BlackBerry PlayBook OS update delayed

RIM has gone public with news about the upcoming upgrade to the BlackBerry PlayBook and, to be honest, it's not good news about OS 2.0.

The tablet launched in September 2010 so you would perhaps have expected an overhaul over a year after launch. RIM perhaps feels that pain, hence its latest statement. But to sum up, it sounds like the company isn't completely convinced that the new OS is ready to go.











In a statement on its blog, RIM said: 'As much as we’d love to have it in your hands today, we’ve made the difficult decision to wait to launch BlackBerry PlayBook OS 2.0 until we are confident we have fully met the expectations of our developers, enterprise customers and end-users.'. With that in mind, the company is sending out beta versions of 2.0 to developers, which will be 'updated with the full Cascades animation and UI engine'. The hope being that developers will have plenty of new and improved apps ready to go when 2.0 goes public.

So when exactly is that? According to RIM, the OS 2.0 will now be offered from February, but without one key ingredient. The statement continues: 'We have decided to defer the inclusion of the BBM application to a subsequent BlackBerry PlayBook OS release. We are committed to developing a seamless BBM solution that fully delivers on the powerful, push based messaging capabilities recognized today by BlackBerry users around the world and we’re still working on it.'

So a wait and no BBM. But on the plus side, the company adds that the software update will offer 'advanced integrated email, calendar and contact apps, a new video store, as well as new functionality that will allow your BlackBerry smartphone and BlackBerry PlayBook to work together even better'.

With an iPad 3 launching in the first quarter of 2012, it might be a tough call for the BlackBerry PlayBook to relaunch. But on the plus side, the device has just got a price cut, so it is a more affordable option, as well as being a decent piece of hardware too. Just a shame we're not seeing the new OS before Christmas.