More details have emerged about the BlackBerry PlayBook since CES last week. In one of the most exciting features, it will allow tethering to BlackBerry smartphones, giving users access to the network functionality and features that they already know and love.RIM officials announced the details of how this connection would work on Thursday, saying it would give users access to the calender, messaging, and web browsing via the smartphones cellular network. If users are also connected to the Blackberry Enterprise Server, the company’s IT shop will also be able to set controls on the way the tethering works.
The tethering is made possible due to software called BlackBerry Bridge, which will allow commands to come via either the BlackBerry Enterprise Server (BES) or through Bluetooth. If a user has Verizon or AT&T connectivity, for example, a number of web-based services available to the smartphone such as email will be made available to the PlayBook.
The Bridge software provides 256 bit encryption and allows documents to be sent between devices, making it easy for users to view and edit documents on the larger PlayBook screen. “We’ll have remote desktop and business intelligence, but have nothing specific to announce today,” explained Ryan Bidan, RIM’s senior product manager for PlayBook.
As always, RIM have their eyes firmly on the business end of the market, although for the PlayBook to be a success it will also have to appeal to the consumer end of the market. For IT managers, the Bridge simplifies matters a lot, as only a smartphone has to be managed instead of both the PlayBook and a phone.
RIM designed the PlayBook to be small enough so that business users would “not be afraid to take the PlayBook with them” said Bidan, adding, “It had to be small enough to be portable, but powerful enough to be really, really useful.” PlayBook will ship in North America some time in the first quarter, although pricing is yet to be announced.
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