BlackBerry - Refurbished PlayBook Tablet with 16GB Memory - Black

Some people take their personal preferences a little too far. A few people posted several comments which are rather biased and need more clarification for the average consumer. First, having a bootloader give users access to the basic or “root” level of the tablet, in other words it removes all restrictions placed on the OS. Like most tablets on the market, the PlayBook did not ship with an unlocked bootloader just as Bridget959 stated. "Blackberry has opted to mercilessly crack down on any attempts to prod or modify the device" Virtually every manufacturer does this. Here's why: 1.if you do root your tablet, the warranty will be voided. If the manufacturer finds that you’ve rooted your device, they could refuse to fix it, forcing you to go to less than reputable dealers. 2.if rooting is carried out incorrectly you run the risk of “bricking” or “bootlooping” your device. Bricking is when your tablet’s software glitches causing the tablet to stop working, making it about as useful as a brick. Bootlooping is similar to bricking, however your phone will boot up, turn off, boot up and turn off in an endless cycle. 3.The final downside to rooting is security. There has been an increasing number of malware apps, especially ones designed specifically for Android devices. If you have a rooted tablet and download apps not from Google Play, there’s a higher chance that the app you download will be infected. Now with all that said, I am not against Apple or Android devices, as indeed many of the m do trump the PlayBook in some aspects such as availability of apps. Many posters have stated that offerings and improvements are under way or have been made to the PlayBook. But the saavy shopper and readers of these comments would take into consideration the number of consumers (and posters) who found more unbiased comments towards the PlayBook and their maker RIM. Like many products, the PlayBook is not without it's drawbacks. There is no one device that will have EVERYTHING that EVERYONE wants. Ask yourself "What do I want/need in a product" "What drawbacks can I tolerate" and do a little research.

Everyone keeps saying it and I will agree, app world is miserable. However, OS 2.0 is going to be released supposedly Feb14 and they are going to be incorporating android apps. Also, EA Games and some other big app companies have dedicated resources to making apps for the BB PB. Now, with that being said, allow me to dive into my review about this device...which I am writing on my PB now. I am an electrical engineer and I certainly did my homework before purchasing a tablet. I came to the decision that I wanted a seven inch and I was definitely intrigued by the fire and the HTC. Also, I would say the Iconia 100A would be a good buy. But being a money conscious individual, I was looking for a good deal in terms of use to cost ratio. I will tell you right now, this device was a steal. After testing all the OS, this is without a doubt THE BEST! Both android and IOS simulate multi tasking. But this guy, full fledge multitasking. The web browser is the best in the market. This device can run flash...no one else can. So all web sites work. No routing you to the app version of the site. It is fast and flawless. Expanding the screen, however is a useful tool. In other words, hard to click on small items. So expanding is necessary. But regardless, best web browser in market. Let me say that again, best web browser in market. Apps: The apps are a big deal and here they dropped the ball. A lot of the apps are useless and were obviously made by foreigners (very poor english). So you would beg to reason that it should lose a star yes? No, because you can play ALL flash games online and they are FREE. No one else can do that. But there are some pretty useful free apps. I am however holding out for the OS 2.0 app world. Built in Apps: Music player, facebook, gmail, yahoo mail, and get this...word document, excel sheet, and...wait for it...power point. There are an assortment of other apps too, but whatever. Those were the ones I cared about the most. Huge plus. Oh and of course ability to sync with your bb phone, pretty big plus. Also comes with Kobo, the BB ereader. Buy books and so forth. One more thing, bluetooth capable. I reccommend getting wireless keyboard. Summary: Best browser and best OS. Comes with ability to play flash. The three necessary office tools. 2.0 coming out soon. Extremely good price. Some handy apps available. App market disappointing. Cant play netflix...yeah sucks. Not sure if that will be addressed in 2.0. Cannot expand memory, but you can very easily transfer files from PC to PB. Oh camera is pretty good too. I take notes with it. Fast, reliable, strong body, and good response (although I would say iPad and galaxy more responsive screens). But this was the best deal anywhere. Refurbished was just like new even they did ship it in plastic on a piece of cardboard. Got to me with no scuffs. I am sorry for anyone who missed out on this. All prices on PB went up (sky rocketed more like) due to announcement of OS 2.0. That should tell you something. I will update after os release and let you know what is up. But this is better deal than the HP $99 frenzy back in oct or something.

I bought the product in the beginning of January 2012. This is my first tablet. I use my girl friends IPAD2 once in a while and found the touch screen feature on the Apple a little more responsive. IMO, the keypad on the apple feels a little better than BB. I have been a BB user for five years and have never had any grip with their OS. I feel BB products are built well and are very practical. IMO, BB puts a lot of logic behind OS and I find it user friendly. I BB Bridge my Curve 8530 and use this device to surf and research any information I question. The browser is superb and Bridge browser makes this device the answer to a lot of people's problem. I am apathetic towards the android and apple apps maybe b/c of my lack of exposure but that doesn't really matter b/ct BB OS2 will have an Android Player out soon to grab market Share. For now, I will be upgrading to the BB Torch for Verizon shortly but the Big Brains on BB is the Curve Phone and Pinky is the BB Playbook! The smartphone is truly the Brain of this set up and the Playbook is the Muscle. I did however buy a refurbished Playbook b/c I had doubt on the BB0S1 longevity and the right now am receiving a replacement b/c the right external speaker crapped out on me. The store did not accept the refund b/c of the 14 day return policy at Best Buy. I wanted to share the following information with future potential Playbook buyers of the refurbished playbook so they can be a better educated consumer. Read the overview carefully or else you will be stuck in between a rock and a hard place. - - - - - - - - - -- - - - - ---- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Disclaimer of Warranties. ALTHOUGH THIS REFURBISHED PRODUCT IS SUBJECT TO THE RETURN POLICY, THIS REFURBISHED PRODUCT IS SOLD ON AN "AS IS" BASIS WITHOUT ANY REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED.

I bought this tablet for one of my kids after comparing it with Kindle Fire, Nook Tablet or Color, and VTAB1008. So far, we have been very happy with the tablet. The tablet is much better than the other ones in not only hardware, but also software. It has best in terms ease of use and flexibility for multitasking. It has full web function and the cameras are awesome. Apps are limited for now, but will change over time. More importantly, Blackberry knows what they are doing with their tablets. The potential is enormous with the release of OS2.0. Cannot wait for this to happen, but also happy the way it is now. Go BB!

The playbook isa lot better that it's given credit for. Using the BB web browser gives you apps which look like have been optimized to Android standards, i.e. Bank of America, Charles Schawb, MSN, Yahoo & Google. There are a lot of apps on the comapnies store, not a very good variey - - but don't worry. I was concerned when I saw that there wsn't an app for may bank or brokerage; simply using the Blackberry browser lets you use just about everything (otimized) including it puts a representation icon on the browser Google Chrome style. There is no comparison between the Kindle Fire and the Playbook. Blackberry Playbook is probably the biggest bargin in the compact tablet market. If you can't get one new at the fire sale price, this is a "geat" deal, it's guaranteed - - you need one!

I love this tablet, in fact I already bought 2 and both worked great. I use it for school, for games, facebook, bank accounts, and just surfing the internet. I have saved my excel files, word, and powerpoint files from school on this tablet. I found it very handy. I also use this to read books from Kobo, which is also on my iPhone. So I didn't really have a BB phone, I didn't need it. The size of this tablet is perfect. It's not too big, and not too small. The camera is not that bad, I can upload to FB, it's 5mp. I will buy another one for my dad, his birthday is coming up. So bottom line I am very happy and satisfied with this tablet. I guess it all depends on what you intend to use it for.... But this is perfect for me :)

to be objective, I have never used an apple tablet. But I think this Backberry playbook is a solid tablet. It is very fast in browsing websites. Good for multitasking, very responsive. camera is sharp. video is good. sound is fine. fine screen resolution. the downloaded bookreader in appst is good, it connects to gutenberg. easy to use setup, easy to connect to laptop as if a jump drive. i do wish skype could be used, but it does have web qq for chat and allows typing chinese on certain qq.com web site. battery life is not so good, i think it only can last about 3 hours in my case (even when not using a lot of multimedia function). overall i like this blackberry playbook very much. One thing to add: it is perfect for video chatting with another Blkbry Plybk user (my son and i each used it to chat, very easily, and clear in video and sound).

The product works very well. Well constructed and sturdy. Easy to set up. Some people complain about the lack of apps, the number of avail apps increases daily, I don't need to have a large amount of apps that do the exact same thing with the only difference being the color or how the apps launch. I would rather have a smaller market with quality apps.....30 or 40 flashlight apps is plenty as often found in other vendors. I have family members under 10 years of age that also use my tablet and it keeps them busy for hours. Good for business use as well as basic home use such as internet, youtube video, email client, facebook, etc....Give it a chance...I'm sure you will be pleased..