Moto's Bionic LIVES!

[Jasper]

Okay, From what i can tell this is not the Droid 3, Droid X 2 or anything else we know of coming out. What it looks like from the Front is the Targa, however the side profile looks VERY similar to the Droid Bionic, thicker with rounded edges. Not to mention they were told that it has a rubber feel to the back of the phone.

SO my money is saying this is the new Targa/Bionic Hybrid that will be released next quarter. I am not crazy about the chrome paint job but the Targa/Bionic mix without the Hump is the best of both worlds to me. This is good news!!

 

[Castor Troy]

Looks to me like nothing but the Droid X and a sanded down Droid X with a fake battery cover.

Pics are not good and don't reveal too much except a Droid X. Which says to me it's just someone trying to feed the rumor and speculation mill.

Thats just my opinion though.

 

[Jasper]

The Droid X housing around the charger and HDMI inputs that sticks out is just slightly on an angle. The new pictured phone does not have that same angle, there are other small differences if you study them closely. It's not impossible but from what i see it is not the Droid X series.

 

[allan1313]

At this point I am not paying attention to rumors. Just give me a release date. I want it in my hands.

 

[thebizz]

Samsung got it first because it was the new Nexus device plain and simple. If Motorola or Sony had made the Nexus 2 (under whatever name it was given) they would have gotten it first. This means nothing about Samsung's priorities when it comes to updating their handset line.

With the exception of the one with the ticker and the keyboard the guts (which are the thing you need to be concerned about with software updates) and the screen are nearly identical on all of the Galaxy S series phones. Carrier requirements take tome to address true but they are not THAT complicated. It did not take then EIGHT MONTHS to remove Google Maps and Google Search and add Bing (which were available separately already) search and maps.

I'm not going to say samsung is great with updates they suck plain and simple but to say that the guts are the same is just about wrong about non of the source from the I900 can be used on the fascinate they. May have the same cpu but the rest is different

 

[YourMobileGuru]

I'm not going to say samsung is great with updates they suck plain and simple but to say that the guts are the same is just about wrong about non of the source from the I900 can be used on the fascinate they. May have the same cpu but the rest is different

The radio code (base-band) is different yes but Android is Android and TouchWiz is TouchWiz. There are variations yes (cant just copy and paste) but again they cant be so different. Look at Cyanogen Mod ... available for dozens of devices of all kinds and there are a LOT more differences in say the Moto Droid and the DInc. They are all based upon (more or less) the same code base.

 

[thebizz]

Very true I totally see what your saying and I agree their is no reason for the long delay for the us froyo upgrade nor will I say I'm happy with the froyo update. Especially with it deleting my photos on every media scan. Actually I don't even know why I'm defending samsung at this point im really pissed with them and probably will not get another one of their devices

 

[YourMobileGuru]

Don't get me wrong, Samsung makes AMAZING hardware -- the screen on my Fascinate blows the other phones I have away -- and if the Nexus S worked on my carrier (Verizon) then I would almost certainly have one by now (TMobile service up here in northeastern MN sucks) but because it is a Nexus device I know it will be the first or among the first to get whatever new version of Android for the foreseeable future but that just isn't the case with the regular retail devices. It just isn't a priority for them.

 

[Oxn]

Bi-on-ic

 

[thebizz]

Don't get me wrong, Samsung makes AMAZING hardware -- the screen on my Fascinate blows the other phones I have away -- and if the Nexus S worked on my carrier (Verizon) then I would almost certainly have one by now (TMobile service up here in northeastern MN sucks) but because it is a Nexus device I know it will be the first or among the first to get whatever new version of Android for the foreseeable future but that just isn't the case with the regular retail devices. It just isn't a priority for them.

I totally feel you im happy with the fascinate's hardware and screen just angry with the software i lost two months of photos and my kids easter pictures due to a bug in the stock software. I would be happy with a locked down bionic at this point.and I two would love the nexus s on vzw

 

[Oxn]

Slow day huh

 

[SnydersWeb]

Yup. We're all patiently awaiting someone to toss us another breadcrumb of info on our Targa/Bionic. Seems almost everything has been quiet from here to HoFo.

Wish some insider at Moto would toss a rock into this pond.

 

[Castor Troy]

I'm going to assume we wont hear anything until the Droid 3 and X2 are launched.

Sent from my Droid

 

[grn4frk]

it's still on the main page (it's not on the slide list, but it's on the main image thing of the site) however, if you click on it there, it takes you to a list of phones...which bionic is no longer there either.

 

[Jasper]

Reading the Transcripts from the Verizon Management Discussion for Q1 Results and it appears that we only have until Mid-Summer until the Tiered pricing for both 3G and 4G are in place. So hoping that the Bionic is brought to life before then...

As I read on... It is confirmed in there discussions, as most of us thought or new already that 4G is more profitable for VZW than the 3G at the same price plan. So it will be interesting to see how much they will charge for unlimited 4G. If they have an unlimited 4G. I am sure the price will go up. Any thoughts?

 

[DolfanCole]

Reading the Transcripts from the Verizon Management Discussion for Q1 Results and it appears that we only have until Mid-Summer until the Tiered pricing for both 3G and 4G are in place. So hoping that the Bionic is brought to life before then...

As I read on... It is confirmed in there discussions, as most of us thought or new already that 4G is more profitable for VZW than the 3G at the same price plan. So it will be interesting to see how much they will charge for unlimited 4G. If they have an unlimited 4G. I am sure the price will go up. Any thoughts?

I did hear them say that unlimited data is "unsustainable" from a business perspective. If you buy the theory that those with unlimited 4G plans already (i.e., those that have bought the Thunderbolt or Charge starting tomorrow) will be grandfathered in and not have to switch to a tiered plan until they renew their contract, it definitely gives some thought to buying a Thunderbolt or Charge now. And whenever the Bionic comes out, buy it at retail and sell the Thunderbolt and Charge to remain on the same plan. That way, you get in on the unlimited plan as it stands now with the hopes that you'll be grandfathered in when the tiered pricing comes.

 

[Oxn]

i dont care about tiered data plan as long as the price for a good amount of data remains 29.99. Like 3GB and up.

 

[Oxn]

and Moto's stocks continue to drop day by day

 

[1812dave]

I did hear them say that unlimited data is "unsustainable" from a business perspective. If you buy the theory that those with unlimited 4G plans already (i.e., those that have bought the Thunderbolt or Charge starting tomorrow) will be grandfathered in and not have to switch to a tiered plan until they renew their contract, it definitely gives some thought to buying a Thunderbolt or Charge now. And whenever the Bionic comes out, buy it at retail and sell the Thunderbolt and Charge to remain on the same plan. That way, you get in on the unlimited plan as it stands now with the hopes that you'll be grandfathered in when the tiered pricing comes.

I called verizon yesterday. they said I will get unlimited data on the Charge.

 

[DolfanCole]

I called verizon yesterday. they said I will get unlimited data on the Charge.

Yeah, you will now because they haven't implemented tiered pricing yet. The question really is when they do implement it (and it was mentioned by Verizon that it would be mid-summer), how will they handle customers that are already on the unlimited plan? If they grandfather in those already on the unlimited plan, that might be the best option. In that case, they'd (likely) have unlimited data until they upgrade/renew their contract. Since upgrading/renewing the contract is basically signing a new contract, they'd be subject to whatever the pricing plan is at that time (i.e., tiered pricing). However, if they buy a phone at retail instead of upgrading, then the contract wouldn't be altered and may remain unlimited.