[Egz]

My phone renewal is coming up next week, and I need to replace my Fascinate (I botched it up, bad OS install). Noticed BestBuy has it now listed for free, and since I'm trying to pay things off, I really shouldn't buy a cutting edge $199 phone.

How has the Bionic been holding up? Has there been any reoccuring annoyances? How about battery life; decent enough for an average user? Rooting fairly easy to remove bloatware?

Thanks

[Dale Griggs]

Rooting is a one step process and unrooting is just as easy. I had some data issues when it was first new but have had not problem since. It will stutter sometimes on some games but nothing to make me throw it against the wall. I have no complaints and don't plan on upgrading until Jellybean (or whatever) is available and quad arm 15 is the processor, probably sometime next year.
My MAJOR complaint is with Verizon software updates. I think they have given the software update responsibility to some high school IT class because they never update anything anymore. Look at the Nexus, they have never updated it yet.
I think since I will lose unlimited data next year if I upgrade, I will go with another carrier. I love the Verizon 4G network and my Bionic but I think Verizon is being run only by bean counters and not by anyone who cares about new technology.

[Yaish]

I am still very happy with mine. There isn't a phone out there you can currently buy that makes me jealous.

The only recurring problem I have is that if I am in a 3G area and I make or receive a call, I'll lose data and usually have to reboot to get data back. Since I'm in strong 4G areas most of the time, it's not much of a problem.

I converted an Atrix lapdock to work with my Bionic and love it. I hardly ever actually use my computer for anything at home now.

[hokiesteve]

Hardware-wise, it's a solid device. Battery life is pretty descent. Reception is solid. Speaker phone works really well. OEM batteries are inexpensive. I don't care for Blur too much and the VZW crapware is really annoying. However, a lot of that is easy to hide without root. Rooting is fairly quick and easy to do, so it's possible to remove the unwanted crap completely.

If ICS isn't a priority, the Bionic is a great deal right now.

[Egz]

Sounds good so far. Regarding the keyboard, is the factory layout ok, or will I want to install Swype on it?

[Joeyosaurus]

I agree with all the other pros/conns mentioned above, though I'm have been fairly disappointed with the screen.

The size is great, if you can overcome the bulkiness, but I have found that most AMOLED screens wipe the floor with the bionic lcd. Though the resolution is pretty average, the color depth really keeps me from loving this device.

I know cost was a concern for you, but with the Maxx at $200 right now, that or the G-Nex would easily gift you the most bang for your buck.

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus

[Android_Lee]

Do yourself a favor and buy one off the internet so that you DON'T have to renew a contract.....that way you can keep your unlimited data plan, if you have one already.

[renegademoose]

Sounds good so far. Regarding the keyboard, is the factory layout ok, or will I want to install Swype on it?

I personally prefer Swiftkey, but the factory keyboard isn't bad. Swiftkey on Bionic has some issues, but I deal with it. Swype is already preloaded.

[cindylike24]

Do yourself a favor and buy one off the internet so that you DON'T have to renew a contract.....that way you can keep your unlimited data plan, if you have one already.

I agree with Android_Lee on this one. I bought my Motorola Droid Bionic off of e-bay a month ago and this has been a great phone for me. By the way, I was able to keep my unlimited data plan when I went to this phone. By buying the phone off of e-bay, you may be paying more than what Verizon has it listed as but you won't have to mess with renewing a contract.

There's one piece of advice I want to share with you all. If you already have a phone with a SIM card, you should be able to put it in the new phone. If you don't, go to the Verizon store and buy one. This is from personal experience here. I went from an LG Enlighten (3G no SIM card) to the Motorola Droid Bionic (4G needs SIM card). I had a hard time activating my Bionic through the Verizon site because it said that I had an invalid SIM card number. I went down to the local Verizon store and bought a new SIM card for $20.00. When I installed this card at home, I then called the Verizon customer support site for help getting this phone activated. It only took about 5 minutes and I got someone that was very nice and helpful on this. He said that when you buy these phones secondhand, it is best to have a new card because the old one has the other person's information on it and I guess there is no way to reformat the SIM card for a new person to use this same card.

Cindy

[1812dave]

love my bionic. use the living daylights out of it. I'm a bit worried about being forced to accept the first iteration of ICS when it hits. I'd prefer to wait for a maintenance release or two, of ICS before I jump in, but the nag screen for updates precludes that.

[Egz]

I was upset over the unlimited deal. But now that I cooled, I'm not that upset. I average about 600Mb a month, partly because there is no 4G anywhere, nor will be for a long while.

One other question. Boot up from cold, how long does it take? The slow bootup time I have now sucks a big one.

[jimdibb]

I don't believe you can use a 3g SIM card in a 4g phone anyway. And, the phone comes with the SIM card.

Are you talking about buying a used BIONIC phone, then getting a new SIM card?

Sent from my DROID BIONIC using Tapatalk 2

[jimdibb]

I was upset over the unlimited deal. But now that I cooled, I'm not that upset. I average about 600Mb a month, partly because there is no 4G anywhere, nor will be for a long while.

One other question. Boot up from cold, how long does it take? The slow bootup time I have now sucks a big one.

Booting takes more than a minute. But, it rarely needs rebooting so it doesn't matter much.

Sent from my DROID BIONIC using Tapatalk 2

[3rdpig]

I don't think the loss of unlimited for extending a contract is in effect yet. I bought my Bionic something like a month or two ago, extended my contract and didn't lose my unlimited data account. But it wouldn't hurt to make sure before you do it.

[tirith]

I've used a 3g sim card from guatemala in my photon 4g...

Sent from my MB855 using Tapatalk 2

[Joeyosaurus]

For the sake of clarity, on a cdma network, activation on 3g phones are not associated with the sim in any manner. 3g cdma phones with global capabilities will have sim cards, but the activation is still tied to the esn.

Any LTE device on a cdma network will indeed have a fully functional sim, similar to those used in gsm models. The technological design of LTE simply demands the use of sim.

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus

[3rdpig]

My GF and I both have Bionics and we both love them. I bought mine new a month or two ago, and hers was her son's phone. They are, IMO, really solid. They're fast now, with ICS they'll be really fast.

Yea, it takes about a minute to boot. Which is twice as fast as my D2, which was 3x as fast as my POS BB Storm.

[cindylike24]

I don't believe you can use a 3g SIM card in a 4g phone anyway. And, the phone comes with the SIM card.

Are you talking about buying a used BIONIC phone, then getting a new SIM card?

Sent from my DROID BIONIC using Tapatalk 2

Yes I was talking about buying a used Bionic phone and then getting a new SIM card. I went that way so I wouldn't have to sign a new 2 year contract with Verizon. I'm hoping to keep this phone until my contract is up in June of 2013 and then see what my options are then.

[cindylike24]

My GF and I both have Bionics and we both love them. I bought mine new a month or two ago, and hers was her son's phone. They are, IMO, really solid. They're fast now, with ICS they'll be really fast.

Yea, it takes about a minute to boot. Which is twice as fast as my D2, which was 3x as fast as my POS BB Storm.

This phone boots up quickly compared to the Blackberry phones that I've had. It took about 2 - 3 minutes for my Blackberry phones to boot up completely which was pretty frustrating to me.

[Joeyosaurus]

The bootloader on both the bionic and razr are incredibly quick.

Especially compared to other devices.

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus

[Egz]

Good to hear that its fast to boot. Slow boot times start to get frustrating on a daily basis.

I don't think I've found anything that was slower than my old BB Curve. Piece of junk that was.

[Joeyosaurus]

BlackBerry might as well have a crank to start bootloader.

Additionally, most rooted devices have the option to edit boot animation for those with absolutely zero time to spare

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus

[cindylike24]

Good to hear that its fast to boot. Slow boot times start to get frustrating on a daily basis.

I don't think I've found anything that was slower than my old BB Curve. Piece of junk that was.

What Blackberry do you have? I've had the BB Curve 8330 then went to the 8530. When i had enough of the crappy battery life on the 8530, I talked Verizon into sending me a BB Curve 9330. When i was able to upgrade a few months later, I went to the Blackberry Bold 9650. Bolds were supposed to be a step up from the Curves but I didn't find that to be the case. The Bold seemed slower to me than my Curves did.

Sent from my DROID BIONIC using Android Central Forums

[Dale Griggs]

For a keyboard, I use swype. It is great once you get used to it. It is amazing how it can figure out what you are typing.

[Ry]

This phone boots up quickly compared to the Blackberry phones that I've had. It took about 2 - 3 minutes for my Blackberry phones to boot up completely which was pretty frustrating to me.

Pretty much everything boots faster than a BlackBerry.

Sent from my DROID BIONIC using Android Central Forums