I spent a few minutes today reading through this thread, and while I'm not in the market for either a new phone or a new carrier I am plagued by some of the faulty thinking I see here. I'm left wondering if the subsidized american smartphone market is responsible for some of the way this phone is being received. Indeed consumers in general seem capable of distinguishing between different models with different features at different price points except when it comes to buying a smartphone.
There are those here that are upset because htc is not offering enough differentiation on this device. It is worth noting that we are not htc's customer; Verizon is, and that htc has neither the cache nor the marketing budget to do much about that. It is Verizon that wants to differentiate IT'S lineup. You will not see a micros sd version to compete with the noteII, you will not see a huge battery version to compete with the razr maxx. Verizon is going to make you choose. If you want the sd and the larger battery you're going to have to pay the extra hundred dollars and have either a smaller or a bigger screen with fewer ppi and an inferior camera. If the battery isn't an issue but you need the sd card slot then you'll need to go with the gs3, but you'll be giving up the better screen, camera, and processor. If you want the screen, camera, and processor then you'll need to be willing to work with 16 gigs and battery life comparable to the gs3. It is Verizon that has differentiated their lineup.
Then there is the issue of the battery life. Most reviews are saying that it is comparable to the gs3 or it's nearest competitors. And at it's size and pricepoint it is not competing against the noteII or the razr maxx. It is competing against the gsIII on it's native network and phones such as the optimus g on others. In this light it competes very well.
Lastly there are those on this forum who are claiming that it's specs are "inferior". HTC has managed to give you a phone with the best screen, best processor, and best camera while maintaining battery life equal to it's competitors. To say it's specs are inferior is just silly.
Thinking rationally you'll realize it is possible to work around the phone's so called shortcomings. It has usb host, there are external battery packs etc... And while these may not be ideal it for some it's worth noting that you cannot improve the screen camera or processor on your phone... no matter how may gb's or mah's it has out of the box.