It begins: Playbook prices slashed

Bateluer

Lifer
Jun 23, 2001
27,730
8
0
http://money.cnn.com/2011/09/29/technology/playbook_price_drop/index.htm

Best Buy's (BBY, Fortune 500) site showed a $200 discount for all three PlayBook models on Wednesday night. The 16GB PlayBook fell to $299 from $499; the 32GB is now $399; and the 64GB model is $499. The 16GB model was on backorder from Best Buy as of Thursday morning.

Earlier this week, Office Depot and Staples began offering their own PlayBook deals. Office Depot knocked $100 off each model and threw in a $100 store gift card. Staples also reduced prices by $100 and added a $100 prepaid debit card that can be used anywhere.

Thank you, Amazon. :)
 

ponyo

Lifer
Feb 14, 2002
19,688
2,811
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:biggrin: Too little too late. Need another $50 off at minimum IMO.
 

Bateluer

Lifer
Jun 23, 2001
27,730
8
0
:biggrin: Too little too late. Need another $50 off at minimum IMO.

As CNN points out, this is probably just the opening salvo. :)

I fully expect to see B&N slash the price on the NC to under 200 before too long, and I hope to see some price cuts in the 10in HoneyComb tablets soon as well.
 

ponyo

Lifer
Feb 14, 2002
19,688
2,811
126
The only reason I even wanted the Playbook was because it was 7" device and had the awesome browser due to the powerful hardware. Now Fire has that and plus it runs native Android apps and cost $200. There's zero reason for me to own the Playbook now. Blackberry subsidized Amazon Fire by doing all the R&D on the hardware.

$100 like the Touchpad and I would buy the Playbook.
 
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Doppel

Lifer
Feb 5, 2011
13,306
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16 GB vs 8GB but do not care about that. Forward camera do not care at all. Mini HDMI is a plus, though. DAMN shame the fire doesn't have that and the ability to stream prime movies to a tv via it.
 

Aikouka

Lifer
Nov 27, 2001
30,383
912
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When it comes to Android tablets, I'm keeping an eye out for news on the Transformer 2. I still really like that docking station, but Tegra 2's h264 limitations kept me away from the original Transformer.
 

Bateluer

Lifer
Jun 23, 2001
27,730
8
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16 GB vs 8GB but do not care about that. Forward camera do not care at all. Mini HDMI is a plus, though. DAMN shame the fire doesn't have that and the ability to stream prime movies to a tv via it.

I believe the Playbook does have an S card slot though? The Fire does not. 8GB is what you get locally, anything else is cloud. Not a big deal for some.
 

shortylickens

No Lifer
Jul 15, 2003
80,287
17,082
136
I had the Playbook for a week. It was nice but not enough apps and I didnt think it was worth the money.
For a huge slash it could be OK, for some people. Keep in mind there arent ever going to be a shitload of apps for this thing, with no support the devs will look elsewhere, both amateur and professional.
 

Deeko

Lifer
Jun 16, 2000
30,213
12
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I had the Playbook for a week. It was nice but not enough apps and I didnt think it was worth the money.
For a huge slash it could be OK, for some people. Keep in mind there arent ever going to be a shitload of apps for this thing, with no support the devs will look elsewhere, both amateur and professional.

I do like my Playbook, but I'm considering eBaying it now that I'm getting a Kindle Fire. They're virtually the exact same hardware, but at least 1/3 of what I do on my Playbook is read eBooks, where obviously the Kindle will be superior. However, the other 2/3 is mostly browsing, and I'm a little concerned about the Fire's ability to keep up there. Silk sounds good in theory, but I'm more concerned about the general responsiveness of the browser - panning, scrolling, zooming, etc....this is an area the Playbook is VERY strong, and Android typically is not. We'll see.
 

poofyhairguy

Lifer
Nov 20, 2005
14,612
318
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When it comes to Android tablets, I'm keeping an eye out for news on the Transformer 2. I still really like that docking station, but Tegra 2's h264 limitations kept me away from the original Transformer.

I have never agreed with a post more on this forum.
 

alent1234

Diamond Member
Dec 15, 2002
3,915
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If the Android tablet makers had any brains they would be calling Jeff bezos now to get amazon services onto their products
 

shortylickens

No Lifer
Jul 15, 2003
80,287
17,082
136
If the Android tablet makers had any brains they would be calling Jeff bezos now to get amazon services onto their products

The only thing they (android) dont have is the streaming movies and music. But download movies and music work, they have one free Android app per day, and a mobile store app and MP3 app.
 

Bateluer

Lifer
Jun 23, 2001
27,730
8
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that's right, they will just sell on specs

Not everyone wants to deal solely with Amazon and turn over all their personal privacy with Silk. :rolleyes:

Stock Android will let them do both and give the consumer the choice. What the Fire will do, however, is force pricing down to a reasonable level. Expect to see a LOT of android tablets get price cuts soon, and sales to increase accordingly.
 

LOL_Wut_Axel

Diamond Member
Mar 26, 2011
4,310
8
81
Sorry for the buzzkill, but it seems that RIM has exited the tablet market and that's why they're heavily discounting the PlayBook. It's a dead device on a dead platform and OS, just like the HP TouchPad. Get them while you can, because the deal (like the cheap TouchPads) isn't gonna last very long.

Analysts are now claiming that RIM may have actually halted production of the tablet. "We believe RIM has stopped production of its PlayBook and is actively considering exiting the tablet market," Collins Stewart semiconductor analyst John Vihn wrote in a note obtained by Reuters. "Additionally, our due diligence indicates that RIM has canceled development of additional tablet projects."

Source

Looks like Amazon is here to make a killing.
 

alent1234

Diamond Member
Dec 15, 2002
3,915
0
0
The base iPad 2 bom is like $250. The 10 inch Android tablets are about the same or more.

Only reason asus was so cheap was the overpriced keyboard. The Android tablet makers can't sell their product for what amazon sells for
 

Nintendesert

Diamond Member
Mar 28, 2010
7,761
5
0
Not everyone wants to deal solely with Amazon and turn over all their personal privacy with Silk. :rolleyes:

Stock Android will let them do both and give the consumer the choice. What the Fire will do, however, is force pricing down to a reasonable level. Expect to see a LOT of android tablets get price cuts soon, and sales to increase accordingly.



Personal privacy? On a Google platform. o_O