Are Thunderbolts still a good buy?

**PippinTook** · 12-03-2012, 11:23 PM

So my current Blackberry phone died pretty much today and now I am looking for a replacement phone. I am not due for an upgrade anytime soon and no cheap WP7/WP8 phones are out there so I guess next on the list would be Android. I see decently priced TBS in the for sale section here so I am just wonder: Are Thunderbolts still worth buying? It would least need to last me a year+.

**mnfats127** · 12-04-2012, 12:06 AM

No. If the battery life were not awful the phone would be ok. Though if you are picking up a used one and not comitting to a new 2 year contract it wouldn't be the worst choice. The data drops could leave you frustrated though. I would explore other options first.

**bunique4life05** · 12-04-2012, 02:40 AM

No any HTC phone after thunderbolt is light years better and most HTC devices before TB are better.

Sent from my ADR6400L using Android Central Forums

**oberkc** · 12-04-2012, 05:44 AM

Are Thunderbolts still worth buying?

Depends on the price and what other options you have. I am still happy with mine.

**linebusy** · 12-04-2012, 06:36 AM

Battery life might be ok for some... I usually have mine in a car cradle at some point in the middle of the day, as well as the Rezound battery installed, so 99% of the time I'm able to make it through a day. The big dig against the TBolt is its ability to hold a data connection or switch between 3g and 4g. If it were better at that, you'd probably see a lot more people here clamoring for an upgraded OS. As it is, everyone is looking forward to swapping out the TBolt for something ~anything~ else. Original TBolters are just hitting their 2-year upgrade date so you should see a huge influx of TBolts on craigslist and ebay.

**dobermans rule** · 12-04-2012, 07:03 AM

How about a Droid Incredible 2? I have had mine over a year and it works awesome. I only had one problem where I had to factory reset it (after an OS update), but after that it has been awesome.

Sent from my Droid Incredible 2 using Android Central Forums

**PippinTook** · 12-04-2012, 07:20 AM

Well it all depends on what I can find in a decent price range here in the marketplace or on craigslist. Not seen many Droid Inc 2s but I have seen a lot of thunderbolts lately.

**DaRkL3AD3R** · 12-04-2012, 12:48 PM

I have 2 Thunderbolts that I am looking to get rid of very soon (2 days from now) so if you are interested in getting one let me know. I can toss one to you for a good price.

**thundersome** · 12-04-2012, 01:07 PM

A Thunderbolt would be possibly the worst choice for a phone if you want it for a year+. The connectivity issues alone should be enough to keep you away from this pos. I would stay away from all of the original 4g phones (tb, charge, revolution).

**DaRkL3AD3R** · 12-04-2012, 01:31 PM

Originally Posted by thundersome

A Thunderbolt would be possibly the worst choice for a phone if you want it for a year+. The connectivity issues alone should be enough to keep you away from this pos. I would stay away from all of the original 4g phones (tb, charge, revolution).

I've had no connectivity issues with this phone since like... May of 2011. I get 4G rock solid in my house, in my room, and I live in a forested area on the side of a hill. And that's with me using the AOSP ICS rom with the frankenstein'd RIL.

I won't deny that it's by today's standards a POS phone, believe me I can't wait to get my Note 2's to replace these TBolt's, but for someone who is looking for a cheap alternative to dropping $700 on a full retail phone, yeah this thing is decent enough to hold you over until your upgrade is available.

**thundersome** · 12-04-2012, 03:04 PM

I had a rock solid 4g connection until about 4 months ago when out of the blue the connection would constantly turn on/off. I don't think it's even about location. I live very close to a tower and the connection issues basically cripple the phone.

**cegabq** · 12-04-2012, 03:41 PM

Originally Posted by DaRkL3AD3R

I've had no connectivity issues with this phone ... but for someone who is looking for a cheap alternative to dropping $700 on a full retail phone, yeah this thing is decent enough to hold you over until your upgrade is available.

I too haven't had any connectivity problems. The battery life sucks, so I carry 2 extra batteries with me so I can swap out where ever I am & I have chargers everywhere.

**phonenut** · 12-04-2012, 03:47 PM

Originally Posted by PippinTook

So my current Blackberry phone died pretty much today and now I am looking for a replacement phone. I am not due for an upgrade anytime soon and no cheap WP7/WP8 phones are out there so I guess next on the list would be Android. I see decently priced TBS in the for sale section here so I am just wonder: Are Thunderbolts still worth buying? It would least need to last me a year+.

yep you're right

**johnriii** · 12-04-2012, 04:27 PM

I wouldn't buy a Tbolt...I would try to find a Rezound or something that was released in that timeframe. the data connection has been absolutely horrible for the huge majority of tbolt owners since the last OTA, and luckily I'm getting two brand new rezound phones after only one try of a refurbished tbolt. the tech guy I spoke to didn't even flinch, he knew the tbolt has issues, not to mention i didn't try to bite his head off.

**redcat22** · 12-04-2012, 04:58 PM

I would agree with getting a Rezound.

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**natehoy** · 12-04-2012, 05:02 PM

Originally Posted by PippinTook

So my current Blackberry phone died pretty much today and now I am looking for a replacement phone. I am not due for an upgrade anytime soon and no cheap WP7/WP8 phones are out there so I guess next on the list would be Android. I see decently priced TBS in the for sale section here so I am just wonder: Are Thunderbolts still worth buying? It would least need to last me a year+.

It utterly depends on your needs and wants. If you turn off 4G and run it in CDMA-only mode, that seems to mitigate a lot of the connectivity problems. If you get the Rezound (or if you can tolerate the weight, one of the larger extended) battery, you should be able to get all-day battery life unless you use the screen a LOT or signal strength is especially poor where you tend to hang out.

You'll be getting one of the better cameras out there, a pretty solid-performing phone that has a decent reputation for durability and holding cosmetic value other than the kickstand scratching up easily. Oh, and lest I forget, the concentrated awesomeness that is having a built-in kickstand - you have to have one for a while to really understand how pathetic a phone seems without it. Plus you'll have a GPS that locks very quickly, a decent amount of built-in memory, a front facing camera that is now well-supported in Skype and Google Talk and other apps, a strong WiFi radio that does pretty well, and an all-around decently-built phone that (if you get a good one) will keep you satisfied if not ecstatic for quite a while.

On the downside, you'll have an older-spec phone running Gingerbread with little hope of even Ice Cream Sandwich in your future, running on an oddball sidechannel of Verizon's CDMA network (to support simultaneous voice and data over CDMA, which is cool, but it's not as well-supported a sidechannel as it once was) paired with a first-generation LTE radio that can't hold anything but a very strong LTE signal. With the battery you'll need to go all-day strong, it'll be a brick, and changing out batteries means a reboot which makes a stupid and ridiculously loud thunderclap sound and takes well over a minute. You'll have an LCD screen that is barely adequate outdoors.

But, hey, Tbolts are pretty cheap at this point, so it's probably a pretty good choice to save some money.

**PippinTook** · 12-04-2012, 05:38 PM

I will be honest 3G signal strength is low where I live. My blackberry usually only got 2 bars and its very weak in the area. However I am at home most of the time so I usually keep my phone plugged it. I am about an hours drive away from any sort of 4G service so I dont think I will worry much about using it. I would love to give it a test when i am in a 4G area but I dont stream any sort of my music, videos, movies to my phone.

**dobermans rule** · 12-04-2012, 07:13 PM

Originally Posted by PippinTook

I will be honest 3G signal strength is low where I live. My blackberry usually only got 2 bars and its very weak in the area. However I am at home most of the time so I usually keep my phone plugged it. I am about an hours drive away from any sort of 4G service so I dont think I will worry much about using it. I would love to give it a test when i am in a 4G area but I dont stream any sort of my music, videos, movies to my phone.

Droid Incredible 2! But since the thunderbolts are cheap, it would be better to get one of those.

Sent from my Droid Incredible 2 using Android Central Forums

**linebusy** · 12-04-2012, 07:21 PM

Love that natehoy review.

Well, if you're not in a 4g area, you certainly could go with a TBolt in CDMA-only mode for decent performance. Reboots do occur frequently. The allure of switching to 4g can be more than you can stand, though. Then, when you have it set to LTE/CDMA and you find that it cannot get into and out of 4g reliably, you'll be on here looking for your next device.

**TBoltJ** · 12-04-2012, 11:40 PM

Were they EVER?

**ducey99** · 12-05-2012, 08:24 AM

Short answer... NO. Lol I just got rid of mine on Friday and I couldn't be happier.

Sent from my Verizon Samsung Galaxy S3

**ducey99** · 12-05-2012, 08:26 AM

You're coming from the incredible battery life of a BlackBerry and you want to go to the Thunderbolt? You're going to be in limbo worrying if your phone will make it through the day.

Sent from my Verizon Samsung Galaxy S3

**redcat22** · 12-05-2012, 10:50 AM

Originally Posted by natehoy

...You'll be getting one of the better cameras out there, a pretty solid-performing phone that has a decent reputation for durability and holding cosmetic value other than the kickstand scratching up easily. Oh, and lest I forget, the concentrated awesomeness that is having a built-in kickstand - you have to have one for a while to really understand how pathetic a phone seems without it...

+1 on the camera and the kickstand.

Originally Posted by linebusy

Love that natehoy review.

Well, if you're not in a 4g area, you certainly could go with a TBolt in CDMA-only mode for decent performance. Reboots do occur frequently. The allure of switching to 4g can be more than you can stand, though. Then, when you have it set to LTE/CDMA and you find that it cannot get into and out of 4g reliably, you'll be on here looking for your next device.

I wouldn't make a blanket statement like that about reboots. I would say frequent reboots are a problem for the minority of the Tbolt population.

**Slapnpop826** · 12-05-2012, 12:13 PM

Get a Thunderbolt and immediately root it and load up Thundershed 1.6. Great battery life and functionality. Makes it a much more useful device.

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**natehoy** · 12-05-2012, 12:25 PM

Originally Posted by redcat22

I wouldn't make a blanket statement like that about reboots. I would say frequent reboots are a problem for the minority of the Tbolt population.

(superimpose this over the Bacardi Man picture in your head - I'm too lazy):

"My Thunderbolt doesn't reboot often...
...but when it does, it's usually because something changed about my connection."

Switching back and forth between 3G and 4G is the most common cause of reboots for me, though I do occasionally get one when switching from WiFi to 3G as well. Switching my connection mode to "CDMA Only" has dropped my reboot occurrence from about twice a week to fewer than one per month, and if I remember to reboot my phone every couple of weeks it seems to prevent reboots pretty much completely.

I think there's a memory leak or buffer overflow in the connection library or something that eventually just reaches a point where "it's taken all it can takes, and it can takes no more!" and reboots. Leaving 4G on, which causes the radio to switch connection modes a LOT more often, just seems to exacerbate the problem.

But, again, for a phone that is in the used market costing so little money, it's a good choice. It's certainly not the best actual phone out there, not by a long shot!, but it's a reasonably good value for money.

I probably wouldn't pay an extra $100 to get a Rezound or one of the only-slightly-less-obsolete phones from the next generation unless there was some specific feature I needed, but if the price difference was closer to $50 it might be worth it just to get something with another years' worth of useful life.