Verizon is launching the HTC Thunderbolt this Thursday. The HTC Thunderbolt, Verizon’s first LTE smartphone, uses Google Android 2.2 and will cost $249.99 with a 2-year contract. It includes wireless hotspot capabilities — free until May 15 — HTC’s customized Sense interface and Verizon’s speedy LTE network with speeds reaching 12 Mbps and automatic drop down to 3G speeds where an LTE signal can’t be found.
It features:
- 4G LTE – with download speeds of 5 to 12 Mbps and upload speeds of 2 to 5 Mbps
- 4.3” WVGA display
- 8-megapixel rear facing camera and HD (720p) video recording
- 1.3-megapixel front facing camera with video chatting capabilities
- 1GHz Snapdragon processor
- Mobile Hotspot capability – share 4G connection with up to eight Wi-Fi-enabled devices
- 8 GB of onboard memory and a pre-installed 32 GB microSD card (Actual formatted capacity will be less)
- Built-in kickstand for easy media viewing
Verizon is holding the unlimited 4G data plan rate at the same $29.99 monthly price for 3G, although the company has already hinted that tiered pricing plan will take effect later this year. After May 15, the wireless hotspot feature can be added for $20 per month, providing 2 GB of data to be shared with up to eight devices. As a 4G device, that 2 GB could be used up very quickly.
Verizon’s HTC Thunderbolt is a CDMA variant of the HTC Desire HD. It was first announced at CES on January 6, 2011. It will be the flagship phone for Verizon, going head to head with Sprint’s 4G phones, the HTC EVO, the HTC Evo Shift 4G and Samsung Epic 4G, a Galaxy S variant.
Other LTE phones expected to be available later this year:
- The LG Revolution, like the Thunderbolt, has a 4.3-inch display and front- and rear-facing cameras. It uses either a single-core Qualcomm Snapdragon CPU or a dual-core NVIDIA Tegra 2, but may actually come out before HTC’s Thunderbolt.
- Motorola’s Droid Bionic comes with a dual core processor, a 4.3-inch screen and dual cameras.
- Verizon’s LTE Samsung Stealth will sport a 4.3-inch Super AMOLED display and a 1 GHz single-core Hummingbird processor, like those found on the Galaxy S smartphones, and upgradeable to Android 2.3 Gingerbread.
T-Mobile is also promoting a their HSPA+ Galaxy S, but purists would not call HSPA 4G.
