BlackBerry’s hardware division needs a miracle to pull the company out of the slump it finds itself in. All smartphones it has released over the last couple of years haven’t exactly proven to be global hits. BlackBerry only made one foray into the tablet market, that too back in 2011 with the ill-fated PlayBook. Even though when it was first unveiled the tablet looked promising, it failed to set the market on fire. Since then the company hasn’t launched a new tablet, but an executive has hinted that a BlackBerry PlayBook successor might be released in the future.
Speaking with Pocketlint, BlackBerry’s vice president of global product management Francois Mahieu says that the company will considering entering the tablet market once again, but “will BlackBerry do it in the coming months? No,” comes the definitive answer. So its tablet plans are clear to the extent that a new contender isn’t around the corner, but still remains a distant possibility in the future.
Mahieu adds that he wouldn’t be surprised if he shows off a new BlackBerry tablet some day, “we have equity in the space, but we’re not ready,” he says, adding that the company needs more time. He’s quite right, launching a tablet right now could be disastrous for the company, it has already had to write down substantial inventory in the last two quarters. Perhaps one day when it is finally on the road to recovery, the ailing Canadian manufacturer may once again wow us with a new tablet.
Filed in . Read more about BlackBerry and Blackberry Playbook.