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$199 BlackBerry PlayBook tablet is back

RIM's tablet reappears on retailer shelves with deep discounts, the heftiest of which is a $350 price drop on the 32GB model.

Brooke Crothers Former CNET contributor
Brooke Crothers writes about mobile computer systems, including laptops, tablets, smartphones: how they define the computing experience and the hardware that makes them tick. He has served as an editor at large at CNET News and a contributing reporter to The New York Times' Bits and Technology sections. His interest in things small began when living in Tokyo in a very small apartment for a very long time.
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BlackBerry PlayBook is available for $199 while supplies last at Best Buy.
BlackBerry PlayBook is available for $199 while supplies last at Best Buy. Best Buy

RIM's BlackBerry PlayBook lives! It is back at retailers sporting the same deep $300 discount as before.

After selling out at Best Buy last month, the retailer now has stock of 16GB, 32GB, and 64GB models.

As of Monday night, Best Buy was selling the 16GB model for $199.99, the 32GB for $249.99, and 64GB for $399.99.

The heftiest discount--$350--is on the 32GB model. The other two models remain at $300 off the regular price.

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Take note that the PlayBook does not come with native e-mail, calendar, or contacts applications from RIM--yet (Web-based apps of course are available like Gmail). Those updates are expected next year.

And the 7-inch device is Wi-Fi only. 3G is available only through a somewhat convoluted tethering procedure.

That said, some of the PlayBook's better features include snappy performance, good multitasking--what CNET Reviews describes as being "buttery smooth and a multitasking dynamo"--and a 3-megapixel front camera and a 5-megapixel rear camera, which can capture video at 1080p quality.

The PlayBook is also being discounted at Staples.

Via Liliputing