ThunderBolt excitement continues to build

By Phil Nickinson  | Feb 11 2011 | 2:17 pm  | 38 Comments

Verizon HTC ThunderboltVerizon HTC Thunderbolt

Now that we know the launch date for the HTC ThunderBolt, you'd think the excitement might die down just a tad. But it's quite the opposite, actually, as here we have more pics from what appears to be the inside of a Verizon store, with signage and a dummy phone.

Can't say we blame you guys. We've actually seen and used the ThunderBolt, and it's a solid LTE Android smartphone. So just a couple weeks to go, folks. In the meantime, feel free to wait in our ThunderBolt forums.

Phil Nickinson

Phil Nickinson Editor in Chief

"Phil is a recovering print journalist, editor of Android Central, subtitles and street signs."

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There are 38 comments

I_Am_Incredible says:

I'm honestly not that excited about this phone... I do admit I am an EVO owner and the specs on this is better including the "New" SenseUI but if a phone is not worth jumping ship for, I can't get too excited about it...

Looking forward to what else HTC has instore for next week to compete with MOTO LG and Sammy

svargas05 says:

Yea, man, same here. I have an Evo and I just don't see anything worth jumping up for joy over.

Im happy for the Verizon users for having a decent competitor of their own with 4G capability; but I'm still extremely confident that Sprint isn't stupid enough to not come out with something better or much more exciting than their Echo...

Dark_Blu says:

The last phone I had a "phonegasm" over was the EVO I'm holding in my hand. This Thunderbolt is little more than an EVO with LTE, more memory, and a bigger SD card. I don't have LTE, but WiMax 4G works just fine for me and I can always get a bigger SD card. I could get excited about a Dual Core 1GB RAM 16GB internal memory type phone on Sprint, but my upgrade isn't for two years and I have no phone Envy with this phone.

svargas05 says:

And see....IDK

I think at this point, with all the dual-core phones already announced, it's hard for me to get excited the way I was for the Evo.

Now it's just kind of...expected. You get me?

If they did 1.2Ghz, Dual Core, Tegra 2, 1080p vedieo(60fps), 8mp rear cam with much more improved imaging, 2mp ffc, increased pixel density and better resolution, and throw in some 3D capability(recording and glasses free viewing) and you've got a star device.

Gingerbread stock, upgradeable to honeycomb. Mmmmmmm....my mouth waters at my dream :)

Bobman says:

May not be exciting for others with decent Android phones to begin with, but for me it looks awesome. I currently don't even have a smartphone and have been waiting for the "next thing" to come out. So, I'm all over this. Then I'll try to be satisfied with it for two years ...

johnowenstko says:

Local Best Buy told me we are still on for the 14th launch. They said if it was going to be delayed they would know by now. I guess we will see for sure on Monday.

I_Am_Incredible says:

Those reps at Best Buy don't know shit. Don't ask them anything... trust me you know more. Especially when it comes to newly released products like phones

aergern says:

If "those" reps in Best Buy have seen the boxes in their back room warehouses and they have a "brick and mortar" launch exclusive AND with all the confusion surrounding this launch ... who is to say it won't be a Best Buy ONLY thing for 10 days then launch everywhere on the 24th? Just like those movies that start in NYC and LA first then a few weeks later they hit nation wide.

Unless YOU are a VZW exec with some proof or a Best Buy person with some proof .. pound sand ... mkay. ;)

icebike says:

This phone is getting as much play as the Verizon iPhone.
Very clever stage managing by HTC and Verizon.

That has GOT to piss off Apple. The big iPhone launch has most analysts saying it was mostly a fizzle, even taking into account the huge pre-orders.

This says to me that Verizon is not all that enthusiastic about the revenue potential for the iPhone.

Now, those people thinking of getting an iPhone 4 are going to walk in and see an the Thunderbolt out performing the iPhone, AND it is future proofed by virtue of being LTE.

Granted there are a lot of people that don't analyse things that closely, and just go for what they think is cool today. But even the definition of cool is changing fast.

aergern says:

Would you buy a 3G iPhone ... be locked in for 24 months and then have new shiny come out just a few months down the road. The sold to those who were on dumbphones and other non-Android phones .. then fizzle. ;)

svargas05 says:

Of course, man!

Apple may have started ahead a few years back, but there are leaps and bounds being made for Android.

The Thunderbolt boasts LTE 4G, and the iphone4 boasts.... the Apple logo?

Dark_Blu says:

The next iPhone is sure to be LTE. The Verizon iPhone already has CDMA and GSM built in. The next one will be cross platform so that iPhone customers won't have to give up their iPhone if they switch networks, unless they feel the need to always have the newest iPhone or the desire to make Apple richer.

Whereas, this phone and other LTE phones will already be there months before Apple. Yes, the iPhone 4 launch on Verizon fizzled. There were less than ten people waiting in line first thing in the morning at the NY store. There were more Apple employees than customers. It was a joke.

tim6253 says:

@I_AM_INCREDIBLE: I jumped ship for this phone. I had an Evo.

I_Am_Incredible says:

Please. Broke your contract and waiting for a slightly beefed up EVO... you're not very believable.

WhitePhone says:

I'm doing this as well. Why? Because I wanted a 4G phone, and WiMAX blows.

svargas05 says:

Im sorry.

I send you my condolonces.

mgymnop says:

Less and less excited to be true....and still no official release date.
March 6th is coming closer....Never thought that there will be a chance to get the Atrix before the TB.

majorhunadadun says:

It's a badass phone no doubt! I'm quite content with my evo thx to rooting. I would however like to see what the next is... It certainly ain't the other 4 letter 'E' phone! The evo is huge! They gotta come with it! Incidentally, how will the 4g be handled on the tbolt? Will you have to turn it on?

aergern says:

It requires an LTE simcard which one will get at purchase .. there is an unboxing video somewhere that showed this. Sooner then later voice will be done via VoIP over LTE ... no more CDMA needed. It'll be close to how GSM is today .. all simcard based for usage.

KenA says:

The current iPhone sales may be slack due to the fact that the cat's outta the bag on iPhone 5 being released in the near future.... People have waited this long, what's a few more months? :/

However, I will be jumping all over the TB asap. Though I am going to miss the button on the front of my dInc!

iPhone = iWho iCares!

tim6253 says:

@I_AM_Incredible: My ETF was only $80. I switched to Verizon, on a family plan. I got the Incredible at Best Buy on 1/27 for free. Going to do an exchange when the Thunderbolt comes out. Best Buy's return policy is still 30 days. My main two reasons for jumping ship for this phone are the aluminum unibody, and Lte. Lte is coming to my area in just a few months, being tested now. Wimax deployment has stalled. Not to mention, Lte > Wimax. The 700 Mhz band it runs on is much better. Wimax operates like wifi, you have to turn it on and off. Lte is as smooth as 3G/1x transition is. So, believe it or not....I jumped.

I_Am_Incredible says:

Welll that's different. You already jumped ship and got the Incredible. Not like you just left Sprint for VZW just for this 1 phone. THat's what I meant.

WhitePhone says:

Exactly on the LTE thing.

thisisnotalovesong says:

I laugh at these evo owners who feel the need to rip on the tb. Get a grip. You'll get your evo 2 too soon.

svargas05 says:

On behalf of the Evo user community,

I send my apologies for any ignorance that has been placed upon HTC Thunderbolt prospective owners.

I, am happy for you all, and personally, I CAN NOT WAIT! for the Evo 2 (And thats on a separate note from the TB.)

tim6253 says:

@I_Am_Incredible: No, you don't get t. I switched for the Thunderbolt. I just got the dinc basically as a loaner til it launches. I switched when I did to avoid another month's bill from Sprint. Make no mistake about it, I SWITCHED TO VERIZON FOR THE THUNDERBOLT. As hard as that is for you to believe...IT IS!

project.in.process says:

current Evo owner,
possibly jumping ship for this.
but that's contingent on the pricing for the 4gLTE service.

if it's $29.99 data,
and i can hop on a family-plan Add A Line,
then i don't see why i wouldn't hop over to VZW.

but if the Evo2 is announced at MWC sooner, then i might just stay.

where's my stupid data plan pricing?!

svargas05 says:

I'd wait buddy.

MWC isnt that far away, and you don't want to regret making a big change like switching carriers without know what YOUR carrier has in store yet.

Be patient, it is, after all, a virtue.

Dark_Blu says:

From an EVO to a Thunderbolt? PLEASE. A 32gb SD card is cheaper.

tim6253 says:

@Darc_Blu: Better build and Lte make it worth it to me. I'd love to get to use my phone's 4G. Verizon is bringin it. After 2 years have passed since Wimax launched, it is going nowhere fast.

bkorver says:

Here it is... EVO vs. TBolt head to head. Hard to argue this one...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y-3MOvuPFvU

tim6253 says:

Thanks for the video. I had not seen it. Pretty damn impressive. The only thing he is slightly off on, is the thickness. It's .50 vs .52...hardly enough to make it bulkier. I would have loved an Lte vs Wimax speed on there. But, we know Lte wins : )

bberrynewbie84 says:

So basically,Verizon got an iphone for users that always wanted it and their getting an updated EVO for Verizon users that wanted that.

tim6253 says:

I called 5 Best Buy stores today. They all said release date is 2/24.

MicroNix says:

I was very excited for the T-Bolt back when it was rumored to be dual core, but with the Bionic just around the corner with some killer specs including the Tegra 2, I lost interest in the T-Bolt. All it would have needed was to be dual core and I would have been all over the T-Bolt. As an owner of the original Droid and seeing how much smoother the newer processor phones are, I want a phone that will have the horsepower for the next few revisions of Android, not just to run what is there today fast... after watching the beginning of the Android game, it is clear that if you want a phone to last your contract and get timely updates, you shoot for the power house.

tim6253 says:

@MicroNix: This phone is wicked fast. It scored higher than the Bionic in Benchmarks. It scored 1930 on quadrant. Highest phone score ever.

mattchew86 says:

Here's the thing that bothers me: Considering the changes in verizons policies lately, from cutting back upgrades for customers to throttling data, why is this device getting so much press?

I understand that verizon customers are excited for it, but if your carrier will continue to treat you like garbage, why are you so eager to give them more money for another 2 years?

I do not intend to troll. Just don't get it.

angel35 says:

All Comments are good for a little info,But were is the phone coming out????LETS GO Verizon!!!!!!!!!!!