Thunderbolt First Impressions/Reviews

[Gawain]

Well, I sent back my new Droid X and waited for this one. It's a great device, the hardware makes the software very responsive. Everything works except for one thing: ActiveSync Calendar.

Build quality - Thumbs up. Very good.
Mail - Thumbs up. Very good.
Contacts - Thumbs up. Very good.
On screen keyboard - Thumbs up. Good (though the haptics feel weak)
Everything on the whole, so far - Thumbs up. Very good.
ActiveSync on the calendar - Thumbs down. 100% non functional.

Unfortunately, I wish I could say the problem was on my end. The server reads green. There are no conflicting items in the control panel and the device gives no reason other than, "Synchronization is experiencing problems". In a matter of minutes we went through Tier 1, and 2 support at VZW, referred to HTC and stumped them in about 20 minutes. Awaiting referral to someone higher in the chain...

I'm still tinkering with it, but I should not have to buy a third party app to get this to work. It's part of the whole point of having a "smartphone"...

I am really going to find a work-around on this. The device on the whole is really nice. The HTC Sense UI isn't as much of a hindrance as I though it might be (of course I was comparing to Moto Blur-ish Droid X).

So, I'm not bashing anything. I really like this device, but I only have limited resources to devote to making it work. :-\

 

[Droid800]

I'm not quite sure what to think of the Bolt yet. It has the potential to be an amazing handset, easily one of the best Android phones I've ever had. The screen is great, the updated sense is really quite good, and its typical HTC when it comes to good build quality.

But...

The battery life has got me concerned. I've never had a phone die on me before, and my Bolt was dead by 6 pm today with only light use. I changed some settings with the Blockbuster app, and I'll continue to adjust them, but its still concerning. (and I sure as hell am not shelling out money for that tumor of an extended battery) If I can't get the battery life to be better, I might have to return it.

 

[SoraKy]

I honestly think that the be-all, end-all battery issues are uncalled for; isn't it well documented that smartphones receive OTA upgrades to improve battery life?

 

[patience]

I love my new thunderbolt! I used to have an LG ally...and let me tell u that this is a huge upgrade! The two phones are not even in the same class. My quadrant speed test was 1950 on 3g. I am not concerned about the battery because I have a charger at work, home, and in the car. My wife was laughing when she used it because of how fast and smooth the phone operates. If anyone is still on the fence about buying this phone...buy it! I had been on this forum reading posts for the past month....thank u all for all the info!

 

[NikoB]

Had my phone since day one and I'm still learning how to use it but I really like it. The battery sucks but I don't think that's really HTC's fault is it? I mean when are the battery manufacturers going to make batteries that can keep up with phone technology?? So they can make these fancy batteries to supply power to cars but not batteries good enough to keep a smartphone charged?!?

There is a bit of a learning curve. I'm having some trouble with a few things but after the first view days I'm loving my new phone and glad I waited for it. I feel like I have the top of the line for sure.

 

[richie1378]

* Aesthetics Impressed so far!
* Screen Gorgeous
* Hardware Great
* Phone - I'm not excited about the Kickstand covering the speaker...What were they thinking?!
* Overall User Interface (including HTC Sense) Lovin' it!
* Widgets Cool lookin'
* Signal quality No problem as of yet.
* GPS No problem as of yet
* Social Networking Cool
* Email/Calendar Happy with Gmail, gonna change the Calendar
* Battery Life Hmmmm...so so, so far.
* Performance Incredibly quick!
* Media I'm liking the default music app so far
* Keyboard's Haven't gotten used to hitting the correct letters yet. lol
* Camera So much better than my Moto Droid
* How the Thunderbolt compares to your previous smartphone 3 times as fast as my Moto Droid. The camera is also much faster at taking pics! I haven't really used the video camera all too much yet, but I can tell it's also better. The only DISAPPOINTMENTS so far are: The notification LED is only 2 colors (orange and green). The speaker is placed behind the kickstand.

 

[NickF227]

After two days, I pretty much just still stare at the phone and watch in awe.

I DO like that I can watch movies in bed though instead of on the uncomfortable chair in front of my computer. Seriously, flash is amazing. iTards FTL

 

[Mike_is_Mike]

Had my phone since day one and I'm still learning how to use it but I really like it. The battery sucks but I don't think that's really HTC's fault is it? I mean when are the battery manufacturers going to make batteries that can keep up with phone technology?? So they can make these fancy batteries to supply power to cars but not batteries good enough to keep a smartphone charged?!?

There is a bit of a learning curve. I'm having some trouble with a few things but after the first view days I'm loving my new phone and glad I waited for it. I feel like I have the top of the line for sure.

Yes, it IS HTC's fault. They didn't design this phone with enough space for a more powerful battery. Yes, battery technology needs to be improved - BUT - HTC has to use the battery technology that is available TODAY.

The EVO uses a 1750 battery.
The Bionic uses a 1950 battery.

Thunderbolt uses a 1400 battery.

Do the math.

 

[PJnc284]

The EVO uses a 1750 battery.
The Bionic uses a 1950 battery.

Thunderbolt uses a 1400 battery.

Do the math.

The Evo came with a 1500mAh battery. Looks like they decided to make the kickstand larger at the expense of the battery. I haven't used the phone much today but standby time seems to be much better than the Fascinate I have. Only dropped 3% after almost 5.5 hours off the charger with the same stuff syncing using wifi.

 

[DUSwimming08]

When using gmail on the TB I seem to have to scroll left and right a lot...is there a setting where it will fit the screen and I can just scroll up and down...thanks for the help

 

[Gawain]

Well, I sent back my new Droid X and waited for this one. It's a great device, the hardware makes the software very responsive. Everything works except for one thing: ActiveSync Calendar.

Build quality - Thumbs up. Very good.
Mail - Thumbs up. Very good.
Contacts - Thumbs up. Very good.
On screen keyboard - Thumbs up. Good (though the haptics feel weak)
Everything on the whole, so far - Thumbs up. Very good.
ActiveSync on the calendar - Thumbs down. 100% non functional.

Unfortunately, I wish I could say the problem was on my end. The server reads green. There are no conflicting items in the control panel and the device gives no reason other than, "Synchronization is experiencing problems". In a matter of minutes we went through Tier 1, and 2 support at VZW, referred to HTC and stumped them in about 20 minutes. Awaiting referral to someone higher in the chain...

I'm still tinkering with it, but I should not have to buy a third party app to get this to work. It's part of the whole point of having a "smartphone"...

I am really going to find a work-around on this. The device on the whole is really nice. The HTC Sense UI isn't as much of a hindrance as I though it might be (of course I was comparing to Moto Blur-ish Droid X).

So, I'm not bashing anything. I really like this device, but I only have limited resources to devote to making it work. :-\

Okay, I have an update which I hope will help anyone else encountering problems with the ActiveSync on the Calendar.

1. I did a factory reset on the device/wipe/whatever you call it (Settings >> SD & Phone Storage >> Factory data reset)
2. In your Hosted Exchange control panel, remove the mobile device profile from the desired email account(s)
3. Upon restart and set-up, skipped Back-up Assistant (I wasn't using it before either)
4. Skip the Gmail/Google set-up
5. Upon entering the screen to "add an account" select this option
6. Select "ActiveSync" and enter your account/server/information

From there I then allowed it to complete its default sync settings before going in there and adjusting them to my liking (email size, calendar events etc.). The only thing I changed was the amount of past appointments/events to sync. I prefer to sync all of it, but there was certainly something from years past causing part of the problem. So, I restricted it to 90 days. Once I was comfortable with that, I added accounts from my Yahoo!, Gmail and other accounts I wanted PIM integration.

It's been a few hours, and it's accepting push notifications of adding and removing appointments from the schedule without any errors. So, I think that's the fix.

I know there are third party apps that might have alleviated this issue, but I see no reason for something like this not to work out of the box. Exchange, warts and all, is a gold standard for business big (not me) and small (me). Now, I only hope we'll see expanded functionality from the Notes and other functions found in Exchange.

 

[maxx528]

Got the bolt, put it all together and plugged it in...haven't turned it on. Should I take out the SIM before I activate? Do I use the bolt to activate itself or my old phone?? BF told me to put in everything, power it up, and call *228, but now I see that that is not the case...At least if I get messed up, I can blame him... Help??

 

[PJnc284]

yeah, people have been saying NEVER to use *228 as it apparently hoses the sim card. Verizon reps were told the same.

 

[Mike_is_Mike]

The Evo came with a 1500mAh battery. Looks like they decided to make the kickstand larger at the expense of the battery. I haven't used the phone much today but standby time seems to be much better than the Fascinate I have. Only dropped 3% after almost 5.5 hours off the charger with the same stuff syncing using wifi.

My bad. The aftermarket extended battery (no hump) for EVO is 1750.

The aftermarket extended battery (no hump) for TB is still only 1600. I would rather have a battery that lasted all day than a "kick stand."

These phones are nice, but it looks like we are going 40 years backward on the power consumption. Back to the days in the 70's when we carried a battery pack with our cell phones!!!!

 

[Mike_is_Mike]

yeah, people have been saying NEVER to use *228 as it apparently hoses the sim card. Verizon reps were told the same.

NEVER use *228?! It seems like they should be telling people that when they BUY the phones?!

 

[PJnc284]

That's what one of the Verizon reps said when I was getting mine activated and it's been echoed on multiple forums. The store I went to apparently had tons of issues getting them activated on launch day and some even taking 3 hours. I went Friday and the rep was having an issue activating mine and one of the other reps came up and told him to try *228. Manager must've had some good ears because she was all the way across the store, heard it and ran over almost falling saying "NO NO NO, we were told not to do that". lol

 

[rtj0615]

I'm switching from bb to Android. I just got my Tbolt. I seen that there is not Suretype. I know the aris does have. It wondering if theres an app to switch keyboard configurations or am I stuck with a full keyboard? I switch from qwerty but don't like the format its in. It's basically multitap. Witch I hate. Love the Suretype. Please advise! Thx input much appreciated!

 

[Gawain]

I'm switching from bb to Android. I just got my Tbolt. I seen that there is not Suretype. I know the aris does have. It wondering if theres an app to switch keyboard configurations or am I stuck with a full keyboard? I switch from qwerty but don't like the format its in. It's basically multitap. Witch I hate. Love the Suretype. Please advise! Thx input much appreciated!

Yes, there is a 20-key compressed qwerty that looks like SureType, but isn't quite at that experience of SureType...you'll see. Go to Settings >> Language & Keyboard >> Touch Input >> Keyboard Types.

I was a monster with SureType on a Blackberry. I couldn't pull it off with this version, YMMV.

 

[ShaggyKids]

I'm coming from a Blackberry and so I'm pretty much thrilled w/my TB! I see that some of you experienced Android users have complaints and I would expect that - you know what has been and what you want to be better or different - but I don't know enough about the phone or the Android OS to be making any serious complaints. About the time I find something I don't like, I look for what I can do about it or post and there has been a "fix" for just about everything.

Right now I'm so jazzed with my TB that I could stand on my head and spit wooden nickles. I can't believe I was going to get another Blackberry before deciding to move to Android. So for now, count me one new happy TB/Android user!

 

[Mike_is_Mike]

So what happened to this thread? Where did all the posts go?