Will Robertson's Blog

I always find it interesting to see which of my blog posts get the most search traffic. Currently, by a wide margin, a post I wrote about RIM’s unreleased bluetooth keyboard for the BlackBerry PlayBook is the most popular.

Though RIM still has not released the keyboard, I did get to try it out recently at the BlackBerry Innovation Forum held in Ottawa on November 22nd. The presenter Paul Steel showed it to me after the presentation, and I was quite impressed.

Rather than make a standard keyboard like most tablet makers have, RIM included a trackpad for cursor control on the PlayBook. The trackpad also supports the PlayBook’s gesture controls.

In addition, rather than using AAA or AA batteries, it has a rechargeable battery embedded inside of it which can be charged using a BlackBerry standard Micro USB cable (same as a PlayBook). They designed the keyboard to be the same size as a PlayBook, however it is amazingly thin (about half the thickness of a PlayBook – just barely thick enough for the Micro USB connector)

Mr Steel also mentioned that it seems the keyboard is quite water-resistant. A fact he discovered by accident when a glass of water was spilled directly on his keyboard during a presentation.

RIM will also be releasing a case that will hold both the BlackBerry PlayBook and the bluetooth keyboard, the case looks a lot like the current Convertible Case that RIM sells, though slightly thicker to hold the keyboard.

Judging by the traffic my blog post has been getting there is some pent up demand for this keyboard. RIM, if you are listening, please get this keyboard released ASAP (and feel free to send me one).

Since Apple released iOS 5 my iPad has seemingly become more and more broken as each day passes. The latest problem is app icons randomly disappearing. While not a showstopper, it does make finding apps incredibly frustrating. Here is what is happening:

When you change from homescreen to homescreen, a different icon disappears each time. It seems to be pretty random, with third-party and Apple apps all taking their turn. It even happens when you pop open a folder.

This is just the latest in a string of problems my iPad now experiences. My iPad is now excruciating slow and it is rare that an app doesn’t crash crash at some point while I am using it.

Bonus screenshot, another bug my iPad has run into:

When RIM unveiled their next-generation operating system at BlackBerry DevCon in October, they called it BBX. Almost immediately another firm launched legal action against RIM claiming the BBX trademark. Causing good confusion RIM switched the name to BlackBerry 10 at DevCon Asia last week.

In one of RIM’s “BlackBerry Enterprising Minds” videos which was created before the BBX name was announced in October, it looks like RIM had already planned to follow version 7 with version 10 of BlackBerry OS:

You can see smartphones listed as running bbOS 7 (which is on current BlackBerry smartphones) and a tablet running bbOS 10. Could be a coincidence that they used these two numbers in this concept video, but it is also likely that the name BlackBerry 10, or at least the version number 10, was planned before they had were blocked from using BBX as the name.

See the full video that the screenshots are from below:

Jakob Nielsen posted an analysis of the Kindle Fire, and in his analysis he questions whether 7-inch tablets have a future. He says:

7-inch tablets occupy a tenuous slice of territory in the user experience landscape:

• On the one hand, the devices are too weak to support easy, pleasant, and efficient use of the broad range of user interfaces optimized for other form factors. 7-inch screens are too small to easily browse full websites, and yet too big to carry with you at all times like a mobile phone.
• On the other hand, they are strong enough to provide good usability when designs are optimized for the 7-inch platform. The screen is large enough to show pretty pictures and full-color illustrations, and it can also support fairly efficient navigation and other user actions. When designed right, the 7-inch user experience is richer and more pleasant than a mobile phone UX.

Using both a BlackBerry PlayBook and Apple iPad regularly, this is an issue I am very familiar with. For me, the PlayBook is my preferred device 9 out of 10 times. That 10th when the iPad would be better always comes down to needing a larger than 7-inch screen size for specific content.

When on the go the PlayBook is perfect. Small enough to carry in hand or a jacket pocket, without needing a bag. But when I am lounging around at home and browsing a big website, the 10-inch screen of the iPad is simply more comfortable.

In the future I imagine screen size won’t even be an issue. Ideally a device’s screen size will adjust to the content and situation, growing and shrinking as needed. It becomes small enough to fit in any pocket, but when you pull up a web page, the screen has the ability to stretch to the optimal display size based on the content. A hybrid device, which at the core is a smartphone, but transforms into a tablet when necessary.

Some early movement towards this vision can been seen in Asus’s often mocked Padfone, an Android smartphone that docks into tablet shell. Not a great solution yet, it is a step in the right direction. We don’t need both a smartphone and tablet, they may as well be the same device.

Here is a video from mobile interface designers T.A.T called “Future of Screen Technology”, which shows their vision of this. See a device stretching for content around the 25s mark:

Canada experienced a mini-”Black Friday” on November 18th when the BlackBerry PlayBook got an official $300 discount. At the time it was not clear if all retailers would be participating in the discount, only Walmart, Best Buy, Future Shop, and Sears advertised the deal ahead of time.

I set out to grab a few 16Gb PlayBooks, how could I not at $199? I arrived at Best Buy several hours early (thought they opened at 8am) and decided to wait it out. By 10am, there was a crowd of 60+ people waiting behind me, some had been waiting nearly as long as I had. Then Best Buy completely screwed us over.

A Best Buy employee opened the door at 10am, and without a word walked away, leaving the crowd to rush into the store. Logically I led the crowd to the tablet section, where the PlayBook is typically stocked. When we arrived in the tablet section the Best Buy employee there informed us that the PlayBooks were actually in a cage at the checkout. By this time everyone who had been lined up early was stuck at the back of the store, letting the people who had arrived hours after us get to the checkout first.

To make matters worse, Best Buy decided not to limit the number of PlayBooks per customer. So to the dismay of the crowd of 60+ people, only 10 or so people ended up with all of the PlayBooks. One woman bought eight PlayBooks. Rather than control the situation, Best Buy screwed over the first people in line by not telling us they were at the front of the store. Then they ignored the protests of the crowd and went on to sell all of the tablets to a limited few (who did not deserve them).

I guess I know where I won’t be doing the rest of my Christmas shopping!

For anyone still looking to pick up a BlackBerry PlayBook with the $300 discount, head over to ShopBlackBerry.com to get one for as low as $189 if you use this discount code: 09OLTY12. Hurry up though, this deal ends December 1st.

“At this time, our technical team is working to produce an App for the BlackBerry PlayBook platform.”

This is great news for PlayBook users. Bloomberg TV has fantastic content and, if the app is similar to the website and iPad versions, it will be available on-demand and streamed live.

I’ve enjoyed using the iPad version since it was released, you can check it out here: http://www.bloomberg.com/mobile/tv

Can’t wait to get this on my PlayBook, and I hope this means Bloomberg is also working to bringtheir BusinessWeek+ and Radio+ apps to PlayBook too.

On October 28th I had the opportunity to attend AndroidTO, a conference put together by Toronto’s Android community for all Android developers and enthusiasts. Though I am definitely no Android enthusiast, I was curious to check it out after dabbling with the Android OS and apps on my BlackBerry PlayBook.

The event was an impressive show, with separate tracks for developers and professionals. I stuck to the professional side, since the content was focused more on mobile industry in general, with a slight emphasis on Android. The speakers were very interesting and I definitely learned a lot from them.

While I do not plan on getting an Android phone any time soon, since my next upgrade will likely be the first smartphone RIM releases with BBX on it, it was fun to try out the latest Android phones. Rogers was a sponsor of the event and had their various Android devices on display, including the new Motorola RAZR (a new Android slab phone, not the classic flip phone) and a variety of Samsung, HTC, and LG devices. The most impressive was the LG Android phone. I am not certain which model it was, but besides the questionable 3D camera and 3D apps, the device was quite nice.

Sony was also a sponsor of the event to promote their new Android tablet. One Sony rep’s pitch of their tablet focused on the its infrared remote control app, which makes the tablet a universal remote compatible with any device that uses IR for remote control. He said stand-alone highend universal remotes typically go for $100s, so why not spend a bit more and get a full featured tablet too? I wasn’t convinced, but it is indeed a handy feature. I bet Sony will be pushing the tablet alongside their HDTVs with this festure highlighted.

The event was a great demonstration of the power of Android. There are so many different companies with big bets on Android, with many of them there at the event. From the device makers like Sony and Samsung, wireless carriers like Bell and Rogers, and developers building apps for Android, all of these groups have a lot riding on the Android ecosystem. With so many different companies backing the Android movement, its not hard to see why the usage of the operating system has seen such explosive growth.