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General review, complaints, and info

I am sorry...no not really a rant, more to let people know they are having radio issues. It is a great phone, and I am sorry HTC sense beats blur into the pavement, dirt, and anything else underneath.
 
Thunderbolt -- biggest, fastest pile of FAIL ever

Bleeeech... i returned my 1st Tbolt because the plastic thingy below the home keys just started popping off. Got my 2nd one and the audio quality is complete shyyyte. Everyone says I sound like I've got a couple of pairs of socks wrapped around the phone. Tried to exchange it at the VZ store today and they gave me the big runaround. What a joke. This phone has serious build / QC issues & I will be returning it tomorrow. Will wait for 2Q/3Q phones that will be dual core, qHD displays, inductive charging, gingerbread, etc etc....

Tbolt is a major FAIL in my eyes. Everything from

*Botched launch date (over a month late!)
*HTC locked/signed bootloader lockdown, custom ROMs gonna be tough
*Poor build quality, 1st one fell apart after 1 day, light bleeding thru cracks at the bottom strip on all TBolts that I've ever seen.
*Buggy software (HTC keyboard is a buggy mess)
*No gingerbread
*price $$$
*Screen is "Meh" (display this size releasing today no excuse for not being qHD) and have you tried using this outdoors?? in sunlight it is flat out UNUSABLE, among the worst I've ever seen
*Audio problems: call quality has been so-so to really bad, and have you tried answering a call with headphones plugged in?? sorry you cant do that because the microphone gets shut off!!
*Awful battery life (1400mAh??? You make a huge ass monster of a phone and put a puny wimpy little batt in there --wtf??????)

Overall just an epic fail. Sorry HTC & Verizon but this is DOA. Better get going on the Bionic asap.
 
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I guess I'll be the first to reply to this but first off, I'd like to say: to each, his own. if you don't think the Thunderbolt is for you, then feel free to wait for a (purely subjective) "better" phone.

1. Technically, the launch was on time seeing that the only official word that Verizon gave about the launch date was "by the end of Q1", which is on March 31.

2. The bootloader, although it was signed/locked has already been unlocked; it was just a surprise for devs that HTC would sign them in the first place.

3. Sorry about your experiences. I actually kinda agree with this one, but it's not a biggie to me.

4. If the HTC keyboard is buggy, then there are plenty alternatives on the market such as SwiftKey. Or, if you're fortunate enough to be in the beta program, then Swype. The beautiful thing about Android is customization :D

5. Gingerbread is said to be coming Q2, which is not far off

6. Saying that it's the "worst" is purely subjective, but I disagree with that. My D1 was nearly impossible to use outdoors unless it was on MAX brightness in which I could vaguely make out the screen.

7. Can't comment on this seeing that I have only made 1 call on it so far

8. There are plenty of threads and hints on here on how to improve battery life. A substantial amount report getting 12+ hours with medium-heavy use which is more than acceptable for a smart phone of this caliber.

Purely subjective. It should be noted that this is simply YOUR experience with this phone so that any newcomer that is thinking about getting this phone is not turned off because they think that they will have the same experience. My personal experience with the phone has been flawless. In the process of rooting now :D

BTW, I didn't mean to come off as negative in any way. Purely a discussion :). Good luck with whatever phone you decide to get later on bruh :D
 
Bleeeech... i returned my 1st Tbolt because the plastic thingy below the home keys just started popping off. Got my 2nd one and the audio quality is complete shyyyte. Everyone says I sound like I've got a couple of pairs of socks wrapped around the phone. Tried to exchange it at the VZ store today and they gave me the big runaround. What a joke. This phone has serious build / QC issues & I will be returning it tomorrow. Will wait for 2Q/3Q phones that will be dual core, qHD displays, inductive charging, gingerbread, etc etc....

Tbolt is a major FAIL in my eyes. Everything from

*Botched launch date (over a month late!)
*HTC locked/signed bootloader lockdown, custom ROMs gonna be tough
*Poor build quality, 1st one fell apart after 1 day, light bleeding thru cracks at the bottom strip on all TBolts that I've ever seen.
*Buggy software (HTC keyboard is a buggy mess)
*No gingerbread
*price $$$
*Screen is "Meh" (display this size releasing today no excuse for not being qHD) and have you tried using this outdoors?? in sunlight it is flat out UNUSABLE, among the worst I've ever seen
*Audio problems: call quality has been so-so to really bad, and have you tried answering a call with headphones plugged in?? sorry you cant do that because the microphone gets shut off!!
*Awful battery life (1400mAh??? You make a huge ass monster of a phone and put a puny wimpy little batt in there --wtf??????)

Overall just an epic fail. Sorry HTC & Verizon but this is DOA. Better get going on the Bionic asap.

The bootloader is not signed so you can unlock it, the release date, though delayed was still in the first quarter, many users new to android experience call quality issues you can normally fix that in settings or dialing a number to change that (i have to find that number because I forgot). We all knew about the battery life. It was no secret that the battery life was going to be poor. Basically I would recommend getting a device you like. The thunderbolt is a nice device, and though I do not have one, it is not as bad as you making it sound. I understand some devices may not grab an individual and that is why you have 14 days to try it and then take it back. Hopefully we can help you with future android devices.
 
The bootloader is not signed so you can unlock it, the release date, though delayed was still in the first quarter, many users new to android experience call quality issues you can normally fix that in settings or dialing a number to change that (i have to find that number because I forgot). We all knew about the battery life. It was no secret that the battery life was going to be poor. Basically I would recommend getting a device you like. The thunderbolt is a nice device, and though I do not have one, it is not as bad as you making it sound. I understand some devices may not grab an individual and that is why you have 14 days to try it and then take it back. Hopefully we can help you with future android devices.

Well stated.
 
Thanks for the excellent post, Shusuke. Very well thought out and written.

Why thank you sir. I try ^>^

Seriously... I have a tablet (uhh I mean phone) that just remoted into my PC using "Phone My PC" and I was able to Launch Amadeus and Sabre GDS systems (airline res systems that make me money) + check my faxes thru Ring Central and IM as if I was at home... 4G rocks, don't HATE!

-not to mention that Sirius XM app works 110% better on 4G (Stern 4 Ever)

:lifting:
 
Sorry to hear about bad experience, definitely return it if you're not happy. Because one, you'll be happier; and two, because you're happier there will be less "ZOMFG THIS PHONE SUXXORS". (Just a joke lol ;-) ). Anyway I've heard word, well...rumors... that the bionic is close. Really curious about it. I was originally waiting for the bionic but this 4g lte deal was too good to pass up. I'm happy to say though the tbolt has been a good experience for me I haven't been frustrated by anything major yet and can see myself being happy for at least a year lol. I discovered that I like sense (maybe just cause blur was so bad) and that I don't mind taking a break from moto.

Sent from my ADR6400L using Tapatalk
 
Bleeeech... i returned my 1st Tbolt because the plastic thingy below the home keys just started popping off. Got my 2nd one and the audio quality is complete shyyyte. Everyone says I sound like I've got a couple of pairs of socks wrapped around the phone. Tried to exchange it at the VZ store today and they gave me the big runaround. What a joke. This phone has serious build / QC issues & I will be returning it tomorrow. Will wait for 2Q/3Q phones that will be dual core, qHD displays, inductive charging, gingerbread, etc etc....

Tbolt is a major FAIL in my eyes. Everything from

*Botched launch date (over a month late!)
*HTC locked/signed bootloader lockdown, custom ROMs gonna be tough
*Poor build quality, 1st one fell apart after 1 day, light bleeding thru cracks at the bottom strip on all TBolts that I've ever seen.
*Buggy software (HTC keyboard is a buggy mess)
*No gingerbread
*price $$$
*Screen is "Meh" (display this size releasing today no excuse for not being qHD) and have you tried using this outdoors?? in sunlight it is flat out UNUSABLE, among the worst I've ever seen
*Audio problems: call quality has been so-so to really bad, and have you tried answering a call with headphones plugged in?? sorry you cant do that because the microphone gets shut off!!
*Awful battery life (1400mAh??? You make a huge ass monster of a phone and put a puny wimpy little batt in there --wtf??????)

Overall just an epic fail. Sorry HTC & Verizon but this is DOA. Better get going on the Bionic asap.

I don't get the complaints on most of what you listed and see some misinformation. The first being the release date. VZW said before the end of Q1 and never officially announced a date. The only time they did was a week before when they knew they were releasing the phone. The only ones that jumped the gun and gave false dates were BestBuy and people speculating with no actual proof.

The second one I don't get is the battery life. I have been 18 hours unplugged with moderate to medium use and have 49% battery left. On my extended battery I would have 76% left. Granted, I made some weeks but nothing no one else couldn't do. All you have to do is use common sense on things with a smartphone and your battery life will be fine.

Last, is build quality? Are you kidding? I think HTC makes the most solid builds there are. I work in the IT industry and have used every smartphone, pda, and blackberry known to man. HTC is by far the best! This is not personal preference speaking here but actual experience.

These phones are basically low end laptops. Can your laptop get 16+ hours on battery plus make phone calls? Didn't think so! If you want a phone to last 4 or 5 days get a feature or dumb phone and of you think and iPhone is better it is not. My wife has the iPhone and she has to charge hers every night with 27% battery left on moderate usage with time unplugged at 14 hours.

Knowing those numbers and facts on other phones and the iFail, this phone is far superior. My stock battery lasts longer than an iFail and I can at least change my battery (memory card also) to an extended and get almost 2 days usage out of the TB whereas the iPhone is already being charged and no LTE.

Please do not take me as attacking you as I am not. I just fail to see a valid complaint here. What I have just stated above this is all fact and will be happy to provide specs, screen shots, links etc, to back up what I have written.

Edit: I am not sure where you are getting the screen is crap. The screen is gorgeous and have no issues seeing it in direct sun light. Also, where do you get locked boot loader from. Within a week of the phone being released the phone was hacked and within a few days later ROM's were available. The den community is loving this phone and will devolved for it. You will not get this with an iPhone or Motorola (specially now with what they are doing to devs) and if there is a ROM for them it will be very limited.

I personally think you were a little unlucky and received a few bad phones. It happens as it is not a perfect world. Now if you get a third or fourth phone doing it, I will then listen to you. I had nothing but issues with Motorola ever since their first phone with Bluetooth that was available on Verizon. Verizon even had a class action lawsuit placed against them for this phone. This goes to show what garbage Motorola has pushed out their doors. The exception being the D1. That phone was solid and great with tons of functionality and mods.

Sent from my ADR6400L using DroidForums App
 
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The only thing I'm kinda irked at is the price. Isn't the inspire 4g on att only $100? It has just about the same specs, why are we paying double the price? And it even has native HTC hub support right out of the box.

Sent from my ADR6400L using Tapatalk
 
Hi jacobdobie. Having the same problems. Verizon gave no assistance. Please explain what you did? Did you purchase a new battery and back to the phone?
 
4g in hartford

I'm enjoying 4g at Bradley airport. I didn't see it on the list but Hartford is slated to get it per last weeks press release. Maybe a little early testing. Getting 22 down consistently.

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