Research in Motion has introduced a new video chat application for the BlackBerry PlayBook tablet — something that the company probably should have offered when it first started selling the tablet last month.

The BlackBerry PlayBook Video Chat application will allow PlayBook users to place video calls over a WiFi network using the tablet’s front-facing camera.

The company describes the feature as “one-click” video and voice calls, allowing you to call anyone in your video chat contact list or recent call log. Of course, you’ll actually need to locate the contact first, so really it takes a couple of clicks… but not all that many. You can also place a direct called using the BBID email address of your contact.

When an incoming call arrives you can choose whether you want to use video or just voice. You can also set a Do Not Disturb option so that the PlayBook will ignore incoming calls.

The PlayBook supports picture-in-picture so you can see how your hair looks while you’re talking.

The video chat app is expected to be available starting May 3rd. It will be pushed to BlackBerry PlayBook customers through an over-the-air update and will also be available for download from the BlackBerry App World.

via MobileCrunch

Brad Linder

Brad Linder is editor of Liliputing and Mobiputing. He's been tinkering with mobile tech for decades and writing about it since 2006. Brad has also worked with NPR, WHYY, PRI, and AOL.

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