Android phone decision: Charge vs. Bionic?

[Allesandro]

I am new to this forum and to the world of Android smartphones. For the past four years, I have used a Blackberry, but I am ready for a change, and I am due now for an upgrade from Verizon. I have been looking at the Motorola Droid Bionic, but the price is too high at present. The Samsung Droid Charge, on the other hand, is well within my budget and I have read many positive reviews for it, at least before the Bionic came out. So I am turning to all of you Charge users and would like your opinions: if you were me, would you wait until the Bionic price drops and get that, or go for the Charge now? Are you happy with the Charge? I use my current Blackberry primarily for calls, emails, texting and occasional downloads and Internet browsing. Thank you to all.

 

[jbomb11]

I like my charge for better than the thunderbolt I had. If I was you right now I would wait until the razr or nexus for Verizon.

They seem like they are going to be great devices.

The charge is very reliable and if you have the itch to get a new android now it won't let you down.

Sent from my SCH-I510 using Tapatalk

 

[4given_p8ntblr]

I am new to this forum and to the world of Android smartphones. For the past four years, I have used a Blackberry, but I am ready for a change, and I am due now for an upgrade from Verizon. I have been looking at the Motorola Droid Bionic, but the price is too high at present. The Samsung Droid Charge, on the other hand, is well within my budget and I have read many positive reviews for it, at least before the Bionic came out. So I am turning to all of you Charge users and would like your opinions: if you were me, would you wait until the Bionic price drops and get that, or go for the Charge now? Are you happy with the Charge? I use my current Blackberry primarily for calls, emails, texting and occasional downloads and Internet browsing. Thank you to all.

To be honest if you are looking for 4G speeds and a nice reliable phone, the Charge is the way, especially for the price. It can do everything you are looking for as far as "calls, emails, texting and occasional downloads and Internet browsing." I have recently been messing with different ROM's that now have my phone up to 2.3.5 (Gingerbread OS) that allow you to do more than you can imagine. The 4G speed in Phoenix is insane. It all comes with a cost though, and that is battery life, but with moderate use and the use of Wi-Fi when possible it easily makes it an entire day. I recently got my mom a Droid Pro (Blackberry-esque) and she loves it, because it has the physical keys just like the Blackberries do.

Things that you will notice with the phone are the amazing screen with color representation and clarity, the speed and the lightness of it. The phone is much lighter than the Bionic, weighing in at the Verizon Specs of 4.16 oz VS. The Bionic's 5.6 oz.

I love my Droid charge, but am about to sell mine for something else Dual core and LTE.

If just a choice between those two I would go with the Bionic if I liked the screen. It's personal preference so I would go the Verizon store and see if you can tell the difference in clarity of the two different phones. Then I would choose the one I could live with best! Otherwise if you can wait there and possibly save up a little more money, there are some amazing phones right around the corner, namely the Droid RAZR, Galaxy Nexus, and HTC Rezound.

~4Given~

 

[starbuckk]

I assume you made a similar post over on the Bionic forum since it stands to reason your going to get pro-Charge replies here . I know little about the Bionic other than someone I know that has one commented about a "screen door effect" on the screen type that they use.

The deal maker for me was the AMOLED screen on the Charge. The colors are said to be the richest available of the current Verizon LTE lineup. And indeed it is very well done. The one real down point of the charge is the lack of an LED alert for missed calls and messages. However, an app called NoLED works around that nicely to leverage the AMOLED screen to replace this oversight.

Battery life sucks on just about all of today's smart phones because we're just demanding way too much of them. Mine is no worse than the Palm Pre I carried around for the last two years. Simply put, if you need a phone that keeps a charge for more than 24 hours, its best to stay away from smartphones.

The one other thing I don't like is that you have to pop the back to switch out the SD card. Dumb, but I think a lot of them are like that now so that might not be a comparison factor. And my Palm Pre didn't even have an SD card .

Can't talk about the camera yet as I haven't used it.

One thing that is interesting is that my bluetooth headset that didn't work worth a darn with the Palm Pre works great with this one. I had stopped carrying the headset because I really wasn't able to function with it. But I gave it a shot with the Charge and was pleased with the results.

 

[Allesandro]

Thanks for all your replies. Yes, I did place a similar post at the Droid Bionic forum and no, I see no point waiting for the Razr, Rezound or Nexus Prime since there will all be priced like the Bionic and I will end up waiting for months before upgrading. There will always be a newer and better smartphone following the ones we have now. I just want to upgrade and be happy with my choice for the next two years.

 

[4given_p8ntblr]

There will always be a newer and better smartphone following the ones we have now. I just want to upgrade and be happy with my choice for the next two years.

Always buying for what is out today is a good idea. Or at least buying for your needs today.

 

[swenpro]

I don't know, I would be more inclined to wait for the next wave of 4g phones. But may have to wait a couple months for the prices to come down.

Droid Charge - Tapatalk

 

[radar320]

The camera on the charge is amazing. I have looked at the two phones side by side, and yes the screen on the bionic is beyond terrible. My 4g and even 3g speeds on the charge is great. The charge was been a great phone for me other than the lack of upgrades, but I have since rooted and couldnt be happier with the phone.

 

[methusalem]

Dev here. Currently have both phones on loan from Verizon and have an additional Charge that's my personal phone.

The screen on the Charge is just SO MUCH PRETTIER than on the Bionic.

Bionic's a little faster but nothing that'll break your back.

I like Touchwiz (gasp!).

I don't regret my decision of going with the Charge.

 

[Clak]

With the Razr right around the corner I'd get that, screen should be better than the Bionic's.

 

[brittanyh]

I actually upgraded to the bionic from my iPhone 4 and I liked the speeds of the phone but the screen was awful as well as the front facing camera. I took it back after less than 24 hours & got the charge.

The staff looked at me like I was crazy for not taking the bionic but in my eyes it's not all that great aside from the processor.

 

[dressagerider]

I have been through 5 Charges all with problems. The screen is beautiful, but the phone has a lot of issues - and i am in a strong 4G area.

Verion offered to send me a bionic instead of asking me to try a 6th charge. I should receive it tomorrow and am anxious to see the differences.

 

[Clak]

I looked at the Bionic today while I was in a Verizon store. It seemed really responsive and snappy, but man, that screen just can't compare to the Charge's. It was especially noticeable when flipping through the home screen, definitely had that screen door effect.

 

[jco23]

no matter which phone you choose, you are going to have some issues that you can't stand - that's the nature of technology nowadays. so for me, it's all about the cost/effort put into it.

think of it like your women - do you want a hot-looking girl that is pretty good in the sack, or a so-so girl that is dynamite in the sack? either way, girls got issues, just need to decide which one to tolerate the most.

 

[kregstrong]

Yea whatever u do just stay away from the charge, I get about 4 hours on a battery and constant freezing and crap all the time. Worst phone ive ever owned. Hate it

Sent from my SCH-I510 using Tapatalk

 

[johnriii]

New to the forums here, and I'm debating between the Charge and the Tbolt (praying for a price drop on the bionic). my budget allows for not going over $200.00, and this is for my upgrade. the prior posts on this thread definitely pushes me towards the Charge, my biggest fear being horrible battery life. I'm a light-medium user, have an option to charge at my desk during the day, and always charge my phone at night, whether it needs it or not. I'm rocking the HTC Eris right now, and this works fine for such a low end phone. Upgrade time kicks in right after black friday, so hopefully, the Bionic and the Charge have dropped even more....we will see:-\

 

[kart38]

Yea whatever u do just stay away from the charge, I get about 4 hours on a battery and constant freezing and crap all the time. Worst phone ive ever owned. Hate it

Sent from my SCH-I510 using Tapatalk

I'd call up and ask for another one. Two years is a long time to deal with those problems. My Charge, lasts me a day on a charge no problem. Much like johnriii, I charge mine every night and I can charge at work, but it is rarely an issue. The only time my phone won't last until I go to bed is if I've been spending a lot of time playing games. I leave 4G enabled all the time, and only use Wifi at home when I'm going to download a big app. My phone is unplugged from 8am until 12am and is usually over 30% when I plug it in at night.

The Charge is a great phone, but like any other piece of equipment there are always people who complain. Is it perfect? No, but there isn't a phone out there that is perfect. Live with the fact that any phone is "outdated" within a couple months of purchase and be happy with what you have.

Jason

 

[kart38]

I should point out, I'm not using the stock OS the phone shipped with. I'm currently running the latest leaked version of Gingerbread (2.3.5). I used Titanium Backup to freee/uninstall all of Verizon's craplications. I'm also running a nonstock kernel AND have it overclocked to 1.2GHz.

All easy modifications, the biggest/most important is the update to 2.3.5. The others were just because I could :/

Jason

 

[starbuckk]

I've had a couple of seemingly spontaneous reboots and lost the 4g a couple times. Other than that I'm having great luck.
Both od these indicators have the possibility of environmental causes.

Sent from my SCH-I510 using Tapatalk

 

[dressagerider]

I just received my bionic in the mail today and am starting to play with it.

I was on my 5th charge and having the same problems - some more, some less - with each phone. Verizon was nice enough to say they would be embarrased to offer me a 6th same phone.

The ONLY thing the charge has going for it is the screen. Period. But the saying 'pretty is as pretty does' fits the bill with this device. It does not do. Constant freezing, poor phone call quality, dropped calls, constant 'i can hear them but they can't hear me', apps freeze, LAGG, slow, reboots, no memory, and the list goes on.

I really wanted to like this phone. I have had so many android phones, and even an iphone, but this is the worse one I have ever had.

True, the bionic screen is not as nice as the Charge, but I really like it and it is FAST and NO lag so far. I am hoping I finally have a phone that works.