Thunderbolt vs Bionic

[bigdad63]

Hello, my name is Robert and I'm a screenaholic.

I went to ATT today to compare the screens on the Inspire and the Atrix to help me decide if I'm going to buy the TB or wait on the Atrx. If you'll remember by comparison, the TB and Inspire have the same size screen, BUT, the TB is plain old WVGA and the Inspire is Super-lcd. The Atrix has the 960 x 540 qHD, the same resolution as the Bionic, but smaller at 4" vs 4.3 for the Bio. Anyways, to make a short story longer, I ran the Route 66 video (from today's 'News' section) side by side on the phones; making the size of the video as close as possible on both. While some say I shouldn't be able to see a difference with that few pixels worth of difference, I felt like the Atrx video was sharper. But then the kicker for me was that at the end of the video (where they are showing the backs of the cars) there is a cut line in the trunk of the citroen that runs at about 45 degrees. On the Atrx, it was rendered cleanly, but on the Inspire it was noticably jagged (or pixelated). I did it twice and came up with the same results. So now I'm completely sold on impatiently waiting on the Bionic (it looks like they're already making progress on side-loading programs).dancedroid

 

[bigdad63]

yea the physical keyboard question is what's on my mind. I'm a "large physical keyboard" guy because I text a lot. -- my favorite keyboard was the LG Voyager. then it broke and the closest thing to it was this horrible little phone called the Envy touch. So at the moment I'm actually thinking of ditching the physical keyboard as well - in favor of the virtual (landscape mode) keyboards which are more spacious anyway! As advanced as my opposable thumbs are, they are rather large lol)

as for the UI tragedies, yea I wouldln't know either having used neither one!

oh, and believe it or not I'd like better VZW coverage inside my employer's building, and 700MHz LTE will probably do it!

I hear you on the bloatware. folks over at notebookreview.com are re-installing fresh Win7 bits just to cool things down, lol. I'm not one for heavy customizing, either. if something goes wrong I don't want the recovery experience to be so painful (I re-install Vista about 3 times per year... because my employer won't support win7)

The physical keyboard is the only thing I'm worried about. I have no doubt the TB (being my first smart phone) will outperform my LG Voyager in every possible way, but I love having a physical keyboard...someone please help ease my fears

I was an old physical keyboard junkie until I got the Storm 1, now the OG Droid. As with anything new, a learning curve exists. Give it a week or two and once you've gotten used to it, you will fly. Especially if you use Skype.

I've installed an HTC keyboard on my Droid and it is very user friendly. I would imagine the TB's will be even better.

I think they mean Swype, which I think is great. Most of the time I use Swiftkey though and find that I can fly with it. I don't use my D1's keyboard much at all anymore.

 

[evereddie]

I am looking at Thunderbolt or bionic. I really could use the ability to play HD video straight from phone for business use. I can't find very much info on whether DLNA can carry High Def. Read in some forum that it couldn't but then read some limited info that DLNA can do mp4 which can be any resolution. I don't know why I read that DLNA couldn't do high def. Other than a lot of marketing stuff can't find real specs on DLNA as comes out of the Thunderbolt vs. the HDMI output the Bionic has. So simple question: can DLNA carry HD at least in 720? And will the DLNA that Thunderbolt has output in HD.

 

[jwhitford88]

One thing people often comment is that Motorola will offer better accessories for the bionic. What exactly do you all mean by this?

I have had my D1 since launch and use it as my only GPS. It's the single most important feature for me, especially since I will be moving across the country soon. I demand that my next phone also has a GPS dock, and while I understand there are 3rd party universal accessories, I really prefer the 1st party ones.

Has anyone seen if HTC will be releasing a GPS dock for the Thunderbolt?

 

[Blackhawk55]

One thing people often comment is that Motorola will offer better accessories for the bionic. What exactly do you all mean by this?

I have had my D1 since launch and use it as my only GPS. It's the single most important feature for me, especially since I will be moving across the country soon. I demand that my next phone also has a GPS dock, and while I understand there are 3rd party universal accessories, I really prefer the 1st party ones.

Has anyone seen if HTC will be releasing a GPS dock for the Thunderbolt?

Sorry if a dumb question but what's a GPS dock? Same as a car dock? You are looking for a customized car dock? If so, I don't know about HTC direct but I'll recommend my device mounts of choice: ProClip (Device Holders and Dashboard Vehicle Mounts - ProClip Car Mounts for Mobile Phones, GPS, and Handheld Devices)

I like their system of the two very customized pieces: one for the car and one for the phone. Classy look, secure, convenient and way nicer than those stupid suction cup mounts. Pricey for sure but when you change either your car or your phone, you buy only the piece you need. I think I'm on my 3rd or 4th phone mount for the same car mount. Maybe I need a new car some day but all my money goes to phones!

FWIW, just as I did when the Droid was released, I have written ProClip to get the ball rolling about a holder for the Thunderbolt. They replied that I'll be notified when it's ready to order. They said they need to get their hands on one in order to determine if an existing holder might fit or if they need to design a new one from scratch. We discussed how the TB and and EVO seem to be the same height and width but the TB is deeper than the EVO.

 

[jwhitford88]

BlackHawk,

Thanks so much for that review, I had never heard of Proclip before, but it looks like an even better solution than the suction mounts! I like that when I'm not using GPS it won't obstruct my windshield. Good stuff

I'm assuming that they are designed to allow charging while in use?

 

[Blackhawk55]

BlackHawk,

Thanks so much for that review, I had never heard of Proclip before, but it looks like an even better solution than the suction mounts! I like that when I'm not using GPS it won't obstruct my windshield. Good stuff

I'm assuming that they are designed to allow charging while in use?

My current mount sits just below the dashboard horizon perfectly out of the way yet right where I need it. Plus it gets some of the A/C action from a vent to keep it cool.

When they first released the Droid holder, I like to think I helped them a bit. First, by requesting it before the release and making sure they knew they would probably be seeing a lot of requests. Second, I let them know about how the Motorola docks had the magnets embedded. Their first holder did not have the magnet (which was fine with me). However, the initial design allowed the phone to slip out of the holder a bit. I notified them and within days received an updated version with no slippage.

A couple months later they then released a series of new holders for the Droid, some with the magnet, some without, some with a built-in power charger and some without. I already had my car charger and did not want the magnet trick, so I've been happy with mine since the initial model. Take a peek at their line for the Droid or better yet, the EVO, and it might give you an idea of the possibilities we might soon see for the TB.

I might also encourage you to click Contact Us and drop them a note of your interest. It might help for them to get more "market input" and it should get you on the list to be notified when they have a TB solution.

Edit: To answer your question(!), yes, even the holders without the built-in charger are designed to allow access to the charger port, not to mention support both portrait and landscape use. The swivel feature allows correct positioning.

 

[lortay78]

I am looking at Thunderbolt or bionic. I really could use the ability to play HD video straight from phone for business use. I can't find very much info on whether DLNA can carry High Def. Read in some forum that it couldn't but then read some limited info that DLNA can do mp4 which can be any resolution. I don't know why I read that DLNA couldn't do high def. Other than a lot of marketing stuff can't find real specs on DLNA as comes out of the Thunderbolt vs. the HDMI output the Bionic has. So simple question: can DLNA carry HD at least in 720? And will the DLNA that Thunderbolt has output in HD.

I don't know for sure what definition my mp4 movies on my droid x are, but I can tell you that they look much better on my big led screen when I use dlna than when I use hdmi.

 

[Joeteck]

I was 100% Bionic the first few pages, then moved to the TB and now I'm back to the BIONIC... lol

This is how I see it...(so far) The Bionic is dual core, however only one is being used since the current Android OS can only utilize one core, however when most of you are tired of your TBolt, the BIONIC will get a core boost when we upgrade to version 3.0. Hence a new phone, just 12 to 16 months later, for free.... No too bad...

 

[envirosciguy]

I was 100% Bionic the first few pages, then moved to the TB and now I'm back to the BIONIC... lol

This is how I see it...(so far) The Bionic is dual core, however only one is being used since the current Android OS can only utilize one core, however when most of you are tired of your TBolt, the BIONIC will get a core boost when we upgrade to version 3.0. Hence a new phone, just 12 to 16 months later, for free.... No too bad...

Yeah, I like that idea.

 

[Preach2k]

I was 100% Bionic the first few pages, then moved to the TB and now I'm back to the BIONIC... lol

This is how I see it...(so far) The Bionic is dual core, however only one is being used since the current Android OS can only utilize one core, however when most of you are tired of your TBolt, the BIONIC will get a core boost when we upgrade to version 3.0. Hence a new phone, just 12 to 16 months later, for free.... No too bad...

I to am getting the Bionic... however the Bionic will not get 3.0 Honeycomb. It will get a mixture of Honeycomb and Gingerbread which will be 2.4 Called Ice-cream sandwich.. Honeycomb is made only for tablets...

 

[Joeteck]

I was 100% Bionic the first few pages, then moved to the TB and now I'm back to the BIONIC... lol

This is how I see it...(so far) The Bionic is dual core, however only one is being used since the current Android OS can only utilize one core, however when most of you are tired of your TBolt, the BIONIC will get a core boost when we upgrade to version 3.0. Hence a new phone, just 12 to 16 months later, for free.... No too bad...

I to am getting the Bionic... however the Bionic will not get 3.0 Honeycomb. It will get a mixture of Honeycomb and Gingerbread which will be 2.4 Called Ice-cream sandwich.. Honeycomb is made only for tablets...

Can we assume 2.4 will be dual-core enabled?

 

[Preach2k]

I was 100% Bionic the first few pages, then moved to the TB and now I'm back to the BIONIC... lol

This is how I see it...(so far) The Bionic is dual core, however only one is being used since the current Android OS can only utilize one core, however when most of you are tired of your TBolt, the BIONIC will get a core boost when we upgrade to version 3.0. Hence a new phone, just 12 to 16 months later, for free.... No too bad...

I to am getting the Bionic... however the Bionic will not get 3.0 Honeycomb. It will get a mixture of Honeycomb and Gingerbread which will be 2.4 Called Ice-cream sandwich.. Honeycomb is made only for tablets...

Can we assume 2.4 will be dual-core enabled?

Yes it will make Dual Core Enabled.

 

[JerseyFrankU]

...but

I was 100% Bionic the first few pages, then moved to the TB and now I'm back to the BIONIC... lol

This is how I see it...(so far) The Bionic is dual core, however only one is being used since the current Android OS can only utilize one core, however when most of you are tired of your TBolt, the BIONIC will get a core boost when we upgrade to version 3.0. Hence a new phone, just 12 to 16 months later, for free.... No too bad...

....but will they give us a OS version to utilize 2cores? - or not allow the upgrade - saving it for the next-new-$300 handset? - i mean - that has been the hope/source of my patience.. that the next phone will be one 'to hold on to'

past the twine and tin cans...

 

[Joeteck]

So far the Bionic seems to be the phone to get... You guys (The Android community) will find a way to root it I'm sure.. And I'll be on that band wagon like white on rice... I just found out that Verizon will be offering 3g and 4g service on a 4g enabled phone.. Even though its 4g, you're not forced to pay for 4g service (SWEET), which I find to be very nice... I'm not getting the bionic for 4 LTE, I'm getting it for what it can do and offer me. I could give a rats-ass about 4 LTE...lol