BlackBerry PlayBook Tablet Will Get Amazon's Kindle Application

By Evan Selleck/Sept. 27, 2010 3:48 pm EST

Research In Motion has officially unveiled the brand new PlayBook, the company's first tablet device, and they're pulling out all the stops. For fans of the BlackBerry lineage, getting the Amazon Kindle application on their device was a good day, and for those already thinking about picking up the tablet device with the BlackBerry logo on there, you'll be happy to know that Amazon is planning on releasing the Kindle application for the tablet device.

Amazon announced today that they are planning on releasing the ridiculously popular Kindle application for the BlackBerry PlayBook. They point out in the press release (which you can read below), that current BlackBerry owners can already download and read eBooks from the Kindle application they can already download. They go on to point out all of the standard, yet necessary features of the application, which will be available in 2011.

You'll be able to utilize Amazon's WhisperSync technology, which means you'll be able to read your books from the plethora of other devices that the Kindle is supported on (like the iPad, iPhone, Kindle itself, and Android devices), and keep your place along the way. You'll also be able to download books while on the go, without having to buy them from your PC first. And as usual, while the majority of books available to download will cost you, the application itself will be free.

Press Release

Amazon to Launch Kindle App for New BlackBerry PlayBook Tablet Computer

Amazon adds to its growing list of Buy Once, Read Everywhere Kindle apps that let readers choose from over 700,000 Kindle books and read them across a wide range of devices

SEATTLE – Sept. 27, 2010 – Amazon.com (NASDAQ: AMZN) today announced that it will launch a Kindle app for the new BlackBerry PlayBook tablet computer. Customers can already enjoy the free Kindle app on their BlackBerry today. Like all Kindle apps, the Kindle app for the new BlackBerry PlayBook will let customers Buy Once, Read Everywhere—on Kindle, Kindle 3G, Kindle DX, iPad, iPod touch, iPhone, Mac, PC, BlackBerry, Android-based devices, and in the coming months, the new BlackBerry PlayBook. Amazon's Whispersync technology syncs your place across devices, so you can pick up where you left off. For more information about the free Kindle apps, go to www.amazon.com/kindleapps.

"When you buy a Kindle book, you can already read it on iPhone, iPad, Android, PC, Mac, BlackBerry, and of course on your Kindle, Kindle 3G, and Kindle DX," said Dorothy Nicholls, Director, Amazon Kindle. "We're very excited to add the new BlackBerry PlayBook to that list. As with our other Kindle apps, the BlackBerry PlayBook app will be free and will incorporate our WhisperSync technology so you can seamlessly switch between devices. Our vision is 'Buy Once, Read Everywhere.'"

With Kindle devices and Kindle apps, customers can choose from over 700,000 books in the U.S. Kindle Store – the largest selection of the most popular books that people want to read—including New Releases and 108 of 111 New York Times Bestsellers. Over 575,000 of the books in the Kindle Store are $9.99 or less, including 80 New York Times Bestsellers. With Kindle Worry-Free Archive, books you purchase from the Kindle Store are automatically backed up online in your Kindle library on Amazon where they can be re-downloaded wirelessly for free, anytime.

Customers can learn more about the free Kindle apps at www.amazon.com/kindleapps.