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So torn , what should I do ?

I got my mother a DInc at Costco for $170 just after I got my g/f one at the Verizon store for $200 (after the mail-in rebate, that is). I never even considered them for phones, as it's never what I go there for, but they apparently always have a decent deal even if it's a week or two after the initial release.
 
I'm torn too. I got the Thunderbolt because I was tired of how slow my Droid was. But the battery on the TB sucks, and the screen has tons of glare and is almost useless outdoors. I'm thinking of returning it and waiting for the Bionic. The risk is that they won't have unlimited 4G anymore, and it will cost a lot more per month. I might be better off keeping the TB, selling it on Ebay in a couple months, and paying retail for the Bionic so I keep my unlimited 4G (under the TB contract). Decisions, decisions....
 
rdalcanto said:
I'm torn too. I got the Thunderbolt because I was tired of how slow my Droid was. But the battery on the TB sucks, and the screen has tons of glare and is almost useless outdoors. I'm thinking of returning it and waiting for the Bionic. The risk is that they won't have unlimited 4G anymore, and it will cost a lot more per month. I might be better off keeping the TB, selling it on Ebay in a couple months, and paying retail for the Bionic so I keep my unlimited 4G (under the TB contract). Decisions, decisions....
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I was thinking that, but do you think you will get that much? And if you have to pay 300 more for the bionic that would equal out to an extra 15 a month anyways.

More if it is less than 20 months to the upgrade.

I will never go past the 5gb cap or even the 3gb. I don't watch videos on my little phone I do that on my 37 inch TV...

I also don't download or stream away from wifi and if I did I could gimp the quality to increase the bandwidth.

You may get 200-300 for the tbolt, but the bionic flat out will probably be 600+, at what point is the difference not worth the unlimited?
 
I too am waiting on the Bionic and almost bought the TB - glad I did not. It will be my 1st Droid phone so I am a bit nervous
 
qingshan said:
I too am waiting on the Bionic and almost bought the TB - glad I did not. It will be my 1st Droid phone so I am a bit nervous
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If the screen on the Bionic is just a larger version of the screen on the Atrix (pentile tech, etc.) then you will be disappointed. I compaired the TB's screen and the Atrix's screen side by side - it was no lax comparison. I tested pics, videos, games, and web browsing, and direct sunlight.

The Atrix screen is pretty sharp, and the pentile effect is less pronounced than on SuperAMOLED and AMOLED screens (not S AMOLED Plus, however). Other than the increased resolution (which actually made the occasional app or game run slower because of scaling) the Atrix screen was a huge disappointment. Harder to read in direct sunlight than the TB or the Fascinate I was using. Colors were dull. Contrast simply wasn't there.

The TB's screen is superior in every way other than resolution to the screen on the Atrix. Your complaints about battery life on the TB are well-founded though.

It's a tough choice. I wish we had a clear winner. There honestly are none right now. People have to carefully and thoughtfully prioritize and compare the hell out of these things. If the Atrix didn't have pentile and a carrier lock against 3rd party apps (such as Amazon's app store), it would be just about the perfect phone. Some have reported creaky plastic and signal issues. The activated and person-owned Atrix I tested didn't demonstrate any of these issues to me. There was some lag/stutter going between homescreens and scrolling the app drawer, however, which surprised me a bit. Video playback was liquid smooth, and the camera takes pretty good photos and video.
 
At this point, my best hope is in upcoming SGS2. My only concern is that if it will have 4G antenna for CDMA version. I doubt it due to the thickness required for LTE radio. Otherwise it's nearly perfect in my eye. But I will take a close look at Stealth, Revolution, Bionic as they come. I might pull trigger on one of them if I like it.
 
jinwons said:
At this point, my best hope is in upcoming SGS2. My only concern is that if it will have 4G antenna for CDMA version. I doubt it due to the thickness required for LTE radio. Otherwise it's nearly perfect in my eye. But I will take a close look at Stealth, Revolution, Bionic as they come. I might pull trigger on one of them if I like it.
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So far, all of Verizon's LTE phones are very thick. The EVO was thick to begin with, so an improved spinoff of that made sense. The Stealth has the newer screen and improved media capabilities, but it also looks thicker in all the photos I've seen. The Bionic is a thicker, larger Atrix, minus some features. The LG Revolution looks to be a similar size and thickness to the Thunderbolt.

All of these phones are going to be thicker and heavier than the Fascinate. Of course some people will like this, but a lot of people that want thinner and more pocketable devices won't.

I really don't want an LTE device, the more I see them. The SGS2 is thinner than the Fascinate or the iPhone, regardless of its dual core processor, and the same 4.3" screen that will appear on the Stealth. Seems to me that the Stealth, being the larger phone is closer in size to a "galaxy" and that the SGS2 is thinner, lighter, and actually the more "stealthy" of the two.

Other than the thickness and weight issues, there's the battery issue. So far, the TB seems to get better battery life when it is nowhere near 4G. Obviously that's based on a few anecdotes, and it's going to take some time to determine the true battery life potential, and we have to give some time for updates to compensate as VZ and HTC work out more of the kinks of this new tech.

I really really really don't want this new tech until some more of those kinks are worked out ... I may not have a choice, though, if they decide to soon nix their unlimited plans. I know that's the reason many jumped on the TB. In a phone, even a smartphone, I'd still take better battery life over faster internet performance. Do I need the internet on it? Yes. Do I need to stream HD videos at 10-20 megs? NO. It's a PHONE and that still has to be a function it accomplishes well. Better battery life is a major aspect of having a usable cellular telephony device.
 
Same boat, D1 owner.

I think I'm going to wait until 4G is deployed in my geographic area. That's going to be the major step up in the quality of my experience, so upgrading now is just "aging" my phone more. I want to get my best choice available when I can actually use 4G.

I'm thinking HTC may have a dual core 4G out by then, perhaps the Incredible 2.
 
The only reason to get the TB is you will be able to keep your current unlimited data plan with 4G and will be grandfathered when verizon goes to a tiered system. There is no guarantee that you will get unlimited data with the bionic. No doubt verizon gave this carrot to TB owners and likely are using them as a test group to see how well their 4G works where available. in reality, the TB is just a crappy 4G phone.
 
wxman2003 said:
The only reason to get the TB is you will be able to keep your current unlimited data plan with 4G and will be grandfathered when verizon goes to a tiered system. There is no guarantee that you will get unlimited data with the bionic. No doubt verizon gave this carrot to TB owners and likely are using them as a test group to see how well their 4G works where available. in reality, the TB is just a crappy 4G phone.
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I don't think it's a crappy phone. Have you used one? The screen is gorgeous. The phone is pretty fast. It has the same decent form factor and solid build as the EVO. But it lacks HDMI and a sufficient battery. I wouldn't call it crappy, just lacking. At least it lacks what would make it appeal to me as my next device. From the Fascinate or Droid X it is merely a sidegrade, not an upgrade, unless you MUST have 4G.
 
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