4G for Thunderbolt in Honolulu Question

[alohaspirit]

There seems to be no means for a newbie like me to figure out how to make 4G work on my new Thunderbolt.   I could figure it out fine on my Sprint phone.  

Is there any person in authority who knows with certainty when the  4G access will presently work with the new Verizon Thunderbolt  in Honolulu?  

Some say the modems work ( Verizon is selling them at least)  but I don't know anyone who has stated the Thunderbolt works in 4G mode right now.    

Is the  4g for modems different than 4G for Thunderbolts?  

I sure thought when I bought my Thunderbolt it would work in 4G mode without effort or thinking.  

Please help a newbie out here. 

[BlackDragon]

According to verizon's 4g map, honolulu does not have 4g yet, it's expected this year though.

[alohaspirit]

Yes, I looked at that map but thought it was out of date.  I guess that was stupid.  I thought since the 4g modems worked and Verizon was selling the 4g Thunderbolt phones 4G must be turn on in Honolulu.  This was mainly because my Sprint phone, though spotty was easy to find 4G.

Funny, as the 3g on the Thunderbolt seems very fast.  I thought is was 4g as it seems even as fast as my wifi.   Then I noticed the status bar which states 3G.  

Can a Thunderbolt user in a 4G city tell me if their Thunderbolt says  4g  in status bar at top?    I read this is auto and no toggle like Sprint has.

[PJNC284 · Accepted solution]

yes it will say 4G LTE instead of 3G.  They sell the 4G cards and phones in 3G only areas because they're backwards compatible and can still run on 3G. 

[Tidbits]

Currently it's in "Honolulu"(some parts)

The Airport, some parts of Pearl City, Salt Lake, Kalihi, and anything near the Airport.  Got some unreal speeds when I was near the airport. Reports say it should smother Oahu by the end of the year, but truthfully I wouldn't expect that until 2012 sometime.

[Ann154]

There were four areas announced on March 22nd for Hawaii to have 4G LTE by the end of the year.

http://news.vzw.com/news/2011/03/pr2011-03-21a.html

[alohaspirit]

I am headed out to airport tomorrow...to test out my new thunderbolt. Thanks..I am getting.two days on my battery....I want to see if 4 g drains it faster or not. To me the thunderbolt 3 g is really fast compared to my iPhone 3g. Must be the great chip .