RIM shows BlackBerry PlayBook 2.0's native e-mail at forum
updated 03:25 pm EST, Tue November 22, 2011
RIM demos e-mail, calendar, contacts for PlayBook
RIM used the BlackBerry Innovation Forum to give a video demo of its long overdue native email, contacts and calendar for the BlackBerry PlayBook. Screenshots (embedded below) taken from the presentation show that the e-mail client looks very similar in its layout to the approach adopted in iOS and Android on tablets, where the inbox is placed on the left, with the reading pane on the right. RIM had previously struggled to find a work around for email as its BlackBerry phones don't allow multiple access portals for security purposes.
According to Blackberry Cool, the slick demos of the products gave the impression that the native apps will be ready for the promised release date of February 17, 2012 coming around a full year after the initial launch of the tablet.
Also on display were the new calendar and contacts apps. The calendar offers the ability to automatically enlarge the numbers of certain dates when the user is particularly busy with appointments. The contacts app is powered by Gist, who have a contacts app available for smartphones. It gives users the ability to delve deeper into a contact's details at a glance.
