RIM is officially killing of the 16GB PlayBook, according to an N4BB report. Engadget suggests that low margins on the 16GB tablet are to blame for RIM’s choice to discontinue the tablet, though sluggish sales of any tablet that doesn’t have the Apple logo on it probably played a role as well. RIM and its distributors and retailers around the world will continue to offer both the 32GB and 64GB variants of the tablet, as only the 16GB tablet is being discontinued at this time.
RIM’s PR provided Engadget with the following statement:
“RIM will no longer be making the 16 GB model of the BlackBerry PlayBook tablet. The 16 GB PlayBook will continue to be available for distributors and retailers while quantities last. We continue to remain committed to the tablet space and the 32 GB and 64 GB models of the BlackBerry PlayBook continue to be available from our distributors and retailers around the world.
There is more value for our customers in the higher capacity models (32 GB, 64 GB), and as such we have decided to focus our efforts here.”
If you were debating picking up RIM’s 16GB PlayBook, you may want to make up your mind fast, as retailers will not be replenishing their stock. Otherwise, you can still get your hands on the 32GB or 64GB models, which currently retail for $249 and $299, respectively. Companies tend to phase out tablets to make way for new ones, so perhaps we’ll see the next generation of PlayBook later this year to coincide with RIM’s launch of BlackBerry 10.