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iPhone or Thunderbolt

I'm eligible for my "new every 2" the 16th. of this month. Was set on getting an iPhone until I read that a new phone from HTC is coming out supposedly this month. I know the Thunderbolt is a 4G phone, however Verizon doesn't have 4G in my area and I don't know when they will. I'm wondering if I would be wasting my money by owning a 4G phone in an area that doesn't support it. Those of you that are much more experienced with these phones might be able to give me some advice. What would you do, get the iPhone or wait for the Thunderbolt to come out ???

richie

Comments

ZipTurtle

If you don't have 4G in your area, it doesn't make much sense getting a 4G phone.

If you are looking at a Droid, I'd look at the Droid Incredible instead.

I'm not a fan of iPhone as I don't care for iTunes etc... have some family members who thing the iPhone is the greatest though.

enyalius

I agree with every point that Zip made, and have a few more things to add.

First off, consider that this will be the last time you get to use your new every two discount. Verizon has pulled the plug on this program, so once you use it this time you can never use it again. If your current phone still works fine for what you need it to do, it might be worth holding off until either 4G is available in your area (and Verizon actually has 4G phones out) or you find a phone that you just can't live without.

Also, keep in mind that the annual discount option is dead, as well. That means that whatever phone you do decide to get, you will be stuck with for the next 20 or so months as the option to pay the $20 extra to upgrade every 13 months at 2 year pricing will no longer be possible (i.e. you will end up paying full retail ($400+) for any phone that you want to get before before you are able to get discounted pricing at the end of your contract).

Bottom line, make sure that whatever phone you do get is worth it to you and that you will be happy with it for the next two years.

richie72846

Thanks Guys,

You make some very good points. I did not know that new every 2 was about to end for everyone. Also, I went to the Verizon store today and held the Thunderbolt, I was amazed at how heavy it is. I also looked at the Incredible. Now I'm torn between the Fascinate and the Incredible.

enyalius

Yeah, I was a yearly upgrader, so I was pretty sad to see that annual deal go away, myself. Oh, well.

Anyway, if it's between the Samsung Fascinate and the HTC Incredible, I would suggest the Incredible, personally.

While the Samsung Galaxy S phones have some beautiful screens, the Fascinate just isn't up to snuff, in my opinion. It shipped with only 2GB of internal storage, which is a disappointment to me. Also, Verizon decided to tweak the Fascinate to make it 'better', replacing the default search (usually Google) with Bing, locking down navigation to their pay service instead of the free Google Navigation, and other things. According to friends who have owned the device, this made for a very buggy experience for them. Verizon may have fixed these issues (and others) in the intervening months, however, so it may be worth another look. If you are interested in seeing some reviews of the Fascinate, here is a link to ZDNet's review (which links to others, as well).

As for the HTC Incredible, the only negative thing I have heard about it so far is the battery life. My buddy ended up getting an extended life battery for his (which made it resemble a layer cake), but he has been extremely happy with it ever since.

Personally, I absolutely love my Droid X. The MotoBlur sucks sometimes, but it's a fast, powerful phone and I've had a great time with it so far. Do keep in mind, though, that both the phones you are considering are already fairly old (last year's hardware), and may not do the job for you over the next two years. It's up to you and your individual use-case, but it might be worth waiting until the Thunderbolt, Bionic and other phones come out over the next few months so you can get in on the best and ride that out for the next 21 or so months.

Good luck!

JohnB_VZW

You can purchase the 4G phone even if you are not in a 4G area. The phone is 3G compatible and this way you will be ready when 4G does become available in your area. Also, if you travel to an area that is 4G you can take advantage of the 4G speeds.

Click here to get more information on 4G and when it will become available in your area.

Thanks

John B

enyalius

John,

I guess my response to this would be: if 4G is not yet available in my area, will I still be paying for it? It's well and good to have the ability to use the network if I happen to travel an area that sports it or if it happens to come to my area soon, but if I cannot use it on a daily basis (or fairly regularly, at least), will I be stuck paying for it until I can?

JohnB_VZW

The data plans for the 4G phones have not yet been released. Once the Thunderbolt is released we will have more information regarding the data plans and will be able to better answer your question.

Thanks

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