I find this product and RIM's defence of it to be very weird.

http://www.loopinsight.com/2011/04/1...-core-element/
"Among the major criticisms from reviewers was the lack of a native email client for the PlayBook — a strange omission from the company that made its name on secure email.

RIM co-CEO Jim Balsillie said that people are “overplaying one aspect that really isn’t a core element that we’ve seen from our enterprise customers or webmail people.”

Did RIM’s CEO just say that email isn’t a core element of the BlackBerry PlayBook?"

and as regards its available software application range

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-0...pproaches.html
"Some critics suggested RIM rushed an unfinished device to market, a charge Balsillie refutes.

“I don’t think that’s fair,” said Balsillie, 50, in a television interview with Bloomberg News yesterday, pointing out that more than 60 million BlackBerry smartphone users can pair their phones and PlayBooks to read e-mail and connect to the Internet. “A lot of the people that want this want a secure and free extension of their BlackBerry.” "

I think I get it now, you need to be an existing Blackberry user and advocate in order to get real benefit from the Play Book. Otherwise it is a case of nice hardware but then what?

This is a great shame to have to write this device off as an option - for the foreseeable future anyway. We need to have a wide choice in the 7" tablet space and why would someone like me, not a Blackberry fan, want to buy this?

It is not surprising that RIM execs are being touchily defensive, witness the recent BBC walkout debacle. This is a company that is looking to the future with trepidation and is uncomfortably aware that it is losing its touch and floundering in trying to get it back.

Yes it has but read through the comments by the very developers that RIM needs to convince, and they do not appear to be particularly satisfied.

Although I have never been drawn to RIM's mobile phone products, personally I want to see a company of RIM's undoubted quality succeed and to produce a product that I want to own. So this is being written with a strong sense of disappointed expectations.