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Why the Motorola Droid Bionic Is Still Worth Waiting For

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There has been a lot of negativity regarding the Motorola Droid Bionic and its delayed launch. We had originally thought it would launch in August and then Motorola dropped a bomb on us. It wasn’t arriving until September.

Many of you started to question whether or not you would buy the Droid Bionic when it would come out. Others jumped off the bandwagon and hopped on board the train conducted by the Samsung Galaxy S II.

Then, yesterday, we unveiled some exclusive photos of the Droid Bionic that were quickly met with all sorts of groans about the thickness of the phone. I think I even saw someone call it a Zach Morris phone.

Motorola Droid Bionic

So, in light of all these new developments and criticisms, I thought it right to address them in an updated take on why the Motorola Droid Bionic is a phone worth considering.

Motorola Design and Quality

Droid Bionic

Motorola makes phones that last. Every time I go out in San Francisco, I see people using the original Droid or the original Droid X. I have issues with their vision, but I love their hardware and quite frankly, the Droid Bionic seems like the best of these Droid phones mixed with 4G LTE.

HTC ThunderBolt Battery Life“Look at how thick the design is,” they cry.

Well, that’s probably because it’s holding a massive battery and you know what? I would gladly buy a phone with the Droid Bionic’s “thick design” (it doesn’t even look that much thicker than the other Droid phones) if the battery life holds up.

I love thin phones and I enjoy sleek designs as much as the next person, but I also love a phone that can withstand the rigors of daily use. That has been a problem with 4G LTE phones. The HTC ThunderBolt couldn’t do it and the Droid Charge can only manage slightly better. I know our own Kevin Purcell loves his extended battery for the ThunderBolt, but I don’t want to have to buy an extended battery just to make it through an average day.

Obviously, Motorola learned that lesson and scraped the old design in favor of a familiar form factor with a huge battery that supposedly gets 15 hours on moderate usage. That is what the Droid Bionic is. A Droid with a huge battery, 4G LTE, and a dual-core processor. Oh, and it also has a qHD display which unfortunately is probably going to be PenTile in nature, but that will save precious battery life.

Everyone wants to have their cake and eat it but when it comes to the current state of 4G LTE right now, it’s not possible. The technology is too new. Wondering why I think Apple won’t release a 4G LTE smartphone in September? There’s your answer. A thin 4G LTE smartphone with great battery life is far-fetched at this point. And I doubt that Apple wanted to bulk up.

Beyond that though, there hasn’t been a single Motorola Droid phone from the past two years that has let me down whether it’s the Droid X, Droid X2 or the Droid 3. Every single one has been solid. And that track record speaks volumes to what the Droid Bionic can and will be: A phone with hardware that can last for two years with a growing, next-generation network behind it.

That’s called a trump card, ladies and gents.

Focused Beats Scattered

Samsung Fascinate

Again, speaking of track records, Samsung has a terrible one. Think about it. It took forever for Sammy and the carriers to get their act together with Froyo, an update that all four devices on the major U.S. carriers needed. Motorola’s devices were some of the first to get it. Am I really supposed to believe that things are going to be different with the Galaxy S II?

I am willing to be it’ll be business as usual.

Don’t get me wrong, I love the carrier options but in my opinion, software-wise, that hurts the Galaxy S II. With the Droid Bionic, it’s only Verizon and Motorola collaborating. With Samsung, its politics with four major carriers at the very least, maybe even more. Why set yourself up for disappointment?

Need I Say More?

Those are the main two reasons, here are a few more just for the heck of it:

  • Verizon’s 4G LTE Network Is Expanding Fast
  • Verizon’s 4G LTE Network Is Improving All The Time
  • MotoBlur On The Motorola Droid 3 Is Enjoyable, It Likely Will Be On The Droid Bionic As Well

Need more?

No phone is perfect. Until batteries and 4G technology improves drastically, you won’t see a 4G “Jesus” phone. And even with all the perceived flaws, I still believe that the Droid Bionic is a phone worth considering.

Let me be clear. I am not saying that you’re absolutely, positively going to want to buy the Droid Bionic. I am just saying that you shouldn’t give up on it just yet. September release and all.

(Note: Before you start saying that Motorola is in my pocket, read this.)

57 Comments

57 Comments

  1. Nsdx3

    08/09/2011 at 9:52 pm

    Agree. I gave up because I wanted a new phone before school started but the phone is worth it! Thanks!

  2. BrianB13

    08/09/2011 at 10:35 pm

    I haven’t given up on the Bionic but with the possibility of other 4g LTE dual core phones coming out in September and October that supposidly have more advanced specs, I do want to look at them as well.  I will buy a 4g LTE dual core phone and if the Bionic is the only option, then so be it. 

  3. Shane Hazlewood

    08/09/2011 at 10:40 pm

    I was about ready to give up on the Bionic as well.  After researching the GS2 I decided the Moto was better for the webtop, accessories, and the usb/charging location is just stupid on the GS2.  And lets face it, other than TV’s, Samsung makes junk products IMO.  I wont do a blind purchase as I was going to do before by buying online, but I will wait to see the reviews and try it out in the store.  I just hope the software implementation is great otherwise I will keep my X.

    • Mike

      08/09/2011 at 10:52 pm

      My son and I both had original Droids. Both failed before the 2 year contract term.

      • Anonymous

        08/09/2011 at 11:36 pm

        probably more to do with how you treat your things than the phone. My friends and I with droid 1′ s have been going strong since the beginning.

        • Anonymous

          08/10/2011 at 1:52 pm

          Same here. I’ve had my original Droid since they came out and have had zero issues with it.

        • AyeSail

          08/15/2011 at 7:09 pm

          I have been reasonably happy with my “original” Droid.  But, I must say all phones to this date have has issues of some type.  With the original Droid, perhaps the “lag time” has been most prominent, albeit, I’m sure, others would put their issues to the top of their lists.  That said, I think the original Droid is a fine smartphone in the whole scheme of things.

      • Anonymous

        08/10/2011 at 1:59 am

        My OG phone still running great and I got it December 09.

      • Afizzle

        08/10/2011 at 5:02 am

        Yep 2 years for mine too still going strong. Will be updating to bionic as well

        • Prttyboiii007

          08/13/2011 at 4:24 am

          Same here!

        • OrlandoBob

          09/07/2011 at 5:49 pm

          Still have my OG (well over 2 years) and am waiting on the Droid 3 to show up locally as it’s considered a worldwide shortage.  Still love the real keyboard over the virtual one.

      • Kmorgan315

        08/10/2011 at 2:48 pm

        Still have my original Droid and kept bogging down and losing calls.  Went back to thinking what changes I made to it.  Deleted all unused apps, moved what I could to SD card, deleted txtx, calls, etc and still it got hung up.  Then I tried moving all my apps back to home menu versus on homescreens and that did the trick.  the speed was pretty much back to it day 1.  I agree that Moto makes a dependable phone and will wait for the Droid but only afetr checking others out as well.

      • Anthony

        08/14/2011 at 10:17 pm

        How many times have you dropped your phones?  Both my brother and I are on the OG Droid and have not had a single issue with it.

      • Anthony

        08/14/2011 at 10:17 pm

        How many times have you dropped your phones?  Both my brother and I are on the OG Droid and have not had a single issue with it.

      • Anthony

        08/14/2011 at 10:17 pm

        How many times have you dropped your phones?  Both my brother and I are on the OG Droid and have not had a single issue with it.

      • Alleahna

        09/04/2011 at 12:52 am

        I’ve had my original Droid since Dec. 09, accidently dumped tea on it and it still works great. Every Moto product I’ve owned has been solid and lasted the entire two years of each contract and then some. I’d buy a Bionic sight unseen before I’d buy anything else.

    • Richard Ammons

      08/10/2011 at 1:14 am

      My son and I both have had the og Driod and both have been going stong for 2 years now. Iv’e been waiting on the Bionic for a while, why give up now! After reading all these post daily to keep up with this phone, I believe we are all in for a suprise when the phone is finally released.

  4. CaptM

    08/09/2011 at 11:06 pm

    What makes you think that any other phone coming out in September or October will have anything more advanced that what the Bionic will have?  For any other phones coming out in that time period, they will have been developed in the same time frame as the Bionic, and unless someone brought back nextgen tech from the future, what is out there right now is what is out there, or some manufaturer’s have been working in ultra-black op mode for the last year developing nextgen tech without anyone finding out.

    This is the main thing that I just do not understand about some people, they say that they are fed up with Verizon and Moto and cannot wait anylonger, but will will wait for the next iPhone, or Samsung SGII or Vigor or whatever will come out in the next 2 to 4 months, how does that make any sense at all?

    If you don’t like what you may have heard (up until the release of the FCC Docs), that was all speculation anyway, nothing officical and yet “Oh, this is gonna Suck, I’m waiting for so and such”.  Well, why not just design and manufacture you’re own phone?  That way, you’ll get everything that you want and will have nothing official or unofficial to bitch about.

    • Rex_D

      08/10/2011 at 3:39 am

      I’m SURE that 90% of us would LOVE to be able to design our own phone.  Hey… anyone got enough money to start up a company that allows consumers to “build” their own cell phone?  Kinda like Gateway did with computers.  Pick your processors, pick your RAM, pick your screen, your Android version, and your “form factor” (I hate that term)…. would be f-ing awesome!!

  5. Anonymous

    08/09/2011 at 11:39 pm

    This phone seems perfect for me. I will happily give up some smallness for longevity of both device and battery. Love the 4g and dual core. Not so excited about blur… Would rather have vanilla android like my droid but it seems like a minor issue.

  6. Anonymous

    08/10/2011 at 12:34 am

    The two things I wanted most in the Bionic were global ready world phone and a 4.5 screen but it looks like it will come with neither. So much for the enhanced user experience Sanjay.

    • Richard Ammons

      08/10/2011 at 1:27 am

      When looking at the reccent leaked FCC docs on the Bionic it states that this will be a world phone afterall. Also, I’m to believe that the screen size will be a 4.5. If this is the case, I believe you will get the 2 things that you are looking for. I belive we are all in for a suprise when the Bionc is finally released. If you have been waiting as long as I have, what’s a couple more weeks.

      • d r

        08/10/2011 at 8:23 am

        the screen is 4.3  That was confirmed this week with motorola

  7. brandon brown

    08/10/2011 at 2:06 am

    I actually want more phones to be released at or around the same time as the Bionic, this will only build competition and competition is better for the comsumer because if they all look about the same than price will have to sell the phone.  So thats better for all of us.

    • Rex_D

      08/10/2011 at 4:36 am

      That is WHY they don’t release phones at the same time.  

  8. Rex_D

    08/10/2011 at 3:35 am

    I don’t think people have REALLY given up on the Bionic.  But… people are frustrated and irritated.  If the Bionic really is a Droid 3 with a bigger battery, dual cores, and LTE… that fine… but people were hoping for something more, something special.  With all the secrecy and rumors, we thought we might be wowed… we thought we MIGHT get more than a Droid 3 with some added things.  It’s a shame that our bar of what is actually wowing has been raised so high… but it has.  We know what is potential now and we want to see it come to fruition.  Plenty of people will still buy the Bionic.

    • ME!

      08/10/2011 at 7:01 am

      well.. I think half the reason we all were expecting to be wowed is that moto themselves said the phone was gonna blow us away.. and now the rumors point to other phones with release dates just a whisper away from this super duper bionic, that have specs that kill the bionics hard stance of being the bad boy on the block,

      • James E. Burkett

        08/16/2011 at 3:17 pm

        I haven’t seen specifications on any other phone that kill the Bionic. In fact, I have only seen specs that match the Bionic, in one way or another, but so far, the Bionic is dwarfing every other phone out there overall. Don’t tell me about the SII either because that Super AMOLED+ screen is going to murder it’s battery… No phone is a Good phone if (A) You can’t see it in sunlight, or (B) The battery is always dying… Two of which will be FACT in the Galaxy SII

  9. Anton Stetner

    08/10/2011 at 4:10 am

    i am disappointed with the long wait for its release.  And if something better that is duel core with 4g comes out i may not wait longer. The main problem is the bionic had awesome specs forever ago but as time has passed without its release its specs have become less awesome.  IMHO

    • Rex_D

      08/10/2011 at 4:35 am

      What would you say would be “better”. Just curious

      • Anton Stetner

        08/10/2011 at 6:34 pm

        not completely sure but it might be the HTC Vigor, Samsung Galaxy II, Samsung Celox, Nexus Prime or the next rumored Moto phone (forgot the name) …..or  
         
        Also, if any of the new phones come with the Ice Cream Sandwich version of android they could be significantly better.  So it is bascially wait because nothing is for sure.  LOL.

        • James E. Burkett

          08/16/2011 at 3:12 pm

          Google just bought Motorola. The Bionic will be one of the first phones to get the upgrade to Ice Cream Sandwich. 

  10. gloriousnumber1

    08/10/2011 at 4:54 am

    I can’t upgrade until April 2012, but if the Bionic is not completely outdated by then, and it’s still what I want, I will get it, but I want to give anything (besides Applecrap) a fair shake.

    • David Imel

      08/10/2011 at 6:45 am

      Believe me the way technology moves… By then they will have quad cores with 13 meg cameras and 4-6 gigs of ram. Mini computers.

  11. Anonymous

    08/10/2011 at 6:33 am

    “The HTC Vigor Will Likely Have A Large Battery”
    For some reason, I was under the impression that battery power was good! How silly of me! It’s not like I’ll be losing thinness if I choose the Vigor over the Bionic. The Bionic will likely have a large battery, too. 

  12. Phil

    08/10/2011 at 7:13 am

    I agree with everything you said, all good points and I am glad to see you put some criticisms to rest. I have the original Droid and have been ready to upgrade since April, but have waited for this phone. I am worried though, that it will be surpassed by new phones only a couple months after release. And I also dread the supposed 300 dollar price tag, 200 seems reasonable. I think I will still get it, but I will have to wait for a sale. 

    And I’m also curious about the complaints about the pentile display, what’s so terrible about it?

    • James E. Burkett

      08/16/2011 at 3:09 pm

      They haven’t even seen the pentile display the Bionic will have. It is higher resolution than the Droid X2, and the X2 looks fine unless you look at it with a microscope. The pentile display allows for Far greater battery life on a phone, and looks great. Don’t be swayed by idiots with microscopes.

  13. Ferizt

    08/10/2011 at 9:50 am

    Nice phone….

    new gadget

  14. Min Ju Lee

    08/10/2011 at 10:23 pm

    Nope, would much rather get the Samsung Galaxy.

    • Danny

      08/11/2011 at 12:08 am

      I’m a Brit living in Chicago & my Dad back home has just bought the S2, he loves it, it looks good & has the bonus of Skype video (which I’m STILL WAITING FOR On MY XOOM BTW SKYPE!!!!), with the top notch screen, seriously tempted (have been waiting for the Bionic for a long time, but now swaying (Bionic better be super special!)

  15. Jim Brodeur

    08/11/2011 at 10:24 pm

    I couldn’t disagree more about Motorola’s quality. I stood in line and bought the X on the release date 13 months ago. I am now on my 4th X and I am having issues again. The first phone immediately had a huge deadspot in the touchscreen and I had to wait 2 months for the replacement due to availability. The next 2 were replaced because of headphone jack issues. I am now having issues with the phone randomly turning off. I will never buy another Moto product. My eyes are on the HTC Vigor if it is dual-core and 4G LTE. 

  16. Daabjw

    08/14/2011 at 5:02 am

    I have the original Droid-x. Its been to Afghanistan and back and still works like a champ. I’m in no hurry to upgrade unless it does something extremely special. Motorola phones are still the best.

  17. Randomlancila

    08/16/2011 at 11:36 am

    See, I’ve had the Droid Eris since early 2010. I’m FINALLY eligible for an upgrade in November. Pretty much ANYTHING is a huge upgrade over the Eris, which in my not-so-humble opinion is the biggest failure of a droid ever released. But I’ve definitely got my eye on the Bionic.

  18. Jennfan11

    08/17/2011 at 10:14 pm

    When will Verizon release an official date for the Bionic?  Is it usually 1-2 week prior to being able to purchase it.  I have been waiting for quite awhile for it and am very eager to use my upgrade.

  19. Jennfan11

    08/17/2011 at 10:14 pm

    When will Verizon release an official date for the Bionic?  Is it usually 1-2 week prior to being able to purchase it.  I have been waiting for quite awhile for it and am very eager to use my upgrade.

  20. Anonymous

    08/19/2011 at 9:02 pm

    Battery battery battery. 

    My experience with all the 4G phones is that 4G completely wastes the battery. So you have the hassle of having to switch 4G on and off to conserve battery. Not good. I really don’t want a 4G phone if that’s the way it’s going to behave. 
    Also, anytime I use my Droid X heavily, like for an hour or two, the battery will die even on wifi or 3G. I will need to charge by early evening. 

    The batteries they are putting in phones are quite simply not big enough for the way we’re using the phones. They really ought to be able to last a day of fairly heavy use and 2-3 days of minimal use. I would seriously consider a phone with a big old hefty battery over one with a marginal one, all else being equal, and gladly give up a mm or two of increased thickness.

  21. Matai

    08/26/2011 at 2:07 am

    Who is the chick on the phone?

  22. Matai

    08/26/2011 at 2:07 am

    Who is the chick on the phone?

  23. Col Tom

    08/30/2011 at 1:55 am

    I’ve also been waiting for this phone as my upgrade date was in July.  I’ve got an original Droid phone.  It has been rooted and overclocked for over a year.  It has been dropped and landed on concrete or asphalt no less than three times.  Two of those times it landed hard enough that the battery cover came off and the battery fell out.  Each time I put the battery in, cover back on powered it up, and it was just fine.  Based on the durability of the original Droid, I will probably end up with the Bionic.  I was planning to compare it to the Galaxy S2 but have read that Verizon won’t be getting the GS2.  That will make the decision pretty easy, provided that the initial reviewers of the phone don’t disclose some obvious flaw.

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