BlackBerry set to go head-to-head with Apple with the launch of 'BlackPad'

The device is scheduled for launch in November, according to reports, and will be roughly the same size as Apple's device. RIM has already acquired the rights to the blackpad.com internet domain.

Users will be able to connect their BlackPad to the internet using the wireless connection of their mobile phone, rather than having to pay separately for 3G network access as users of the iPad must.

The introduction of the iPad, which hit UK stores in May, has reinvigorated the market for so-called tablet computers. In its recent results, Apple said it has sold 3.27m worldwide. 

Separately, RIM today launches its latest attempt to produce a viable alternative to the iPhone. The BlackBerry 9800 which has both a touchscreen and a slide-out qwerty keyboard and also features a new 'Version 6' operating system much more dedicated to multimedia applications than it's 5, primarily work related, fore-runners. A release date to upgrade previous devices to OS6 has yet to be announced.

RIM hopes it will be a viable alternative to both the new iPhone 4 and the plethora of devices being launched this year that use Android. Its previous forays into the world of touchscreens, with the BlackBerry Storm and Storm 2, met with mixed success, with the actor, national treasure & technology lover Stephen Fry, launching a scathing attack on the original Storm to his 1M+ followers on Twitter.

RIM has seen its share of the smartphone market dip as a result of fierce competition not just from the iPhone 4 but from Android devices such as the HTC Desire and Droid Incredible. In the first quarter of the year – which did not include the new iPhone – RIM had a 19.4% share of global shipments, down from 20.9% a year earlier, with Apple claiming 16.1% of the smartphone market, up from 10.9% a year earlier.