Research In Motion
Company: Research In Motion, Waterloo, ON Canada
Entry Submitted By: Brodeur Partners
Company Description: Research In Motion (RIM), a global leader in wireless innovation, revolutionized the mobile industry with the introduction of the BlackBerry solution in 1999. Founded in 1984 and based in Waterloo, Ontario, RIM operates offices in North America, Europe, Asia Pacific and Latin America.
Nomination Category: New Product Awards & Product Management Categories
Nomination Sub Category: New Product or Service of the Year - Computer Hardware
Nomination Title: Research In Motion's BlackBerry PlayBook
Tell the story about this nominated product or service (up to 500 words). Describe its function, features, benefits, and sales to date. You may include hyperlinks to product photos and data sheets. IMPORTANT: Begin each link with http://, and enclose each link in square brackets; for example, [http://www.youraddress.com]:
RIM launched its first tablet device, the BlackBerry PlayBook, in April 2011.
With tablets emerging in the market, the PlayBook represents a new stage of
innovation for RIM. In developing the PlayBook, RIM set out to preserve the key
characteristics that define the BlackBerry smartphone platform – security,
efficiency and productivity, and innovation – and capture them to a visually-
engaging 7 inch mobile device.
The BlackBerry PlayBook is an ultra portable 7 inch tablet with a
robust operating system, dual HD cameras for video capture, and an advanced
media player. With a multi-core OS built on a QNX Neutrino microkernel
architecture and 1 GHz dual-core processor, the PlayBook provides users with a
highly-responsive touch screen experience for apps and content access.
Currently, a Wi-Fi version is available and 4G variants, featuring support for
WiMax, LTE and HSPA+ high speed wide area wireless networks, will be available
this summer.
The BlackBerry Tablet OS introduces a revolutionary technology to the tablet
industry with its QNX Neutrino microkernel architecture. Neutrino, one of the
most reliable, secure and powerful operating system architectures available on
the market, is currently used in mission-critical automotive, transportation
and medical applications, and the largest core routers that run the Internet.
Using QNX, RIM developed an innovative interactive design intended to
multitask. In RIM’s PlayBook, users can navigate multiple apps simultaneously
with gestures, without relying on the home screen or buttons.
RIM designed the PlayBook to be the ultimate stand-alone tablet and also a
companion to the BlackBerry smartphone. Users can securely view emails, their
calendar, and tasks and documents that reside on their BlackBerry smartphone in
real-time on the PlayBook via a secure Bluetooth connection. Its “out-of-the-
box” compatibility with BlackBerry Enterprise Server requires little additional
effort for IT departments, making the PlayBook an easy transition to enhance
communication and productivity in corporations. The PlayBook also features a Wi-
Fi sharing capability so users can easily transfer content from a desktop to
PlayBook while on the same Wi-Fi network. Connecting the PlayBook to a large
monitor or entertainment system via HDMI is simple and convenient when
displaying PowerPoint presentations or watching movies!
Additionally, RIM offers a powerful development platform for the PlayBook with
support for standard tools familiar to the developer community. The PlayBook
delivers high scalability and security, C-based code portability, and support
for Open GL for 2D and 3D graphics intensive applications like gaming. Support
for Adobe® Flash® Player 10.1, Adobe® Mobile AIR® and HTML-5 provide new
developer opportunities that bring the full desktop experience to mobility for
a rich web experience. RIM has announced that an application player for Android
apps and the application player for BlackBerry Java-based apps will be
available later this year.
With its powerful operating system, portable design, and diverse development
platform, RIM’s PlayBook builds on BlackBerry’s renowned security,
manageability and reliability to help consumers and businesses seamlessly take
productivity to the next level.
List hyperlinks to any online news stories, press releases, product reviews, or other documents that support the claims made in the section above. IMPORTANT: Begin each link with http://, and enclose each link in square brackets; for example, [http://www.youraddress.com]:
http://press.rim.com/release.jsp?id=4577
http://press.rim.com/release.jsp?id=4674
http://press.rim.com/release.jsp?id=4795
http://press.rim.com/release.jsp?id=4796
http://press.rim.com/release.jsp?id=4858
http://press.rim.com/release.jsp?id=4935
Video: http://www.youtube.com/blackberry#p/c/1DF8A7155497D9FA/0/ccjQ_r5Qbi0
Provide a brief (up to 100 words) biography about the leader(s) of the team that developed this nominated product or service:
Mike Lazaridis, President and Co-CEO, founded RIM in 1984 while a student at
the University of Waterloo. Lazaridis is responsible for product strategy,
research and development, product development, and manufacturing. He traces his
passion for his work to his hometown of Windsor, Ontario where his family and
school environments nurtured his love of science and electronics.
Jim Balsillie, co-CEO, is responsible for driving corporate strategy, business
development, marketing, sales, and finance at RIM. A native of Peterborough,
Ontario, Balsillie earned a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Toronto
and an MBA from Harvard University, and is a Chartered Accountant.