RIM demo Playbook Browser

[MrX8503]

This is possibly the closest thing I've seen to desktop-like web browsing that's not on a netbook, laptop, or desktop.

http://www.engadget.com/2011/01/04/...chops-sdk-in-latest-round-of-t/#disqus_thread

It's not super smooth like the guy in the vid suggests as I can still see hiccups, but its still pretty good. The main thing to draw from this demo is the desktop browsing experience, its the best I've seen on a tablet.

I think this is what truly separates tablet browsing from smartphone browsing. If the final Playbook can do what I see in the video, I wouldn't mind if it only had a few apps because the tablet would be wide open to the internet.

I know that it probably won't get 10hrs of battery life, but hopefully it doesn't have terrible battery life. RIM just needs to get this out soon with decent battery life and I think they'll have a winner on their hands.

 

[gsaldivar]

RIM just needs to get this out soon

This.

 

[Puddle Jumper]

I think this is what truly separates tablet browsing from smartphone browsing. If the final Playbook can do what I see in the video, I wouldn't mind if it only had a few apps because the tablet would be wide open to the internet.

Agreed. IMO both Android and iOS offer good browsers for smartphones but are rather disappointing for a tablet. If RIM manages to deliver a desktop like browsing experience it will give them a serious edge over Apple and Google as well as help make up for a lack of apps like you said.

Based on what I've seen of the Playbook so far I think it may be the tablet to get and could be a major win for RIM.

 

[gsaldivar]

both Android and iOS offer good browsers for smartphones but are rather disappointing for a tablet.

How so?

 

[Pliablemoose]

The tablet market is going to be pretty crowded and competitive in 3, 2, 1.....

 

[Puddle Jumper]

How so?

Well in the case of the iPad the excessive checker boarding got really annoying really fast and there is always the lack of Flash. For Android the default browser can't handle some embedded pdf's which doesn't sound like a big deal until you have to carry around a windows netbook just to be able to to pull up notes you should be able to view on your tablet. There are plenty of other examples but those are ones I find particularly aggravating.

I expect a tablet to handle browsing as well as a Windows 7 netbook and currently iOS and Android tablets simply can't do that. If I was buying a tablet today I would get a Inspiron Duo for that very reason even though Windows 7 doesn't have the most touch friendly UI. That's why I'm hoping the Playbook offers a touch friendly mobile OS while retaining the browser capabilities of a desktop/laptop.

 

[gsaldivar]

For Android the default browser can't handle some embedded pdf's

PDFs display just fine on Android in their own window not embedded in the webpage itself, the "embedding" feature isn't much of a showstopper. Additionally, on Android you have your choice of a variety of PDF viewers and web browsers, some may actually embed the PDF in the page itself just like on a desktop computer.

I expect a tablet to handle browsing as well as a Windows 7 netbook and currently iOS and Android tablets simply can't do that.

Not to point out the obvious here, but you're comparing a neutered desktop OS to a mobile OS. Clearly, it's not currently feasible to shoehorn every single feature of a laptop/netbook onto a tablet. At some point, compromises have to be made. That may be in the form of added weight, reduced battery life, etc.

 

[MrX8503]

My preference for a tablet is near netbook like browsing experience, otherwise having a smartphone and a tablet is a bit redundant.

 

[Puddle Jumper]

PDFs display just fine on Android in their own window not embedded in the webpage itself, the "embedding" feature isn't much of a showstopper. Additionally, on Android you have your choice of a variety of PDF viewers and web browsers, some may actually embed the PDF in the page itself just like on a desktop computer.



Not to point out the obvious here, but you're comparing a neutered desktop OS to a mobile OS. Clearly, it's not currently feasible to shoehorn every single feature of a laptop/netbook onto a tablet. At some point, compromises have to be made. That may be in the form of added weight, reduced battery life, etc.

The default browser does handle most pdf's correctly but there are a few cases where I have encountered embedded ones that are impossible to open at all on Android (I have a Galaxy S Captivate). I have tried the stock browser, Skyfire, Dolphin HD, Opera Mini, Opera Mobile, and just this morning the Firefox beta and of all of those Firefox was the only one that handled that particular site well and was able to download the PDFs.

I'm not trying to hate on android by any means, I love my Captivate, but I just feel that I need a tablet to be more capable then my smartphone to justify having it. Right now I carry my Captivate and netbook and in the event I can't do something on the phone I can always fall back the netbook with Windows 7 Pro. On the other hand if I carried a Captivate and Galaxy Tab and couldn't get something to work I would be SOL because the tablet wouldn't be able to do it either and I would have spent $600 for no additional capabilities.

To clarify my earlier post i didn't mean Windows 7 Starter, I'm comparing it to full featured versions of 7. While I admit matching that is a lot to ask from a mobile OS I don't think it's unreasonable to expect tablets to come close to the browsing experience of a netbook, after all there are Windows powered netbook/tablet hybrids available for the same price as most of the good tablets.