- Mar 7, 2011
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I arrived at 6:30am at a local Verizon store today, and was first in line. Shortly, several others joined me. It's always fun to converse with other fellow geeks.
I got everything for my new HTC Thunderbolt. 2 different carry cases, a hard shell, and semi hard shell case, 2 additional stock batteries, extra chargers for AC and car, and screen protector. The first rude awakening was to get taxed on the full value of the phone at around $600, as opposed to getting taxed for what I actually paid for it at $250. Oh well, the price of entry for early adopters! Or maybe that's just the normal way of doing business.
The first test I made is to confirm that in fact the HTC Thunderbolt can do simultaneous talk and data (internet surfing). Actually, it does this quite well! No more AT&T monopoly on simultaneous talk and data, haha! Way to go Verizon!
Internet data speed is pretty fast, certainly faster than my previous HTC Inspire phone from AT&T. I would not necessarily say the Thunderbolt is blazing fast, but it's certainly pretty fast. I will try out the mobile wifi hotspot feature next. The wifi hotspot feature is free for the next 1 month, and thereafter costs something like $20 monthly for 2GB of monthly usage.
As for Skype...what Skype? The app isn't there. I downloaded Skype from the Market app, but I can't seem to do any video conferencing with another friend on a laptop computer. I downloaded 2 different versions of Skype from Market, but neither version could do video conferencing. The version called Skype for Verizon simply didn't work at all...what a joke. Does anyone have a solution for how to do video conferencing?
I'm happy to report that Verizon does in fact still offer all you can eat data buffet for a flat rate of $29.99. I hope if Verizon ever stops this, I will be grandfathered in as what AT&T did for their own customers.
The one major surprise I found out is regarding the 450 minute talk plan for $39.00. To my surprise, I found out that the 450 minutes is counted towards all phone calls that are NOT on the Verizon network. This is new to me because both Sprint and AT&T offer a similar 450 minute plan, but if you call another carrier, it does not count towards the 450 minutes as long as it is mobile to mobile, as opposed to a land line. However, Verizon will count the 450 minutes if you are calling another person on a different network. Sucks! I'm considering upgrading to the 900 minute plan for additional $20 so that I can add 5 friends and family for unlimited minutes even if they are on a different network other than Verizon.
The other major difference I've noticed is that all the controls and outlets are very differently placed versus my previous HTC Inspire phone. Need to get used to this. At least the battery door is a much better design on the Thunderbolt versus the horrible battery door design on the Inspire. You can break fingernails trying to open the battery door on the Inspire.
As for battery life. Well, based on my one day usage so far, I would say it's below average, which is to say it's about on the same par as my previous HTC Inspire. I guess the 4.3" screen size really sucks up a lot of juice fast. My Thunderbolt will always be on the charger at work at home, if it's not in my pocket. That's also why I bought 2 extra stock batteries!
That's my quick impressions with the Thunderbolt so far. If anyone has questions, feel free to ask.
Cheers, Casey.
I got everything for my new HTC Thunderbolt. 2 different carry cases, a hard shell, and semi hard shell case, 2 additional stock batteries, extra chargers for AC and car, and screen protector. The first rude awakening was to get taxed on the full value of the phone at around $600, as opposed to getting taxed for what I actually paid for it at $250. Oh well, the price of entry for early adopters! Or maybe that's just the normal way of doing business.
The first test I made is to confirm that in fact the HTC Thunderbolt can do simultaneous talk and data (internet surfing). Actually, it does this quite well! No more AT&T monopoly on simultaneous talk and data, haha! Way to go Verizon!
Internet data speed is pretty fast, certainly faster than my previous HTC Inspire phone from AT&T. I would not necessarily say the Thunderbolt is blazing fast, but it's certainly pretty fast. I will try out the mobile wifi hotspot feature next. The wifi hotspot feature is free for the next 1 month, and thereafter costs something like $20 monthly for 2GB of monthly usage.
As for Skype...what Skype? The app isn't there. I downloaded Skype from the Market app, but I can't seem to do any video conferencing with another friend on a laptop computer. I downloaded 2 different versions of Skype from Market, but neither version could do video conferencing. The version called Skype for Verizon simply didn't work at all...what a joke. Does anyone have a solution for how to do video conferencing?
I'm happy to report that Verizon does in fact still offer all you can eat data buffet for a flat rate of $29.99. I hope if Verizon ever stops this, I will be grandfathered in as what AT&T did for their own customers.
The one major surprise I found out is regarding the 450 minute talk plan for $39.00. To my surprise, I found out that the 450 minutes is counted towards all phone calls that are NOT on the Verizon network. This is new to me because both Sprint and AT&T offer a similar 450 minute plan, but if you call another carrier, it does not count towards the 450 minutes as long as it is mobile to mobile, as opposed to a land line. However, Verizon will count the 450 minutes if you are calling another person on a different network. Sucks! I'm considering upgrading to the 900 minute plan for additional $20 so that I can add 5 friends and family for unlimited minutes even if they are on a different network other than Verizon.
The other major difference I've noticed is that all the controls and outlets are very differently placed versus my previous HTC Inspire phone. Need to get used to this. At least the battery door is a much better design on the Thunderbolt versus the horrible battery door design on the Inspire. You can break fingernails trying to open the battery door on the Inspire.
As for battery life. Well, based on my one day usage so far, I would say it's below average, which is to say it's about on the same par as my previous HTC Inspire. I guess the 4.3" screen size really sucks up a lot of juice fast. My Thunderbolt will always be on the charger at work at home, if it's not in my pocket. That's also why I bought 2 extra stock batteries!
That's my quick impressions with the Thunderbolt so far. If anyone has questions, feel free to ask.
Cheers, Casey.
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