BlackBerry PlayBook owners have known for quite some time now that they should expect to be able to run Android applications using RIM's Android App Player. We have even been able to get a hands-on demo of the player with a leaked version that came out a few months ago. It looked great, and appeared to be everything that we hoped it would be.
Things may have changed now. In a recent developer conference, Droidcon 2011, RIM engineers had quite a few discouraging words for the upcoming PlayBook Android App Player. Some key components will be missing or flat out not supported in the final release of the player. Some of these limitations include:
Small list? Its not when considering how many applications these individual components represent. If your like me you have some questions running through your mind right now like, What will the player be able to run?, and Will I see something that's actually worth waiting for?
- SIP VoIP
- Widgets
- All apps that rely Google Maps and text-to-speech will be blocked
- Google's in-app purchasing system
- Cloud-to-device messaging
- Android Live Wallpapers
- Android apps built On Android Native Development Kit
- Apps that contain more than one activity tied to the Launcher
Doesn't this type of release sound familiar. Did we not see this type of integration with the initial release of the PlayBook? After all we were presented with an unfinished product with huge limitations. I love my PlayBook, but I have to ask myself, Whats going on up there at RIM. How do you feel about these limitations? Did this news disappoint you? Share your thoughts.