RIM Blackberry Playbook
Jefferies & Co. said Research In Motion Ltd.'s (RIM) Blackberry Playbook sales are far exceeding Motorola's Xoom sales. The brokerage said its checks indicate first-day sales skewed toward pre-orders and the 32GB and 64GB models. Reuters

Research in Motion has recalled close to 1000 of its newly release PlayBook tablets due to a software flaw within the operating system.

In a recent memo to Staples from RIM -- subsequently published by Engadget -- the company confirmed that a percentage of the machines suffered from an inherent software flaw that prevented them loading the tablet's newly bought QNX platform OS.

In a statement to CNET the company acknowledged the problem saying:

"RIM determined that approximately 1,000 BlackBerry PlayBook tablets (16GB) were shipped with an OS build that may result in the devices being unable to properly load software upon initial set-up.

"The majority of the affected devices are still in the distribution channel and haven't reached customers. RIM is working to replace the affected devices."

The news has been doubly dire for RIM, damaging the company's already low share value. The company finished last Friday with a $43.24 share value on the Nasdaq Stock Market -- its lowest point since March 2009.

What this means for the company's long-term future is without a doubt bad.

Since the arrival the flashier iPhone and the subsequent market invasion of Android smartphones, Blackberry phone sales have been in gradual decline.

In the face of this RIM's recent market strategy seems to have shifted to focus on grabbing a slice of the younger and debatably less competitive tablet market. For this reason since the PlayBook was initially announced RIM has been pushing it as its next big product.

Yet having been welcomed with a host of either lukewarm or outright negative reviews, it is unlikely the somewhat minuscule 7-inch tablet will even manage to make a profit, let alone reverse a whole company's fortune.