HTC ThunderBolt release thread

[Trey1475]

Which way did you do the reset? From the settings menu, or by powering it up and holding the lower volume button at the same time?

From the settings menu... Its was weird because even Verizon techs couldn't manually put my phone's IMEI and SIM card number into their system...

[jseah]

The 1st Thunderbolt unit produces a noticeable buzzing/rattling sound in the earpiece speaker
if the call volume is set to medium or higher.
The 2nd unit that I got today has this buzzing some, but it is far less predominate.
The only way I can hear it is if the call volume is set to the highest level.
I have a Droid X and iPhone 4 here, and neither of them do this, nor does
my own personal LG Clout VX8370.

One difference that I have noticed between both the Thunderbolt units are with the TFT display.
The 1st unit has very saturated colors, good contrast, and whites look white, but
on the 2nd unit the colors are more dull looking, contrasts isn’t as good, and
whites look almost greyish. When viewing the same wallpapers, videos, and web
sites on each, I can clearly see a difference in the displays. I also manually adjusted
the backlight on both to the brightest setting, and it made the difference even more noticeable.

I understand that when consumer electronics are mass-produced overseas, that there may
be instances where there are differences between the same product model. But both of these issues
I’ve experienced before with HTC phones that I’ve tested in the past.

I think I may have lucked out then. The phone that I got on Friday does not have any earpiece speaker buzzing issues and the display is nicely saturated and very bright. In fact, the colors are deeper and richer than the display on my Motorola Droid.

[crain]

Okay, so I've always just purchased from the Verizon store. Could someone please tell me what the advantages are of purchasing from BestBuy (aside from any price difference)? Thx.

Since I paid retail, I wanted to activate it myself. The VZW store said they would not let it go without activating it. But Best Buy let me walk out with an unopened box. By way of an explanation - the local company stores have a bad reputation for making plan changes and fibbing to the customers. (Sorry company guys.) I have a grandfathered plan I don't want to loose.

[_KC_]

Since I paid retail, I wanted to activate it myself. The VZW store said they would not let it go without activating it. But Best Buy let me walk out with an unopened box. By way of an explanation - the local company stores have a bad reputation for making plan changes and fibbing to the customers. (Sorry company guys.) I have a grandfathered plan I don't want to loose.

Did BB price match VZW's retail price? Aren't they $150 more than VZW's retail?

[tjmonkey15]

I was wondering the same thing. Whenever I get my first LTE phone (I will have to buy it outright), I would love to take it home and activate it myself so the Verizon people don't get their hands all over it, but it's not worth an extra $150 to me to prevent that from happening. If I didn't mind spending the cashola, I'd be all for it then.

[FAUguy]

Here's a code I found listed in another thread:
*#*#4636#*#*
Then select Phone Information.
By default, it has "CDMA + LTE/EvDo auto" selected, which means that it will look for a 4G signal, and if it can't find one will then look for 3G, and then 1x.
But if you don't live in a 4G area, then you can change this to "CDMA auto (PRL)" which will only keep it in a 3G mode.
EvDo only seems to lock out voice calls, so don't change to that.
There is also a "LTE Mode" that will keep it in 4G mode, and not change to 3G in your noticing the phone going between 4G and 3G alot.

There is also the standard ##PROGRAM menu as well.

[crain]

Did BB price match VZW's retail price? Aren't they $150 more than VZW's retail?

The price at VZW, when I purchased, was $700, so I went across the street to Best Buy where it was $750. I don't know what happened to the prices after that. Part of it is the principle of the thing.* Yet I'm guessing if I penciled the whole thing out, I might just about break even on retail vs. a much more expensive plan.

*Example: My coworker, on a sweet Midwest Wireless/Alltel plan about like mine, went in to the VZW store to get a Droid1, like mine. They told him that a plan change would be required, so he walked out. A month later he got his discount at an authorized retailer without changing a thing.

[ShortSxit]

Here's a code I found listed in another thread:
*#*#4636#*#*
Then select Phone Information.
By default, it has "CDMA + LTE/EvDo auto" selected, which means that it will look for a 4G signal, and if it can't find one will then look for 3G, and then 1x.
But if you don't live in a 4G area, then you can change this to "CDMA auto (PRL)" which will only keep it in a 3G mode.
EvDo only seems to lock out voice calls, so don't change to that.
There is also a "LTE Mode" that will keep it in 4G mode, and not change to 3G in your noticing the phone going between 4G and 3G alot.

There is also the standard ##PROGRAM menu as well.

Yeah, there's an app in the market. Just keeps you from having to remember the code.
https://market.android.com/details?i...hone.PhoneInfo

[Speedfreak33]

Ok I got my Thunderbolt last Friday and I love it but I have some issues and wondering if I should return it. 1st I use the headphone jack to play the music on my car radio and the left speakers were not working. I had to jiggle the wire alot to get it to work. One bumb the left speakers go out. I also tried it regular headphones and it does the same. Should they take it back for this reason? 2nd is the battery life. I have to chage my phone like 3 times a day when I leave the mobile network on. I tried juice defender but it doesn't install correctlly. Thanks

[FAUguy]

Has anyone else been noticing their Thunderbolt changing between 4G and 3G - back and forth - quite a lot recently?
I've had it for almost a week now, and Sunday I started to notice this. It can be sitting on my desk and show 4G with 1-2 bars, then go down to no bars, change to 3G for about 15-30 seconds, then back to 4G. It seems to mostly do this in the evening and night, not to much during the day. I looked into the service menu, and it will show -91 dBm when there are 2 bars of 4G, but then will drop down to -103, -105, and then change over to 3G with -94/96. Back and forth it goes.

I'm not sure if this is a phone issue (hardware/software) or a local issue with the LTE tower.

[wkopera]

Okay, so I've always just purchased from the Verizon store. Could someone please tell me what the advantages are of purchasing from BestBuy (aside from any price difference)? Thx.

The huge advantage to buying from Best Buy is that they give you your rebate up front. If you go through Verizon, they send you a visa card in the mail (which takes time, and IMO, is a pain to use) for the amount of the rebate.

[BigDogg795]

Are people still experiencing issues with buzzy earpieces? Or was that just a fluke for a handful of people?

[ROLLTIDE]

This sounds like a pretty good deal

"Just a heads up: Some existing Verizon customers have been receiving an email offering the new HTC Thunderbolt for a low $149.99 after a two-year contract and $100 instant rebate. If you are in the market for a Thunderbolt and near the end of your current Verizon contract, chances are you fall within the range eligible for the discount. You can’t find it online, but a sales number (800-437-6132) should get you what you are looking for."

[willzzz]

You DON'T NEED *228 ON ANY 4G PHONE. All VZW 4G phones use a SIM card which stores even your CDMA credentials on the SIM card using a CSIM UICC application if you were wondering.

The PRL now auto updates with OTA IMS SIM provisioning like AT&T/T-Mobile.

The Thunderbolt uses 4GV (EVRC-B) which supposedly boosts voice quality and allows VZW to boost voice capacity on the tower using the same amount of spectrum.

Maybe that's why the bty. life sucks but with updates it will get better as they optimize the runtime code.

4GV is the same technology that allows simultaneous voice and data on CDMA and LTE.

Set it to CDMA auto (PRL) mode if you don't live in a LTE area.

[Extraordinary]

My other droids are on EVRC. Switching to EVRC-B is supposed to make the call sound better? But it uses more battery? But gives verizon more capacity? hmm