[cowkong#AC]

So my family just decided we're switching to Big Red and I'm long overdue for a new phone and I want to pick a good one. I'm pretty much decided on the Samsung Galaxy S2, and I'm fairly certain it's coming to all major US carriers soonish. Does anybody know when it's coming? If there's any other dual core phones, like the Bionic for example, that you think would be a better choice, tell me, and tell me why.

[Balthazar B]

Don't know about "soonish" for the GS2, unless you're extraordinarily patient. Although it would be wise for VzW to release earlier, I suspect it won't appear there before September. The revamped Bionic may show up in June, but my hunch is July. Now the Bionic will be an LTE phone, and logically the GS2 should be as well. There'll be other dual-core VzW 3G phones coming, including the DroidX2 and LG Revolution before too much longer. One of those might work for you, depending on your location and how soon you'll have LTE available.

[Cruiserdude]

Droid X2 is likely to be a Tegra 2, but that isn't known for sure yet. It will definitely not be LTE though. The specs of the revised Bionic have yet to be released, but it will definitely be dual-core LTE. It will almost certainly have 1gig of RAM, and will have either a Tegra 2 or TI OMAP4 SoC. Both are powerful dual cores, though the TI is a little newer and better. The LG Revolution is LTE but is NOT dual-core, unless LG decides at the last minute to swap it out for the Optimus 2x. That's unlikely, however, as it apparently takes awhile to design an LTE device at this point in time. The Samsung Galaxy S2 will not be outclassed by anything this year, and may very well be the most powerful device of the year and sometime into next year, until we see Cortex-A15 phones coming out.

The Galaxy S2 has not yet been officially announced for VZW, though rest-assured it is coming. Hard to see when it will fit into their market strategy, however, considering they're just now launching the Charge. They wouldn't want to release another LTE Samsung right away and kill Charge sales, yet it wouldn't make sense to release a device this powerful and not have LTE capability built in. While I would love to see an LTE GS2 in June, that is highly unlikely. The most realistic scenarios are either an early fall launch for an LTE GS2, or a late summer launch for a 3g version, followed by an LTE version this December or the beginning of 2012.

Still, if you're considering VZW and have LTE in your area, you'll love the speed. I don't know how I feel about some of their changing policies, but if you lock yourself into an unlimited LTE plan now you should have nothing to worry about. I'm sure you'd be happy with a Charge now, though you could wait a bit to see how things play out regarding the Bionic, the end of unlimited data, and anything official about a GS2.

[jkeene81]

Im patiently waiting on Verizon for a dual core option too, Moto Bionic is coming out and will be a great phone however if rooting is in interest of yours this phone is a bust due to the locked bootloader Moto insists on using, The Charge has an Awesome screen and camera if recent reviews are too be believed however I have seen a couple of reviews report back some sluggishness which isn't very exciting for a new phone, its going to be a few months before the Galaxy S 2 drops because you know Verizon is going to want people to pick up the charge. So if unlocked future proof dual core awesomeness is what you want join the rest of us waiting for the Galaxy S 2!!!!!!

[shipwrestler125]

Im patiently waiting on Verizon for a dual core option too, Moto Bionic is coming out and will be a great phone however if rooting is in interest of yours this phone is a bust due to the locked bootloader Moto insists on using, The Charge has an Awesome screen and camera if recent reviews are too be believed however I have seen a couple of reviews report back some sluggishness which isn't very exciting for a new phone, its going to be a few months before the Galaxy S 2 drops because you know Verizon is going to want people to pick up the charge. So if unlocked future proof dual core awesomeness is what you want join the rest of us waiting for the Galaxy S 2!!!!!!

You don't know this for sure about the bionic since moto said they are going to unlock more of their devices and this could be one of the changes they talked about making with the bionic which is why it got pushed back.

[Droid800]

Droid X2 is likely to be a Tegra 2, but that isn't known for sure yet. It will definitely not be LTE though. The specs of the revised Bionic have yet to be released, but it will definitely be dual-core LTE. It will almost certainly have 1gig of RAM, and will have either a Tegra 2 or TI OMAP4 SoC. Both are powerful dual cores, though the TI is a little newer and better. The LG Revolution is LTE but is NOT dual-core, unless LG decides at the last minute to swap it out for the Optimus 2x. That's unlikely, however, as it apparently takes awhile to design an LTE device at this point in time. The Samsung Galaxy S2 will not be outclassed by anything this year, and may very well be the most powerful device of the year and sometime into next year, until we see Cortex-A15 phones coming out.

The Galaxy S2 has not yet been officially announced for VZW, though rest-assured it is coming. Hard to see when it will fit into their market strategy, however, considering they're just now launching the Charge. They wouldn't want to release another LTE Samsung right away and kill Charge sales, yet it wouldn't make sense to release a device this powerful and not have LTE capability built in. While I would love to see an LTE GS2 in June, that is highly unlikely. The most realistic scenarios are either an early fall launch for an LTE GS2, or a late summer launch for a 3g version, followed by an LTE version this December or the beginning of 2012.

Still, if you're considering VZW and have LTE in your area, you'll love the speed. I don't know how I feel about some of their changing policies, but if you lock yourself into an unlimited LTE plan now you should have nothing to worry about. I'm sure you'd be happy with a Charge now, though you could wait a bit to see how things play out regarding the Bionic, the end of unlimited data, and anything official about a GS2.

The GS2 as we know it will never house an LTE radio. It is possible Verizon could get a repackaged version with LTE, but it will look nothing like the GS2.

[Balthazar B]

You don't know this for sure about the bionic since moto said they are going to unlock more of their devices and this could be one of the changes they talked about making with the bionic which is why it got pushed back.

Wishful thinking (on a VzW phone, anyway). What Moto said was that they'd provide unlocked bootloaders when the carrier approved of such. And if you think Verizon will do so, I have a bridge to sell you.

[mrblahblah]

Can we all get unlimited data plan right now or is it only available for LTE phones?

I have been out of contract for almost 2 years and really want the Samsung Charge, but when I found out about the Galaxy 2 coming out I don't mind waiting for it. Now my only concern is about the unlimited data plan, might be gone by the time the Galaxy 2 becomes available.

[Droid800]

As of now there is no gsII for Verizon. If you like the charge get it.

Sent from my ADR6400L using Tapatalk

[Guamguy]

I suspect they have not worked out the kinks between dual core and LTE yet, particularly on the issue of battery usage. This explains three things simultaneously:

Why all the LTE phones so far are single core.

Why dual core, LTE phones, like Droid Bionic is delayed.

Why the Xoom has its LTE support delayed.

[nerdydesi]

LTE definitely is nice, but has its kinks. My only issue is with the poor battery life on my Thunderbolt, it is much better with 3G, especially with battery drain while the phone is in sleep mode.

[Droid800]

I suspect they have not worked out the kinks between dual core and LTE yet, particularly on the issue of battery usage. This explains three things simultaneously:

Why all the LTE phones so far are single core.

Why dual core, LTE phones, like Droid Bionic is delayed.

Why the Xoom has its LTE support delayed.

Sort of. The reason for the single core is that these phones have been in development for a long time.

It isn't all dual cores that they're having problems with; its mainly Tegra 2.

[Raptor007]

You can also consider the Droid X2 due out next week, Dual Core Tegra2 1-1.2Ghz (it has been listed both ways) 768MB RAM, qHD 540*960 display so its the Bionic but with 3G. My market gets 4G LTE this summer, but so far the 4G phones from Verizon have been lackluster to say the least. I sold my ThunderBolt, the Charge looks awesome but it seems more like a warmed up Fascinate with a nicer screen and LTE. I have yet to hear the Hummingbird processor is an updated single core (not likely) only 1.04GB of free internal memory, if you root it you can get up to 1.45GB but still.

I am split between the Charge and the DX2, odd I know.

[lembowski]

I'm in a holding pattern now waiting for VZW to release a dual core LTE phone. I'm sure multiple models will be released around the same time. I hope they are released before a tiered data plan goes into affect, if not I guess I wil pick up a single core LTE model. Sprint is letting me down since their roaming agreement in my area was lost and my service area has been chopped. But I still want what I would consider to be an upgrade over my EVO.

[Tripsyk]

The HTC Thunderbolt is a solid choice if you are getting a phone right now. Otherwise the Galaxy S2 will be your best bet probably if you want to root your phone ever.

[KingKuba]

The Samsung Galaxy S2 will not be outclassed by anything this year, and may very well be the most powerful device of the year and sometime into next year, until we see Cortex-A15 phones coming out.

.

Of course it will. Its nothing special. Dual core. 1gb ram, blah blah.

Already out. End of the year, 1Q and SGs2 will be yesterday's news when 2Ghz, 2gb ram, hd screens, 1400p, tegra 3, etc.

[Raptor007]

I have seen the supposed leaked pages showing a Galaxy S2 phone for Verizon but where is the REAL proof they will get one. Wouldn't they have flashed something at CES especially if it was getting 4G LTE?

[mrblahblah]

I guess you are right, I will just get the Samsung charge, and then update in couple of years after wards. If I keep on waiting, I will never get a new phone, especially considering I have had my Samsung Omina for almost 4 years now.

[DenverRalphy]

Im patiently waiting on Verizon for a dual core option too, Moto Bionic is coming out and will be a great phone however if rooting is in interest of yours this phone is a bust due to the locked bootloader Moto insists on using, The Charge has an Awesome screen and camera if recent reviews are too be believed however I have seen a couple of reviews report back some sluggishness which isn't very exciting for a new phone, its going to be a few months before the Galaxy S 2 drops because you know Verizon is going to want people to pick up the charge. So if unlocked future proof dual core awesomeness is what you want join the rest of us waiting for the Galaxy S 2!!!!!!

Well, you can still root it... just no custom ROMs.

[Raptor007]

Root, remove bloatware and then install a better or more useable launcher like spb's.

[Tripsyk]

Well, you can still root it... just no custom ROMs.

Yup, so you can get all of the hardware benefits like CPU tweaking, but just not any aesthetic benefits really.

[Icon]

Just a quick piece of info. My LG rep was in yesterday to see me, and he had some interesting info. He said that the Revolution was slated to be launched on May 19th. He also said the Revolution will not have the same issues that the TB and Charge are having with LTE. Apparently LG is using a different chip for LTE, that was 6 years in the making in conjunction with VZW. The chip that Samsung and HTC are using, is made by Qualcomm, and the chip with LG is proprietary. That could explain why VZW has decided to delay the launch for the Charge. Instead of releasing it, they will put the Revolution out which will give their customers a better overall experience. It would also give them more time to work out the issues with the Charge. Also, May 19th is a Thursday, and we all know Big Red likes to launch stuff on Thursday's. I am not saying any of this is set in stone, just relaying the info onto you guys. I will be keeping my eye on the 19th.

[Droid800]

Just a quick piece of info. My LG rep was in yesterday to see me, and he had some interesting info. He said that the Revolution was slated to be launched on May 19th. He also said the Revolution will not have the same issues that the TB and Charge are having with LTE. Apparently LG is using a different chip for LTE, that was 6 years in the making in conjunction with VZW. The chip that Samsung and HTC are using, is made by Qualcomm, and the chip with LG is proprietary. That could explain why VZW has decided to delay the launch for the Charge. Instead of releasing it, they will put the Revolution out which will give their customers a better overall experience. It would also give them more time to work out the issues with the Charge. Also, May 19th is a Thursday, and we all know Big Red likes to launch stuff on Thursday's. I am not saying any of this is set in stone, just relaying the info onto you guys. I will be keeping my eye on the 19th.

You were fed some bad information, my friend. The Charge's baseband radios are COMPLETELY different than the Thunderbolt's. Samsung is proprietary radios for that phone. (which were also developed with LG, as a matter of fact)

And its a stretch to say that the Revolution will offer a better experience; the chipset the revolution uses is already being used in LG's LTE data stick, and that thing has atrocious hand-off issues. Don't expect an experience drastically different than what the Thunderbolt offers.

[Stang68]

Isn't the current rumor for the dual-core Droid X2 to come out this Thursday? My brother is trying to decide between the DX2 and the Charge and I am sort of leaning towards the Charge based on the fact that the Droid X2 doesn't have a FFC.