The device will be the first PlayBook with wireless wide-area connectivity, according to the companies. The announcement also represented one of the few times at this year's tablet-heavy show that WiMax has been mentioned in conjunction with the hot new product category.

RIM in San Francisco last September. At the Digital Experience event on Wednesday, on the sidelines of CES, RIM let media and analysts handle the device for the first time.

The company expects the first PlayBooks to go on sale by the end of March in the U.S. and worldwide in the second quarter. If the WiMax version is the first with wide-area network capability, those first units presumably will use only Wi-Fi, which will be built in.

The PlayBook, with a 7-inch screen, is smaller than Apple's iPad. The device felt lighter in the hand than the iPad, which comes with a 9.7-inch screen. RIM bills it as a business tablet that consumers can use, too. Its software will be based on the QNX Neutrino real-time operating system that RIM acquired last year.

The companies did not share any pricing details on Thursday. RIM is working with carriers, retailers and other distribution partners, said Ryan Bidan,senior product manager.