BlackBerry PlayBook tablet prices edge down more
Prices for RIM's BlackBerry PlayBook tablet are dropping on all models at Staples. RIM is also stating publicly that it will begin to offer deals to drive sales.
BlackBerry PlayBook is seeing steady price drops at Staples.
(Credit: Staples)BlackBerry PlayBook prices are beginning to see a slow but steady descent at major U.S. electronics retailer Staples, in the wake of a sharp, though temporary, discount earlier this month at Best Buy.
This also comes after RIM reported lackluster earnings on Thursday and said it would start several programs to drive PlayBook sales.
On Thursday, RIM said it has shipped only 200,000 PlayBooks in the fiscal second quarter, less than half of the 490,000 tablets analysts had expected.
Staples began cutting the price on the 16GB PlayBook earlier this month, reducing it to $449.99 from $499.99. Now it has applied the same discount for the 32GB and 64GB models. Those drop to $549 and $649 from $599 and $699, respectively.
Earlier this month, Best Buy offered the 64GB PlayBook at $549.99, $150 off the original price of $699.99. But that discount lasted only a weekend.
The PlayBook is one of the few non-Apple tablets being sold at retailers that doesn't come with Google's Android operating system. Instead, it uses the BlackBerry Tablet Operating System, based on QNX technology. The same technology that will begin to appear on BlackBerry phones next year.
The 7-inch tablet has some fairly robust hardware, including a 1GHz dual-core processor from Texas Instruments, a multitouch capacitive 1024x600 screen, front and rear cameras, Micro USB and Micro HDMI ports, and 1080p HD video. Access to 3G networks is via BlackBerry phones.
