bbx

RIM promo: Buy two Playbooks, get one free

Maybe one PlayBook wasn't enough to get you interested in Research In Motion's tablet. But three? That's a whole different story.

At least, that's what RIM is banking on in its latest promotion. Business customers who purchase two PlayBooks through a designated reseller get a bonus one for free. In addition, they get their choice of accessories for each tablet.

It's the latest in a line of promotions offered by RIM and its retailer partners as it attempts to spruce up sales of its PlayBook tablet. After a bungled launch and a tepid response to the product, RIM is working aggressively to move the devices off the shelves.

The latest promotion, of course, isn't directed at consumers, but at the business customers that make up the most loyal part of its base. Companies can take advantage of this promotion to outfit their staff with PlayBooks, which are ideal for sales staff, field technicians, or any employee who works remotely. The offer represents a discount of a third off of any bulk order of PlayBooks.

Retailers have already begun offering discounts to consumers, bringing the price down to as low as $299 through a combination of in-store discounts and rebates. … Read more

RIM's latest misstep: Its new BBX name is already taken

Research in Motion's new BBX operating system isn't even out yet, and it's already facing a bit of legal heat. A small Albuquerque, N.M.-based software provider, Basis International, claims "BBx" is the name of a software platform that it has already trademarked.

RIM unveiled the BBX platform--which combines elements of its older BlackBerry operating system with its next-generation QNX software--at the company's developer conference on Tuesday. The company is hoping that BBX and its advanced capabilities can vault it back into the smartphone game, putting it on a more equal footing … Read more

BlackBerry BBX OS: What it really is

This morning when RIM announced BBX, the next-generation operating system that will power BlackBerry smartphones and tablets, the BlackBerry-maker offered few details about what the OS does, how it will propel RIM forward, and when we can expect to see it on working devices.

It's been known almost since RIM first announced the QNX-based PlayBook last year that the platform RIM bought would power smartphones, too. So isn't BBX just QNX repackaged to be more familiar to BlackBerry users? Turns out, there's more to it than that.

Instead, it's a joining of native BlackBerry capabilities with … Read more

RIM to Android developers: C'mon in, the water's fine

Struggling BlackBerry maker RIM knows it has to change if it's to hold the interest of developers--and that means making the new operating system, BBX, a friendlier place for Android developers to play.

That's the subtext at the BlackBerry Developer Conference in San Francisco today, which played out in live demos of Android games that have been ported over to the BlackBerry PlayBook tablet. The real message, however, is evident in the new PlayBook OS 2.0 beta software for developers.

RIM stressed in a press release that the PlayBook 2.0 beta includes the BlackBerry Runtime for … Read more

RIM unveils its next-gen mobile OS: BBX

Research in Motion co-CEO Mike Lazaridis unveiled a new name for its next-generation operating system, BBX, as he made the case for developers to stick with BlackBerry.

BBX combines the best qualities of RIM's older BlackBerry operating system and its QNX platform, which powers the PlayBook tablet, Lazaridis said during the company's developer conference today.

RIM intends to use its BlackBerry DevCon conference to inject some life into its developer support, which is crucial to keeping its mobile ambitions alive. Lazaridis, in a number of demonstrations, promised an easier process for developers, more profits, and the ability to … Read more