(Credit: RIM)

PlayBook owners: the wait for Android apps is almost over, with RIM planning to release a major PlayBook update during its annual North American DevCon event next month in San Fransisco.

The information came out of RIM's Q2 earning call, with the information — picked up by Engadget — suggesting that this major update will include the Android app player, native calendar, email and contacts, plus the new BlackBerry Video store. There's no word yet on whether the video store will be for US users only, but it's likely, given the complexity of content licensing.

RIM first unveiled the Android app player during BlackBerry World back in May, revealing that the app player was built out of Google's own open-source code, and boasting that because of the unique structure of the PlayBook's QNX system, Android apps should perform faster on a PlayBook than on an Android device. At this time, RIM had promised that the Android app player would be available to PlayBook owners by the end of the US summer (Australian winter), but it has since pushed the release of this important update back. Fingers crossed that we don't have to wait any longer than October.

Via www.engadget.com