Hasta La Gadget!

Another saga put to rest. The question of just when Verizon will release its first 4G LTE handset was answered yesterday with the word “tomorrow,” which makes today that day! Verizon Wireless is now taking online orders for HTC’s 4.3-inch Thunderbolt, pricing the LTE lubber at $250 on a two-year contract. It comes with Android 2.2 as the OS underlying the HTC Sense 2.0 UI, an 8 megapixel camera with HD video recording, 768MB of RAM, and a 1GHz Qualcomm MSM8655 chip that will have to do its best to keep up with those crazy 4G download speeds. If Verizon’s own pricing feels a bit rich to you, shop around — we’ve found the Thunderbolt as low as $180 at Amazon, although the online retailer has it on back order for the moment.

[Thanks, Justin]

Continue reading HTC Thunderbolt now available to buy: $250 from Verizon, $180 at Amazon

HTC Thunderbolt now available to buy: $250 from Verizon, $180 at Amazon originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 17 Mar 2011 04:04:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Verizon execs have been clear as crystal that unlimited smartphone data will follow the dodo — perhaps as soon as summer of this year — but in the meanwhile you can drink your fill of the best as the HTC Thunderbolt will launch this Thursday with an unlimited LTE data plan. While we’ve no guarantees how long it will last, or whether you can grandfather the $30 monthly option into bigger and better devices down the road, it does open up a whole new avenue of opportunity for the Thunderbolt. Considering that Verizon’s 4G USB modems top out at 10GB of LTE data for $80 a month, the HTC handset just became the most powerful, affordable MiFi you could possibly own. Assuming battery life is decent, of course. Find the full PR below.

Continue reading Verizon offers unlimited LTE data plan for HTC Thunderbolt, don’t expect it to stick around

Verizon offers unlimited LTE data plan for HTC Thunderbolt, don’t expect it to stick around originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 15 Mar 2011 18:15:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We said it’d be coming on the 17th, but you didn’t believe us. Why didn’t you believe us? No matter, Verizon‘s finally fessing up and letting us know the good news: the HTC Thunderbolt drops on March 17th for $249.99. In the PR, which is conveniently embedded below, VZW predictably talks up the phone’s status as the first 4G LTE device on its network, offering up to 12Mbps down and 5Mbps up, a connection that can be shared with up to eight Wi-Fi devices — if you pay the extra $20 per month for Mobile Hotspot service. Verizon is generously including a 32GB microSD card, which means you can take video along in a format that will do that 4.3-inch WVGA display justice. In case you haven’t looked at a calendar lately the 17th is just two days away, which doesn’t leave much time to find pants with pockets big enough for this beast.

Update: If you’d like to save 50 bones and are setting up a new account for handset, Emilie wrote in to let us know that you can get a little thunder for $199.99 at Wirefly.

Continue reading Verizon Wireless stops being coy, confirms HTC Thunderbolt for March 17th at $249.99

Verizon Wireless stops being coy, confirms HTC Thunderbolt for March 17th at $249.99 originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 15 Mar 2011 08:46:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Wireless retailer Wirefly is pushing ahead with pre-orders for the beleaguered HTC Thunderbolt starting at midnight Pacific Time this evening with the promise that they’ll start shipping this Thursday, the 17th; that lines up with a whole lot of noise we’ve heard recently, so we can’t really argue with it at this point. They’re also confirming a couple rumors that have been floating around since the phone’s January debut: first, they’re saying “no Skype,” which we’re taking to mean that the promised Skype video calling app won’t be installed out of the box. We’re also assuming (or at least hoping) that you’ll be able to install the standard voice-only version. Secondly, they’re saying that the phone definitely does simultaneous voice and data over 3G, a feature that was just recently made possible on Verizon’s CDMA network through software upgrades — and the Thunderbolt, it seems, will be the first retail device to have the pleasure of taking it for a spin.

Wirefly: ‘no Skype’ on Thunderbolt, but simultaneous 3G voice and data is a go; ships on March 17th originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 14 Mar 2011 19:28:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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After being jilted on Valentine’s Day, you’d think we would learn. But having tasted the goods, we couldn’t help but get suckered in by every HTC Thunderbolt launch date rumor — only to have our hopes dashed each time its release was inexorably pushed further and further back. Now, a leaked email and an HTC regional sales manager’s tweet (whose account has subsequently been deleted) claim our lust for Verizon’s first 4G handset will finally be quenched on March 17th. HTC posted on Facebook that the official launch date will be announced “soon, ” and four days from now would certainly qualify. We just hope Best Buy and Big Red realize they face a legion of disappointed (and drunken) St. Patty’s Day revelers should they delay Thunderbolt delivery day yet again. Let’s hope the luck of the Irish finally gets us our LTE.

HTC’s Thunderbolt coming March 17th: survey says… yes! originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 14 Mar 2011 03:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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