Bionic First Impressions/Reviews

[belinibean]

First post here, but I went to the Verizon store and checked out a few phones because I have an upgrade on Monday. At first I was going to stay 3G because I wasn't sure if I would have to change my data plan ( I'm currently grandfathered to the unlimited 29.99 plan) but I was told that I could go to 4G and everything stays the same. After finding out this bit of news I began to explore the 4G devices. The ones I looked at were the Charge, Thunderbolt, Revolution, and Bionic. After playing around for about 10 minutes, the Bionic was hands down a better device. My selling point was loading carmax.com (full site) on all 4 phones and watching the Bionic load the page before either of the other phones even began to show graphics from the web site... the combo of 1gb of ddr2, dual core, and 4G is definitely a good thing! Lastly, the camera, I found, to be fine. Took good pics in store and shot good video as well. It will do fine as an impromptu point and shoot. If I'm going somewhere and expect to take pics, i'll simply bring along the 60D. I'll be picking up the Bionic Monday hopefully!

 

[qnet]

I went to the Verzon store today and checked out the Bionic. I was very impressed and liked the phone a lot.

I didn't think I'd like the Motoblur, or whatever it's called but; I find I like it very much now. It really runs smooth when swiping from screen to screen with no choppiness. This is something I've always wanted for Android phones.

I agree with the previous poster about the hardware complimenting the software. This phone is really fast and, loads webpages nicely. LTE runs really nice on this phone, at least it seems to, compared to the other phones in the store (Thunderbolt, Revolution).

I'm still tempted to get this phone but, I may hold out a little more. I want to find out about the next Iphone next week and, am still thinking about the Nexus prime. I really miss the customization of Android and, just playing with the Bionic, I see all kinds of things I'd like to do with it.

About the screen. I guess I'm not that picky about it.

 

[pauldroidr2d2]

I have been extremely happy with my phone.

Sent from my DROID BIONIC using Tapatalk

 

[dhp106]

With so many phones right around the corner, just wait.its only like a week

Sent from my DROID BIONIC using Tapatalk

 

[corymcnutt]

With so many phones right around the corner, just wait.its only like a week
Sent from my DROID BIONIC using Tapatalk

A week...not if they are using Verizon - what exciting phone is coming out in a week? Certainly nothing that tops Bionic...maybe the end of Oct thru December...just saying.

 

[pauldroidr2d2]

There is always a newer better phone in development. These phones in my opinion have at best a year.


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[BJTashjian]

Love mine

 

[kirksucks]

I played around with the bionic a few times now at different vzw stores and honestly couldn't get passed the screen. I've read that the X2 has the same pentile display.

It is so bad I can't believe it made it out of the factory. In a time when the picture quality of tv's and other gadgets is so highly scrutinized it's hard to understand how something so awful gets the green light and companies spend money to manufacturer and market a screen that looks so bad. I seriously thought the display model I was on was broken.

I'm sorry but Motorola and satisfied Bionic customers are on crack. Or they just wanted dual core and LTE so bad they're ok with it.

I don't get it. It's the friggin screen. What you have to look at to do everything on it. It would drive me crazy.


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[pauldroidr2d2]

Obviously you know far more about the phone from "playing" with it in the store than those of us who use it daily and have used it since its release.

Sent from my DROID BIONIC using Tapatalk

 

[916ninja]

I played around with the bionic a few times now at different vzw stores and honestly couldn't get passed the screen. I've read that the X2 has the same pentile display.

It is so bad I can't believe it made it out of the factory. In a time when the picture quality of tv's and other gadgets is so highly scrutinized it's hard to understand how something so awful gets the green light and companies spend money to manufacturer and market a screen that looks so bad. I seriously thought the display model I was on was broken.

I'm sorry but Motorola and satisfied Bionic customers are on crack. Or they just wanted dual core and LTE so bad they're ok with it.

I don't get it. It's the friggin screen. What you have to look at to do everything on it. It would drive me crazy.


Sent from my DInc2 with Tapatalk

I know I'm going to get in trouble for saying this, but stfu. Lmao seriously, why do people come in here with that mess? I don't care what you think and no one else in here does either I'm guessing. If you have constructive criticism, I am listening. If you were at the store, you would have seen the difference between the two and you would have realized the screen is the same technology, but the bionics screen is better. Not to mention my battery lasts all day for the most part. A huge benefit with pentile paired with 4g. Please stop senseless trolling. If you want to hate, take it outside.


RAWR!

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[judpma012]

played with one today at the Verizon store....very fast and very lightweight....almost too lightweight for me....nice phone though...I'm sticking with my TBolt

 

[kirksucks]

I'm not trying to troll. The title of this thread is Give your first impression. I picked it up at the store and immediately looked for another display model because I thought it was messed up. As many floor models can be.

That was my first impression of the bionic. If having a grainy, halftoned looking screen is what it takes for the 4G to not kill the battery then I'm sticking with 3G.

I'm not trying to be rude or hate I'm just astonished so many people are okay with the screen being like that. Maybe I'm just picky. I'm sure the rest of the bionic is really high quality, i just didn't see the point in paying $300 to be annoyed by a funky screen every time I saw it.



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[Ghetto_Cowgirl]

I actually prefer the screen over the Charge screen. Colors seem a lot more "real" to me, not sure how to explain it...rather than bright, cartoonish kind of. Yeah really unsure how to explain but I do prefer the Bionic screen over the Charge

 

[EnergyPlus]

Understood. First impressions do not-and should not-be positive only!

That being said, as a professional photographer, image display is important to me. I want my sample photos to look good enough that I do not have to fear a quick showing to potential clients. I found the Bionic's display to be quite decent, for both colors and black and white photos. I only see the "half tone"effect on certain greytone images, mostly where it's solid, light grey. On a conventional, rich tone Bblack and whte image, which typically contains patterns with dynamic ranges of deep black up through white that still holds texture (in other words, not a blown out white), I find nothing objectionable. When I did a critical comparison against the vaunted "Super AMOLED" display, again looking at images on my website of both color and black and white images, the Bionic was my preferred choice. My most serious criticism was the general coolish cast, but the choice was a no-brainer when considering the clearly green tint and over-saturation rendered by Samsung.

The only display that clearly out performed all others, was the iPhone, but there is no need to even go there!

I'm not trying to troll. The title of this thread is Give your first
impression. I picked it up at the store and immediately looked for another display model because I thought it was messed up. As many floor models can be.

That was my first impression of the bionic. If having a grainy, halftoned looking screen is what it takes for the 4G to not kill the battery then I'm sticking with 3G.

I'm not trying to be rude or hate I'm just astonished so many people are okay with the screen being like that. Maybe I'm just picky. I'm sure the rest of the bionic is really high quality, i just didn't see the point in paying $300 to be annoyed by a funky screen every time I saw it.



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[wpwoodjr]

Understood. First impressions do not-and should not-be positive only!

That being said, as a professional photographer, image display is important to me. I want my sample photos to look good enough that I do not have to fear a quick showing to potential clients. I found the Bionic's display to be quite decent, for both colors and black and white photos. I only see the "half tone"effect on certain greytone images, mostly where it's solid, light grey. On a conventional, rich tone Bblack and whte image, which typically contains patterns with dynamic ranges of deep black up through white that still holds texture (in other words, not a blown out white), I find nothing objectionable. When I did a critical comparison against the vaunted "Super AMOLED" display, again looking at images on my website of both color and black and white images, the Bionic was my preferred choice. My most serious criticism was the general coolish cast, but the choice was a no-brainer when considering the clearly green tint and over-saturation rendered by Samsung.

The only display that clearly out performed all others, was the iPhone, but there is no need to even go there!

I checked out AT&T's Samsung Galaxy 2 today. That had a good white point, no obvious color cast. Very rich, nice colors but as you say, over-saturated.

 

[wilsodw]

Been putting it through the 14 day test. Had to drive 25 miles to test 4G. However I think it is the best phone I have had in a long time. Last was the OG Droid rooted! I have been lucky with this phone and the car dock and can report only 1 issue (the camera focus time). Lots of folks are reporting several issues and yes I looked at the bug list! I have the larger battery and text often with plenty of life left.Will continue to read the Bionic Forum, (Android Central Rocks).

Thanks
D. Wilson

 

[pdecell]

@Energy,

I did the same sort of comparison between the Bionic and the Charge in terms of the screen and came away with the same impression-the Bionic does a better job of rendering colors the way the are supposed to be in the image. As you I found the Charge colors to be over saturated. I do see why some people don't like the Bionic display in terms of that very faint cross hatching so I guess it depends on which you would rather live with-over saturated screen or the cross hatching issue. Perhaps if I used my phone for games I might have a different take on the display.

Understood. First impressions do not-and should not-be positive only!

I found the Bionic's display to be quite decent, for both colors and black and white photos. I only see the "half tone"effect on certain greytone images, mostly where it's solid, light grey. On a conventional, rich tone Bblack and whte image, which typically contains patterns with dynamic ranges of deep black up through white that still holds texture...

 

[Allesandro]

How does the Bionic compare to the Droid Charge?

I am now eligible for an upgrade with Verizon and I have never owned an Android phone before, only Blackberry's. The Bionic is still quite pricey, although I expect its price will fall when the Razr, Rezound and Nexus Prime are released. I am looking at the Bionic now and also the Droid Charge, which is within my budget right now. I use my phone primarily for emails, calls and texting; occasional browsing and downloads, but not often. Is there anyone here who has used the Charge and can compare it to the Bionic? I can buy the Charge now or wait for the Bionic price to drop - or keep waiting until the Razr or other newer phones also drop in price, but that could be several months from now, and I really want to get rid of my Blackberry asap. If you had to do it over again, what would you choose? Thanks.

 

[Andreas601]

After having anticipated the arrival of the Droid Bionic on shelves for many months, I was excited to put the Bionic through a thorough review and see how it stacks up to the HTC Thunderbolt, which I had been using full time since it was released.

Unboxing/ Activation:

As is the case with most Verizon phones I have received recently, the DROID Bionic packaging strikes an appealing look and is earth-friendly by being just large enough to fit the contents of the device and included accessories.
Included in the DROID Bionic packaging was the device itself (obviously), a thin 1735 mAH Li?Ion Battery, battery cover, 16GB microSD card, charger (which can also be used as a USB cable), as well as a User Manual.
Since I switched to the Bionic from the Thunderbolt, activation was a breeze and simply involved switching my 4G LTE SIM Card out of my Thunderbolt into my new Droid Bionic. One thing I will mention at this time is that I found it challenging to remove the SIM Card out of the Bionic, but that may only become a frustration if you are a user who switches phone constantly.

Phone Setup:

After popping in my SIM Card and Battery and booting up the phone for the first time, the phone walked me through a short setup, which included linking my Google Account. Setup, as on other Android devices I have used, was quick and painless. My only frustration with the setup process is the fact that applications I have downloaded from the Market onto my Thunderbolt are not automatically downloaded to my Bionic. I was forced to log on to the Google Market on my computer and force each application to download to my Bionic.

Phone Design & Feel:

I find the design of the Bionic elegant and sharp. The phone is the perfect weight (for a 4G LTE device) and feels sturdy. I am not afraid that this phone will break the first time I accidentally drop it (well?depending on what it lands on I guess).

Battery Life:

Considering the Bionic is a 4G LTE device, the battery life has improved over the Thunderbolt (as should be expected with a battery that is slightly bigger than that on the Thunderbolt). In areas of weak LTE signal, or areas where you are at the edge of LTE, forcing the phone to 3G will result in much better battery life. When forced to 3G, I can easily get a whole days? use out of the phone and I am very impressed by how little battery talking on the phone uses.

Call Quality/ Reception:

Smartphones today do so much more than make and receive phone calls, but I am most impressed with the voice quality of the Bionic. The sound is crisp and clear and background noise is cancelled out very well. I find reception on the Bionic to be above average, as expected from a Motorola device. The only time I have run into issues is at the edge of LTE coverage areas, where the phone may sometimes lose data service completely, unless I force it to 3G (which can easily be done in the phone?s setting menu). One issue I have experienced is that during a call, while the proximity sensor has disabled the screen, I am unable to adjust call volume and must move the phone away from my face to adjust the volume.
Although this won?t apply to most people, one issue I have faced is that while connected to a 3G Network extender, the Bionic will not show a data connection whatsoever and can just be used for calls and SMS, unless WiFi is used for data.

Processing Speed/ User Interface:

FAAAST!!! The Dual-Core processor on the Bionic allows for smooth and snappy operation, and I have most definitely been able to feel the improved processing speed coming from a single core device. There is virtually no lag in the User Interface and I have not experienced applications force closing or hanging. Overall, I have been very impressed with the interface and processing speed.

4G LTE:

While in a 4G LTE coverage area, the phone is capable of simultaneous voice and data. Coming from a Thunderbolt, I was somewhat disappointed that the Bionic does not allow for simultaneous voice and data while in a 3G-coverage area, but with the rapid expanding 4G LTE footprint, this will become less of an issue over time. 4G LTE speeds have been very impressive with download speeds generally between 15-50 Megs.

Screen:

Although I don?t find the screen on the Bionic to be as crisp as that of the Thunderbolt, I have not had issues with the Bionic screen even in direct sunlight, which can be an issue on the Thunderbolt and other devices. Overall, while the Pentile display could be better, it gets the job done.

Camera:

I have found picture quality on the Bionic to not meet my expectations. The auto focus takes some getting used to and is slow (especially in comparison to some other devices). Video quality, however, is crisp and clear.



Bluetooth:

I connected the Bionic to my in-car Bluetooth speaker system and found the Bionic to connect quickly and found no issues with my use of Bluetooth.

Messaging:

Messaging overall is smooth and the phone allows for words to easily be added to the dictionary. Auto correct works well, but one big item missing for me was a T9 keyboard, which I have become addicted to. I ended up browsing the market and downloading a T9 application and have been using this full time.

Web Browsing:

The 4.3 inch Display certainly helps make web browsing easy on the eyes. The browser was snappy and fast and I did not have any issues browsing even regular web pages with lots of content.
Navigation and GPS:

Certainly one thing Android excels at and is one of the many reasons I continue using Android. Navigation on the on the Bionic was pleasant, as it has been on other Android devices I have used. The only issue I sometimes faced has been the fact that the GPS sometimes takes a few minutes to acquire my exact location. Aside from this, navigation has been flawless.

Summary and Recommendation:

Overall, I have very much enjoyed using this phone. And while there are certain things to get used to (like the power button being on the top left side of the phone), the Bionic is a powerful and sexy Android device that I would strongly recommend to anyone looking for the latest and most powerful 4G LTE device.

As a member of the Verizon Wireless Customer Council, I have received free equipment from Verizon Wireless or its partners for the purpose of evaluation and testing. This review may be the result of that evaluation and testing.

 

[richcxx]

I actually prefer the screen over the Charge screen. Colors seem a lot more "real" to me, not sure how to explain it...rather than bright, cartoonish kind of. Yeah really unsure how to explain but I do prefer the Bionic screen over the Charge

I thought the same thing when I had them side by side! The Charge colors where almost too bright.