Today, like most days, is a good day to work for Research In Motion. According to sources, employees of the tech giant can pick up a brand-new 16 GB PlayBook for $99. Not to be outdone, the 32 GB model and 64 GB model are selling for $149 and $199, respectively. Word on the street is that RIM employees are limited in the number of units they can buy; but the employee-priced tablets are still selling fast, no matter the limit. Know anyone who works at RIM? You might want to give them a shout.
If you're not lucky enough to work with the BlackBerry brand, there are still some awesome deals to be found on the world's first QNX-powered tablet. After all, today is Cyber Monday and the internet is full of deals today.
Discuss more in the forums
Via: CrackBerry Forums
horne527 Nov 28, 2011 at 1:11 pm
I love RIM but what with the reports of canceled orders, no new stock etc and big discounts, It kinda sounds like the end of days for the playbook
chi-town311 Nov 28, 2011 at 1:17 pm
I disagree. Hopefully this means that the first batch of PlayBooks have finally sold out. They just need to call their manufacturer up and have them start cranking out round two. Hopefully they fix the power button for good on this iteration.
scalemaster34 Nov 28, 2011 at 2:09 pm
For Amazon to sell a device like the FIRE at cost is a smart move, when they are going to make a profit selling APPS, BOOKS, MOVIES and other content for the device.
But RIM isn't selling the PlayBook below cost so that they can make a profit later selling content for it (they don't have the ecosystem to do that). Either they have a PlayBook II in the works, or they are killing it off.
makaveli28 Nov 28, 2011 at 6:26 pm
Perfectly stated, I couldn't have said it better. My assumption is they are killing it off. If we wait till Feb for the Calendar, Email and a host of other things that should have come on the Playbook from day 1. This thing was originally announced Sept 2010 so its shelf life is done. Took them 8 months after announcement to release the thing and now it's old tech. Then they release it unfinished with promises of things to come, delay after delay. The Playbook in my opinion was the biggest mistake RIM has made. They should have focused the R&D on the phones and perfected the playbook in the background before releasing/announcing it. Hindsight is always 20/20. The leaders at RIM should have had more foresight in my opinion. Why not just give it to each employee and disclose that it is a taxable benefit.
fsxflightman Nov 28, 2011 at 1:21 pm
Not the end days for Playbook....so much demand a product as good as this will be here for years to come...
siddo_d Nov 28, 2011 at 1:13 pm
RIMPIRE #teamblackberry
phonenvy#cb Nov 28, 2011 at 6:04 pm
Rimpire #teamblackberry
bbschorsch Nov 28, 2011 at 1:15 pm
may be the end of days for playbook version 1 ^^
just thinking about the survey we had in the beta forum. . .
may be we shortly see a playbook version 2 running os2.0
sk8er_tor Nov 28, 2011 at 1:17 pm
Great employee perk!
djdnz Nov 29, 2011 at 10:12 am
This is a limited offer for RIM employees because RIM is nice.
admyths Nov 28, 2011 at 1:34 pm
Any one else feel like they have been kicked in the nuts by RIM after paying full price for a Playbook a few months ago? Seeing the playbook depreciate by 60% in three months since I've been an owner has left me a bit bitter and unlikely to purchase any future RIM products.
undone Nov 28, 2011 at 2:17 pm
Nothing unusual about a price decline on a device that isn't brand new or selling like hot cakes. Technology sucks for that, always something new. Any tablet at this point purchase at full retail (assuming not new) is a waste of money.
SBMobile3 Nov 30, 2011 at 3:08 pm
Not any tablet, just the PlayBook!! iPad & iPad 2 can't stay on the shelves, without price cuts. You need to be honest & admit that RIM made a DUD that couldn't even convince a few million BB-users to buy them! You guys sit on here all day bragging or deluding yourselves to the fact that RIM has 70 million users, but reality shows that those customers are NOT buyers & are CHEAP!!! BYE-BYE RIM!!!
Davereggi Nov 28, 2011 at 4:28 pm
Try owning 1000 shares of RIMM stock since it was $100+ and then you might know what a real kick feels like.
hardidu Nov 28, 2011 at 8:56 pm
I'm with you 100%... and now, the F@uckups who created this lack-lustre device get them at a discount? Huh?! They should have to pay $1200 a device... double what we paid!
def1014 Nov 28, 2011 at 1:34 pm
Could be the fire sale we all feared.
chrism_scotland Nov 28, 2011 at 2:35 pm
Lets not forget this is an internal sale of goods to employees not a public one, its hardly a fire sale until this sort of price was replicated in stores to the public.
def1014 Nov 28, 2011 at 6:20 pm
Who is to say $99 would be the fire sale price? How about $199? RIM is liquidating the product anywhere they can, consumers (199), enterprise(free), and now employees(99)... I own 2 playbooks, I really hope we don't get left in the lurch.
Disparishun Nov 28, 2011 at 6:31 pm
Um, it's not free to enterprises. It's three-for-two to enterprises, and one free per BES5 upgrade (which is far from free).
koool1 Nov 28, 2011 at 2:36 pm
Where are the playbooks?
I can't find one!
nomi1978 Nov 28, 2011 at 3:31 pm
I just got 2 - 64 GB's, 1 32 and 1-16. Now i need another friend to get me 2 more :). But they are basically back ordered internally as well. Delivery is expected by December 22nd.
Disparishun Nov 28, 2011 at 4:53 pm
Isn't this just the traditional $100 Christmas discount for RIM employees, which is now permitted to be directed towards the PlayBook? And isn't that $100 Christmas discount a tax benefit anyway, so that it's more like a $50 discount?
Jmaxim Nov 28, 2011 at 6:51 pm
Made the suggestion in my last post that the $99, $149 & $199 should be the actual price point for the PB. At this point I believe it will be. If I remember correctly, all these discounts started with Rogers offering their employees 50% discount. RIM should man up and say exactly what's going on. This does not look good!
coolt86 Nov 28, 2011 at 9:59 pm
I think RIM is unloading the playbook so that developers start making apps for it. they want to make sure that the BBX phone has a lot of apps, since they can run the same apps
s1utywh0rezzy Nov 29, 2011 at 12:08 am
FINALLY :D a deal i've waiting for, missed out on the HP tablet so this may be a good chance for me to catch one of these $100 playbook, what do you rate them from 1-10 on a tablet?
-[k4k] sluty, signing out!
panterarck Nov 29, 2011 at 10:46 am
Did you read the article? Unless you're a RIM employee you won't be getting these at that price. Based on the other question of how you would rate these I'm gonna assume you aren't a rim employee. So....you got all excited for nothing.
s1utywh0rezzy Nov 29, 2011 at 5:13 pm
never say never my friend panterarck, they aren't doing so good right now on the playbook, so don't put me down just yet.!
SimiMatharu Dec 31, 2011 at 2:23 pm
Nothin