Research in Motion (NASDAQ: RIMM) may be losing the smartphone war in the eyes of many, but the tech company hasn’t given up on trying to win back the professional and enterprise mobile markets. While it doesn’t look like the BlackBerry Torch is going to get the company’s devices back in customers’ hands, their new tablet computer nicknamed the BlackPad just might.
The first reports of Research in Motion’s answer to the Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: APPL) iPad tablet computer, the BlackPad, hit the press at the end of July. The company was expected to officially announce the tablet shortly after that, but August passed without the BlackPad emerging from RIM’s doors. Now, according to a report from the Wall Street Journal, Research in Motion will show off the BlackPad at next week’s BlackBerry Developer Conference. If RIM plays their cards right in the coming months, they might just be able to steal away a chunk of the consumer market as well as the business market that Apple’s been dominating. That is, if they can get their BlackPad to market before Motorola (NYSE: MOT) and Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) get their Android-powered tablet for Verizon (NYSE: VZ) out the door first.
The Wall Street Journal lists many of the BlackPad’s previously reported technical specifications. The tablet will feature a 7-inch screen making it smaller than the iPad, whose screen measures in at 9.7-inches, but bigger than the new Dell (NASDAQ: DELL) Streak which, at 5-inches, is halfway between most touch-based smartphones and the majority of tablet PCs. Research in Motion’s tablet will feature broadband and Bluetooth Internet connections. In a new wrinkle, however, the WSJ claims that the BlackPad will only be able to connect to mobile networks through a BlackBerry smartphone at launch, foregoing direct support from mobile carriers like Verizon that already support the BlackBerry line of handhelds.
As previously reported, the BlackPad will also run on an operating system developed by QNX Software Industries. QNX was acquired by Research in Motion last April. The company’s QNX operating systems are typically found in larger machines than smartphones and tablet PCs; their operating systems have been traditionally featured in BMW’s vehicles. The shift to a QNX OS is surprising considering RIM’s efforts in developing BlackBerry 6, the latest version of its proprietary smartphone operating system. More surprising still is that the WSJ claims that the BlackPad’s inclusion of the QNX software will precede a roll out of the OS to RIM’s entire line of mobile devices. The reason for this is for the stable of applications already available on QNX platforms just like BMW’s cars. This news seems dubious in light of the BlackBerry Developer Conference. Would Research in Motion really unveil a new tablet PC with a QNX operating system at an event meant to encourage developers to create software for BlackBerry 6? It’s possible that RIM is going to change the branding of the BlackPad’s QNX OS to BlackBerry 7, but this seems like a move that could potentially alienate developers from the platform.
Research in Motion could use the buzz attendant to major new tablet PCs. After a disastrous second quarter, RIM stock is down 46% from its 52-week high of $88.08 per share. Today, RIM is trading around $47 per share. If any shareholders have yet to abandon ship, hold on until the end of next week. The BlackPad might just help earn some of that money back. Anyone thinking about buying, it’s a good time to jump in with Research in Motion.
As of this writing, Anthony Agnello did not own a position in any of the stocks named here.
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