. You don't seem to have many apps and you are missing all the emulators. From the reviews, you are getting both software crashes and memory problems. The reviewers were also getting multiple rapid updates.

Those are pretty strong indicators of unfinished.

That is one *major* difference between the iPad and the Playbook. The second is that multitasking and folders were features of the iPhone, therefore the expectation was that the iPad would have the same features. That's an assumption right up there with "Apple aways ships phones in June. No June delivery? Then the iPhone is delayed." Assumptions don't count.

By: Anon

Anon — Fri, 15 Apr 2011 03:03:17 +0000

Apple constantly ships unfinished products. It's part of their business model.

I will never have any need for those native functions but it amazes me that RIM thought it would be OK to leave them out.

By: David

David — Fri, 15 Apr 2011 02:29:16 +0000

There was a difference with iOS 3.2 and the iPad. It was feature complete when it shipped. Xoom and RIM are shipping with promises. You are, in essence, being asked to loan them money to give you a finished product.

And look at this. It is running out of memory before the emulators are even fired up. This thing is looking like a trainwreck and I can guarantee you that they are killing the developers, probably for Subway sandwiches to work the extra hours.

By: Anon

Anon — Fri, 15 Apr 2011 02:19:14 +0000

Excellent post. Some are starting to realize this. One review I read held off giving an actual star rating for the PlayBook saying that they would wait until the launch to do so. Launch is the 19th! 5 days away! And yet the reviewers felt that the OS would change significantly enough in these 5 days that it wouldn't be fair to give a review yet.

By: Jared Newman

Jared Newman — Fri, 15 Apr 2011 01:53:29 +0000

Sadly, I did. What's your criticism, specifically?

By: Everyone Else

Everyone Else — Fri, 15 Apr 2011 01:21:30 +0000

What a horrible post, surely i hope the person who wrote this did not get paid.