DUBAI // The BlackBerry PlayBook tablet computer will be in UAE shops on June 12, the Canadian manufacturer Research in Motion (RIM) revealed yesterday.
The device will initially be available in 16GB, 32GB and 64GB versions, but the prices have not yet been announced by retailers.
Last night, RIM, held an invitation-only preview for the PlayBook at Privé at the Armani hotel in the Burj Khalifa.
Mike al Mefleh, RIM's regional director of product management, said recently: "Taking into account all the features and the fact that the tablet market is growing, we are very optimistic that we will have a lot of success with the PlayBook."
The device has a seven-inch touch screen and, unlike its larger rival the Apple iPad, has no home button. Everything is controlled with touches and swipes of the finger. It has front and rear cameras and - again setting it apart from the Apple device - supports the Adobe Flash multimedia platform used to view online videos.
An app, called BlackBerry Bridge, lets the user connect a handset to a PlayBook via an encrypted Bluetooth connection. E-mail delivered to the phone can then be viewed on the tablet's larger screen.
[ csimpson@thenational.ae ]