Would you get a Thunderbolt at this late a date?

[jdg1]

I went through three Droid Xs in the last month and finally they sent me a Droid X2 as a replacement.
I really don't see much of a step up from the original but I appreciated Verizon for trying to make me a happy customer.
I had been holding out for the bionic but like many others lost the passion after such a long wait.
I've been dying to try out a 4G phone since 4G finnaly arrived here in Indianapolis.
I know this is long winded but here is my question.

I have an opportunity to buy a used HTC Thunderbolt for $200.
It comes with a case, a screen protector, a second battery, and a battery charger for charging the spare battery.

The Pros:
I finally get a 4G phone without using my upgrade or paying retail
I can give my GF the X2 so she can have something newer than her OG droid
I can wait out the Bionic and look at newer phones and reviews coming in the next few months that I can possibly upgrade to
Could possibly sell the T-Bolt in a couple of months without losing much of what I paid

The Cons:
No warranty on the Thunderbolt
Have to live with any issues that still exist on Thunderbolt
Downgrade from qHD screen (although not a big deal to me cause I think i like the original X screen more than the X2 for some reason)
Spent $200 and possibly will spending that or more on a new phone in a few months

Just looking for some advice from the group or anyone else who has gone from an Droid X to the Thunderbolt

Thanks,

 

[chris4404]

$200 for a Thunderbolt? Are you buying it off someone? If this is out of contract that seems like a helluva deal for one, I'd do it.

 

[paintdrinkingpete]

For $200 and no 2-year contract...I'd definitely do it.

Gives you a great 4G phone, and allows you to wait to see whether the Bionic is worth it.

Outside of very minor stuff, I've had no problems with my Thunderbolt and am VERY happy with it. The bulk of the major issues folks were having were fixed with the last software update.

 

[jdg1]

$200 for a Thunderbolt? Are you buying it off someone? If this is out of contract that seems like a helluva deal for one, I'd do it.

I'm buying it from a guy who agreed to meet me at a Verizon store so that I could make sure I could activate it.
I've heard horror stories of people being duped with bad ESN phones.
I am just one of those who likes to think of things all the way through and don't want to react on impulse.
I don't know if I really need 4G or not but I am just dyeing to try it out and I guess I just want something new.
Was excited about getting the DX2 as a replacement but I honestly don't see any bump from the original X.

I also like the voice and data capability that the TB is supposed to have which it seems no other Verizon phone has.
Again don't no if I need it but just want it in case I ever do.

 

[BattleSwine]

ThunderBolt is the only phone on VZW that can do simultaneous voice and 3G data. That doesn't seem likely to change in the near future. Outstanding community and developer support. Wish I had LTE coverage at my house... Local cable and DSL providers aren't as fast here. I can't speak to Indy's providers, but LTE is much faster than what I can get via Wi-Fi. At this point the most of the teething issues have been worked out. Odds are pretty good that the OTA GB roll out is in near future. No Warranty is really a Pro for rooting. I highly recommend the TBolt right now. Before MR2 roll-out that wasn't true.

 

[the one and only M]

I'd agree that $200 for a thunderbolt off contract is a great deal. And if something newer catches your eye down the road, you could always resell it.

 

[FrankXS]

Yes.

-Frank

 

[Cyber Warrior]

Sounds like a good plan.

 

[recDNA]

I'd wait for bionic. Tb too buggy. Sense uses up too much RAM.

 

[CMRobinson]

The wrinkles are almost out of the phone. Jump on it, worst case scenario is you paid $200 for a nice back-up phone.

 

[carter17]

I did and who ever this guy is talking about tb is to buggy has lost his mind or had a bad phone or is just hating on the phone sense runs just fine this is the smoothest phone I have ever had came from d1, d2, dx

 

[MRW1215]

If you have the money to throw around, and you're confident you could resell it and get back most (or even all) of what you paid for, sure, go for it. The Thunderbolt is a good phone, and I have no major complaints with it.

Me, personally, I'd hold off, though, for the simple fact that the Thunderbolt IS a bit older, and new phones probably will be out within the next few months (including what is supposed to be the "Thunderbolt 2"). But, that's just my opinion. To me, it just seems a little silly to jump on something when I know newer, better things will be out shortly.

 

[robrecht]

I love my ThunderBolt but no way would I pay $200 for one, especially not a used one.

Thanks, Robrecht

 

[dragonsamus]

I only upgraded from incredible to thunderbolt because my city received LTE. So by the time I got my phone the MR2 update was rolling out. This phone has been awesome. If I were you and had $200 to spare I would definitely buy it.

 

[recDNA]

I did and who ever this guy is talking about tb is to buggy has lost his mind or had a bad phone or is just hating on the phone sense runs just fine this is the smoothest phone I have ever had came from d1, d2, dx

Let's be fair. I haven't lost my mind. Known issues include loss of data requiring restarts or other actions. Sporadic Laggy keyboard. Sms going to wrong people. Terrible battery life requiring jumbo battery. Locked bootloader. Slow locking gps. Some peoples phones tell them they are in Spain when they are.in NY. When you plug in some headphones phone mistakes them for headsets and goes.directly to voice dialing. There are many others as well. Just read all the titles here about bugs. Difficulties setting LED notifiers in different colors.for.different apps. If you haven't had any of these things happen to you it shows.you got the lucky phone - not that the typical Thunderbolt has no bugs.

 

[carter17]

Well I guess I'm lucky cuz I have had none of these problems including battery life...

 

[anon(394005)]

I'd still get the Thunderbolt today even at full retail as there is no other phone existing or upcoming that meets my requirements. The Vigor (aka Thunderbolt 2) sounds interesting, but I need to see specs and pix of it. Does it have a kickstand? And when will it actually come out? Don't want to wait months at this point if I didn't have the TB and was looking for a phone. Also, it's just me, but I wouldn't pay for a used phone period! I'd rather pay full retail for brand new in the box, untouched by anyone except the factory.

 

[recDNA]

Well I guess I'm lucky cuz I have had none of these problems including battery life...

I don't doubt that a bit but you can see many others have if you read the forum. I'm just trying to paint an objective picture for new buyers with newer more powerful products on the horizon.

BTW, I just might be out of my mind (how did u know?) but I don't think you could deduce that from my warning that TB are buggy!

If I HAD to buy a phone this week it just might be a TB because I love simultaneous voice/data but if I could I'd wait to check out the next run of LTE phones in the pipeline.

 

[BattleSwine]

I'd still get the Thunderbolt today even at full retail as there is no other phone existing or upcoming that meets my requirements. The Vigor (aka Thunderbolt 2) sounds interesting, but I need to see specs and pix of it. Does it have a kickstand? And when will it actually come out? Don't want to wait months at this point if I didn't have the TB and was looking for a phone. Also, it's just me, but I wouldn't pay for a used phone period! I'd rather pay full retail for brand new in the box, untouched by anyone except the factory.

If the Vigor is the first "Beats" are correct it will not have the kickstand. I have a decent pair of earbuds and way better headphones if I want good sound. The kickstand is very useful to me. Nothing has leaked on Vigors radio setup that I've seen.... so it might not retain simultaneous voice and 3G data. Really don't want to lose that until all VZW's network is LTE. That's years off at the rate it's going here in Kentucky.

 

[cubez]

I say buy it. At 200 I can easily get your money back if you decide to buy the bionic.