RIM has been very consistent in sending out updates to the BlackBerry PlayBook with 4 updates since it became available in April. Though the enhancements and corrections are appreciated, none of the updates have brought native calendar, email, tasks, etc., apps to the tablet yet – missing functionality that is seriously hurting the tab’s market value.
The latest v1.0.7 update from RIM enables BlackBerry PlayBook to save attachments to your BlackBerry smartphone’s internal storage or SD card (removable storage). Nothing new there with Bluetooth file transfers existing since a long time. You can also extract zip file attachments from your email but only via the Bridge app, not via browser. The update also brings portrait orientation in the Pictures app (hardly revolutionary), pinch and zoom for videos (interesting), and a new airplane mode. The tab also gets support for 15 new languages including Danish, Russian, and Swedish. You can learn more about the update here. Before you install it, check the update.
Meanwhile, RIM’s troubles show no signs of abating. If you check out the complaints of customers responding to the latest update on the Inside BlackBerry Blog, it’s easy to see that frustration levels are on a high. And it’s not just customers who are feeling let down. Top executives are leaving the company for greener pastures. A letter from RIM to BGR showed that everything was not right within the company and recent events seem to be an outcome of that situation.
BlackBerry PlayBook senior product manager Ryan Bidan is leaving RIM for Samsung, according to his posts on Twitter and Facebook. A month back RIM’s vice president of digital marketing and media Brian Wallace did the same. July 11 saw Samsung’s chief product technology officer Omar Khan resign to take up a position at Citigroup. Are these signs of a sinking ship?
Update: Some users are complaining of not being able to use Bridge apps after the update. RIM seems to be aware of this issue and has issued “a new update will become available very shortly” statement. You might want to wait for that before installing the update.
[via engadget, BGR]
