Bionic's still coming, is defintely new hardware - XT875

[Preach2k]

Have you been to a verizon corporate store?

The one near my house doesn't have 1 feature phone in the show room. The lame salesman tried to tell me that all of the kids are getting smartphones. I looked at him and said well my kids aren't. We went to Costco and bought my daughter a Samsung. Sch-u370 its a touch screen slider.

Verizon is not offering any decent feature phone so parents are buying smartphones.

Sent from my Droid using Tapatalk

My 13 year old has a Verizon Blitz. They do not make it any more. they were trying to talk me into getting her a smart phone. I told my daughter does not need a smart phone. I asked about there feature phones and a lot of them are worst then the phone she has.They are trying to push everyone toward a data plan. I told him that the only ones that need a data plan is me and my wife. my 10 year old wants a phone. I will get her a pay as you go plan.

 

[Nightmare717]

Ok I'll do my best to answer these for you as clearly as I can. The best thing for you to do is start poking around and reading on XDA Development Forums if you're interested in hacking/rooting.

1. Locked Bootloader: This is in reference to rooting (gaining super user access, essentially hacking) the phone and installing custom version of Android on your phone. It's not impossible, but MUCH more difficult to do if the bootloader is encrypted (and therefore cannot be unlocked).

2. Most manufacturers have a skin that they apply on top of Android. Some people like them, some people don't. HTC has Sense, Motorola has MotoBlur/NinjaBlur, and Samsung has Touchwiz to name a few. Many people (myself included) don't like these skins because they tend to be resource hogs without adding much real value. That said, it's becoming less and less of an issue as android performance improves, and hardware performance improves as well.

The Nexus is the only real "Pure Android" (also called Vanilla) experience, however, if the device you purchase has good development support, it's possible that a vanilla version of android may be created for that phone.

3. Hacking or Rooting does indeed allow you to remove addons and "bloatware" (apps installed by carriers), but it doesn't always allow you to remove the custom skins as they are integrated into the OS.

4. No their aren't any "Pure Android" phone available on Verizon (none since the OG Droid anyway), however, if you purchase a phone with good development support, you'll more than likely be able to fix that yourself

Not that I'm against hacking/rooting, but like you said, with the performance of the Android OS and phones increasing, it sounds like doing this going forward will be more for "aesthetic" reasons, whereas in the past, it was for performance. Thanks for the information!

 

[Nightmare717]

Asterdroid you forgot the Droid It's a pure Google Experience phone as well

edit: nevermind you mentioned it at end of post. Carry on!!

Ah...CK. Now that you're here, should I go with a Pentile screen or not?

Sorry...couldn't resist

 

[Castor Troy]

Sharon hows this for you?

Teenage girl in China offers to sell virginity for iPhone 4

 

[Castor Troy]

Ah...CK. Now that you're here, should I go with a Pentile screen or not?

Sorry...couldn't resist

and to answer your question...NO you should not. Tyra Banks did a hands on and when the phone booted and she saw the screen......well...I think this says it all

 

[DolfanCole]

and to answer your question...NO you should not. Tyra Banks did a hands on and when the phone booted and she saw the screen......well...I think this says it all

You know what ... I think I see the dots!

 

[Asterdroid]

Not that I'm against hacking/rooting, but like you said, with the performance of the Android OS and phones increasing, it sounds like doing this going forward will be more for "aesthetic" reasons, whereas in the past, it was for performance. Thanks for the information!

You're welcome. And that is right. Very soon rooting and flashing of custom ROMs will be for purely aesthetic reasons, especially since they are cracking down on free tethering.

I think the SGS2 (and hopefully the Bionic as well) well be the first Verizon Android phone(s) that will function well enough out of the box to not require rooting and flashing of custom ROMs.

I will probably root my phone anyway because I'm addicted to CM7, but hopefully it will no longer be out of necessity.

 

[ShiZero]

Hey guys, I'm here for CK to show you the differences between SAMOLED+ and Pentile.

SAMOLED+:

Pentile:

I hope we were able to clear any confusion.

You're welcome. And that is right. Very soon rooting and flashing of custom ROMs will be for purely aesthetic reasons, especially since they are cracking down on free tethering.

This is relevant to my interests. How can they crack down on free tethering if you have a rooted phone on a custom kernel? My Eris on CM7 can tether just fine, though my Stock Charge needed to "Check subscription status". Do you mean I can't tether anymore even with an unlocked bootloader?

 

[Asterdroid]

Well done sir!

 

[Oxn]

Hey guys, I'm here for CK to show you the differences between SAMOLED+ and Pentile.

SAMOLED+:

Pentile:

I hope we were able to clear any confusion.

you showed it better than he ever could

 

[Castor Troy]

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA.... ShiZero FTW. Props to you LOL!!!

That was awesome

 

[SharonW]

I don't have kids no but one doesn't have to have to have high schoool age kids to know they all ( well most) already have feature AND smartphones. Most of them have smartphones by the way. Smartphones are very popular among high school kids. Most of the kids I see walking around here have smartphones. Even the middle schoool aged ones. You're simply out of touch with the younger generation Sharon

If you think in this economy that parents are going to be flipping for brand new phones for their kids you are not living in reality. College, as you know, is VERY expensive Sharon and a new shiny phone is last on the list. Shiny new smartphones are a luxury NOT a neccessity. If kids want the latest and greatest a majority will have to do what Shipwrestleer is doing, buying it on their own or keep what they have. Jonny aint getting a brand new phone because he makes a case for having it. If I was a parent I would say "Does your_insert smartphone here_work?" "Yes?" "Well use that one." He/she is in college now they get what they NEED not what they want.

I didn't say August was a stupid time to release it I said it was a bad time. No matter how much noise you make the fact remains that once the iPhone gets announced it's going to hurt sales of any devices launching around it.

I think I've successfully repelled that argument

Uh, no you haven't successfully repelled my argument. In one breath you state that all the high school kids have smartphones and in the next you say parents won't spring for a smartphone for their kid going off to college? I'm quite, quite sure that all those high school kids you claim to see and know didn't all buy smartphones themselves. So who did? The smartphone fairy? Nor do I believe that just on the basis of anecdotal evidence that ALL high school kids have smartphones. The frugal parents you're suggesting exist only when it comes to college purchases also exist in high school. I'm NOT talking about upgrades from one smartphone to another here. I'm talking about a kids first smartphone.

My son has loads of friends. We live in a middle class to upper middle class area. My house was the go-to house after school. Everyone felt comfortable here. We've had Rock Band parties, barbeques, annual group photos, movie nights, and loud music. Still do when they're all in town. All his friends had feature phones at best. I was the first adopter in Nov. 2009 of the Droid amongst everyone I knew, them included. It is only in the last year or so that I've seen any upgrade to smartphones and outside of my college graduation present to my son, the upgraders were the girlfriends.

Like I said, some people spend wisely. Some buy their kids anything on credit. Most will purchase something special that their kid has been eying for a special occasion. Going off to college is a huge special occasion and the back to school shopping season invokes a certain amount of generosity in parents. I know, I was one.

Time to toss repel. You've now sullied it. I'm going back to ROOOOAAAARRR! lol

And, god, please don't anyone freak out like I'm attacking CK. O This is called spirited debate.

 

[Oxn]

Uh, no you haven't successfully repelled my argument. In one breath you state that all the high school kids have smartphones and in the next you say parents won't spring for a smartphone for their kid going off to college? I'm quite, quite sure that all those high school kids you claim to see and know didn't all buy smartphones themselves. So who did? The smartphone fairy? Nor do I believe that just on the basis of anecdotal evidence that ALL high school kids have smartphones. The frugal parents you're suggesting exist only when it comes to college purchases also exist in high school. I'm NOT talking about upgrades from one smartphone to another here. I'm talking about a kids first smartphone.

My son has loads of friends. We live in a middle class to upper middle class area. My house was the go-to house after school. Everyone felt comfortable here. We've had Rock Band parties, barbeques, annual group photos, movie nights, and loud music. Still do when they're all in town. All his friends had feature phones at best. I was the first adopter in Nov. 2009 of the Droid amongst everyone I knew, them included. It is only in the last year or so that I've seen any upgrade to smartphones and outside of my college graduation present to my son, the upgraders were the girlfriends.

Like I said, some people spend wisely. Some buy their kids anything on credit. Most will purchase something special that their kid has been eying for a special occasion. Going off to college is a huge special occasion and the back to school shopping season invokes a certain amount of generosity in parents. I know, I was one.

Time to toss repel. You've now sullied it. I'm going back to ROOOOAAAARRR! lol

And, god, please don't anyone freak out like I'm attacking CK. O This is called spirited debate.

Here in the big city, NYC

what i see alot are HS student having part time jobs like McDonald or whatever just to pay for their smartphone.

True Story, i kid you not.

 

[SharonW]

I got further clarification from a Verizon rep on the phone tonight. She claims that as long as you have unlimited data on any phone, including a non-smart phone, that you will be grandfathered in. The reason they keep saying smart phone is because most feature phone customers do not have unlimited data. I asked her 5 different times, 5 different ways and it was the same answer each way. She claimed I was ok because I had added unlimited data on my flip phone last week.

I'm not holding my breathe, but we will see...

Hey, well thanks for asking. Yeah, that's the kicker. We're dealing with smoke and mirrors right now, not fully knowing exactly how some particular cases may be impacted. I couldn't even tell you if her plan is "unlimited." I just know that about a year or so ago they added $10 to her bill for data. Since that's not a per use charge, my assumption would be that it's unlimited.

However, with all the uncertainty, what would you do? Safest course seems to me that since she wants the Droid3, just get some smartphone as close to the 7th as possible to be certain.

 

[SharonW]

Alright, here it goes for my first post on this forum. Check out the link below. Let's hope this rep knows what he/she is talking about.....

Verizon: 3G Owners Can Keep Unlimited Data on 4G after July 7th

I just don't want you to feel ignored, this being your first post and all, but we already heard of this, that's why there's a lack of responses.

But welcome to the forum!

 

[JagsfanJaxNH]

Hey, well thanks for asking. Yeah, that's the kicker. We're dealing with smoke and mirrors right now, not fully knowing exactly how some particular cases may be impacted. I couldn't even tell you if her plan is "unlimited." I just know that about a year or so ago they added $10 to her bill for data. Since that's not a per use charge, my assumption would be that it's unlimited.

However, with all the uncertainty, what would you do? Safest course seems to me that since she wants the Droid3, just get some smartphone as close to the 7th as possible to be certain.

UPDATE...LOL

A verizon rep called me today in response to an internet inquiry...I was told that Feature phones with unlimited data would need to pick a tier once upgraded after 7/7. Only smartphones/blackberry's with unlimited data can keep the unlimited data after 7/7...

Therefore, I am currently trying to get an old smartphone from a coworker and get it activated before 7/7...I can't wait until this is all over...haha.

I don't know if this has been answered yet, but what is the consensus on whether the Bionic will be a 4.5" or 4.3" screen? I'm really hoping its 4.3 as I think 4.5 is just over doing it.

 

[SharonW]

My 13 year old has a Verizon Blitz. They do not make it any more. they were trying to talk me into getting her a smart phone. I told my daughter does not need a smart phone. I asked about there feature phones and a lot of them are worst then the phone she has.They are trying to push everyone toward a data plan. I told him that the only ones that need a data plan is me and my wife. my 10 year old wants a phone. I will get her a pay as you go plan.

Spoken like the other sensible parents here. I view it, in part, as a device that comes with age, maturity and responsibility. I can't even imagine handing a smartphone to a child less than 16 and that would be after proven maturity and responsibility and thorough knowledge of the dos and don'ts of the internet. My son didn't even get texting until he was in college. That was his big upgrade for the leap.

 

[SharonW]

Here in the big city, NYC

what i see alot are HS student having part time jobs like McDonald or whatever just to pay for their smartphone.

True Story, i kid you not.

I'm not surprised. However, I think they gain a pretty valuable lesson by doing so and demonstrate a certain level of maturity by following through like that and keeping up the hard work and seeing how quickly their money comes and goes. And, of course, they need to be 16.

I tell you though, with the competition for college these days and all the extracurricular activities and AP courses that colleges want to see on TOP of 4.0's and top SAT scores, it's a wonder that kids have any time for part time jobs anymore.

Anyway, back to the subject. What do you all think about the bombshell on the Bionic forum about a possible July release? The guy seems quite credible. Although, if the Droid3 is released June 15th, like it has been speculated elsewhere, two weeks after that could still fall into early August. Still, that's a lot closer than the one month after the Droid3 release.

 

[Nightmare717]

Hey, well thanks for asking. Yeah, that's the kicker. We're dealing with smoke and mirrors right now, not fully knowing exactly how some particular cases may be impacted. I couldn't even tell you if her plan is "unlimited." I just know that about a year or so ago they added $10 to her bill for data. Since that's not a per use charge, my assumption would be that it's unlimited.

However, with all the uncertainty, what would you do? Safest course seems to me that since she wants the Droid3, just get some smartphone as close to the 7th as possible to be certain.

The $10 is for 25MB. I know this because I was "forced" into getting it for my daughter's phone. She had an LG ENV2 or 3 (with the full insurance plan). Well, sure enough, she (we) needed it.

I called to make a claim and get the phone replaced. They sent a refurbished unit (like they usually do) and unfortunately, it was defective (some loose/non-working buttons). So I called back. They said they were out of the phone, but they would provide a NEW FREE upgrade to the LG ENV Touch.

We got the phone the next day...brand new...but couldn't get it activated with the automated service they have. Called up Verizon customer service and it turned out the phone has to have a data plan to be activated!!! I was furious I went back to insurance and asked for a phone that didn't require a data plan. They said they each phone has a list of "authorized" phones that it can be replaced with.

I took it as high as I could take it (with Verizon). I basically told them we purshased a feature phone, with full insurance. I paid $6 per month to guarantee her having this phone in working condition. I thought they (insurance folks) were doing a great thing with the "free upgrade" (and maybe they were), but I sure wasn't happy when I found out my monthly phone bill was increasing by $10. So what I ended up negotiating with Verizon was them crediting my account $10 per month for the remainder of the contract for that phone, to offset the new "forced" fee. I was somewhat happy...at least for the remainder of the contract.

 

[shipwrestler125]

I'm not surprised. However, I think they gain a pretty valuable lesson by doing so and demonstrate a certain level of maturity by following through like that and keeping up the hard work and seeing how quickly their money comes and goes. And, of course, they need to be 16.

I tell you though, with the competition for college these days and all the extracurricular activities and AP courses that colleges want to see on TOP of 4.0's and top SAT scores, it's a wonder that kids have any time for part time jobs anymore.

Anyway, back to the subject. What do you all think about the bombshell on the Bionic forum about a possible July release? The guy seems quite credible. Although, if the Droid3 is released June 15th, like it has been speculated elsewhere, two weeks after that could still fall into early August. Still, that's a lot closer than the one month after the Droid3 release.

You just have to be good with time management. I am an athlete(and also all americaned this year for my college) and wrestled all through high school while having a job and keeping my gpa above 3.5. It is the same with college time management is the key and you see lots of kids have issues with that if they never had to do things on their own before. And all the info that is leaking leads it to seem like a end of july release with rumors of the 28th. I hope they get it out I am due for an upgrade and want to get something before I leave to head back to school since where I go to college the closest verizon store is 25 minutes away and without having a car at school makes it hard to get there.