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5 Reasons Why You Should Wait to Buy the Motorola Droid Bionic

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Today is the big day folks. Verizon and Motorola have finally, at long last, made the Motorola Droid Bionic official and it will be arriving tomorrow, September 8th, for a cool $299 on a new two-year contract.

And while we were absolutely thrilled with the device, you can read our review here, there are still some reasons why it might be smart to hold off on buying it.

I realize that many of you have been waiting for months and months to get this phone but there are some pretty valid reasons why waiting might be your best option right now.

Here are those reasons.

Droid Bionic

It’s Expensive

The Motorola Droid Bionic is not a cheap device and I’m not just talking about the cost of the phone itself. If you’re signing up for a new two-year contract, you’re going to have to fork over $299.99. If you’re upgrading, you’ll have to do the same. But that isn’t the only money that you’re going to have to fork over for the Droid Bionic. You’ll have to pay for data. If you aren’t grandfathered into an unlimited plan, you’re going to have to sign up for tiered data.

That means that you’ll have to choose from:

  • 2GB for $30
  • 5GB for $50
  • 10GB for $80

And if you go over your allotted data, you’ll have to pay an extra $10.

If you want to use the Droid Bionic’s mobile hotspot, you’ll have to add an additional $20 to your data plan. And if you truly want to get the most out of the Droid Bionic, you might want to consider its unique accessories.

Those will cost you a pretty penny too. The Lapdock will cost you $299 if you want a portable laptop accessory. The Navigation Dock is $39.99 and the Battery Dock with standard battery is going to run you $49.99. The HD Station costs $99 and an Adapter for the Webtop Application is going to be $29.99. Verizon has everything covered here.

The Droid Bionic is a fantastic phone but it’s an expensive one so if you’re not looking to fork over hundreds of dollars at the moment, it might be best that you hold off until something cheaper comes around or the Droid Bionic drops in price.

4G LTE4G LTE

This is kind of a no-brainer but it’s a reason nonetheless. If your area currently does not have 4G LTE, it’s probably worth waiting on the Motorola Droid Bionic. Yeah, it works as a 3G device but there are much cheaper 3G devices out there that have similar specs to the Droid Bionic. The Droid X2 and the Droid 3, both of which are on Verizon, just to name a few.

It’s also probably worth skipping if 4G service is spotty in your area. I know Josh’s local 4G market is extremely unreliable at the moment and San Francisco is that way as well. Until Verizon shores these up, 4G really makes no sense.

In addition, there are still not a lot of viable apps to use in conjunction with 4G LTE. Yeah, there’s Netflix and there’s the lure of fast web browsing, but beyond that, there isn’t much.

And remember, even though the Droid Bionic is out in September doesn’t mean that it’s past early adoption. It’s the first dual-core 4G LTE smartphone and while we’ve liked what we’ve seen thus far, there could be unexpected trouble around the bend, similar to what happened to the HTC ThunderBolt.

Nexus Prime

There are also three very viable alternatives that are rumored to be coming out in the near future. The first of these is a phone that may or may not be called the Samsung Nexus Prime. Now, there isn’t much that we know about this device other than that it might be made by Samsung, might feature a true 720p HD screen, will likely have Android Ice Cream Sandwich on board, and could possibly be out in October.

In a perfect world. the Nexus Prime is a 4G LTE device with vanilla Android Ice Cream Sandwich and while there is not evidence suggesting that this is the case, there is also none that says that it won’t be happening for sure.

That being said, that combination of features, along with a cheap price tag and a possible release next month means that waiting to buy the Droid Bionic might be the smart play for some of you.

Droid Prime

Droid

Verizon didn’t announce a Samsung Galaxy S II at the end of August and soon after, word came that it was preparing to release a phone called the Droid Prime which may or may not be a Verizon branded version of the Nexus Prime.

4G LTE? Probably. Droid branding? Looks like it. Galaxy S II roots? Verizon is said to be planning on releasing something similar. An October release with Ice Cream Sandwich? Rumored but possible.

I think it might be worth it to wait for one month to see what this phone is all about.

iPhone 5

Last but not least, Apple is rumored to be releasing a new iPhone in September or October. Apple does not put out shabby hardware. iOS 5 is looking promising. The next iPhone will likely cost $199 on-contract. It might not have 4G LTE which, again, some of you don’t need. And it the announcement is likely going to take place in just a few weeks.

Love or hate the iPhone, it’s a fantastic device and I see no reason why the iPhone 5 won’t be either. The Droid Bionic may end up being a better device but it’s probably worth waiting a few weeks to see what Apple has up its sleeve.

28 Comments

28 Comments

  1. Stevem

    09/07/2011 at 7:58 pm

    I was waiting on the Samsung Galaxy S II. Got over it.  Now I’m waiting on the Nexus Prime – which hopefully will entice me to pull the trigger. 
    To be honest, this phone wasn’t even on my radar. 

  2. Stevem

    09/07/2011 at 7:58 pm

    I was waiting on the Samsung Galaxy S II. Got over it.  Now I’m waiting on the Nexus Prime – which hopefully will entice me to pull the trigger. 
    To be honest, this phone wasn’t even on my radar. 

  3. DJ Scharff

    09/07/2011 at 8:01 pm

    Not going to wait :)

  4. DJ Scharff

    09/07/2011 at 8:01 pm

    Not going to wait :)

  5. HotSauceMagik

    09/07/2011 at 8:09 pm

    Ahhh…My Droid1 kicked the bucket a little over a month ago and I’ve been waiting (with no personal phone) for that long.  I was all ready for the Bionic until I saw the price….now I’m torn by rumors of better (and cheaper) phones coming out in a month or so…

    WHAT DO I DO!?!?!?!

    • Andrew

      09/08/2011 at 11:13 am

      Im with you! Im debating on getting the Droid Bionic today, cause I like Motorola and I think Samsungs suck … but it sounds promising

    • Scotty Braun

      09/08/2011 at 1:19 pm

      If you had your Droid 1 this whole time, you should have a new every two available also, thats an extra $50 off. and if you trade in your old phone you get $100 gift card. See if you can get that broken Droid in on trade and you got yourself a new Bionic for $150-$200 

      • Rutabaga Man

        09/15/2011 at 9:22 pm

        You only get the $100 gift card for trading in an old dumb-phone for a smartphone(makes sense for VZW to try and get people to shell out for those data plans).  I don’t think the Droid 1 will qualify for the $100.

    • Scotty Braun

      09/08/2011 at 1:19 pm

      If you had your Droid 1 this whole time, you should have a new every two available also, thats an extra $50 off. and if you trade in your old phone you get $100 gift card. See if you can get that broken Droid in on trade and you got yourself a new Bionic for $150-$200 

    • Clark

      09/08/2011 at 4:50 pm

      You buy the phone from Amazon, not Verizon.  :)

  6. BrianB13

    09/07/2011 at 8:23 pm

    I’m definitely going to wait to buy a smart phone until the latter part of October to see what my options are.  Since I’m currently on Sprint, going to Verizon or AT&T would be pretty expensive with their tiered data plans.  I’m leaning towards the Galaxy Touch 4G on Sprint with an unlimited data plan.  I might still go to Verizon if either the HTC Vigor, Droid Prime, LG Revolution 2 or iPhone 5 turn out to be “must have” phones and the Touch 4g doesn’t thrill me.  I might still consider the Bionic if these other phones are a bust for one reason or another.     

  7. Bill Garrett

    09/07/2011 at 10:31 pm

    I think waiting a month is only going to reveal that the “high” price point is moot…they’re all likely to be expensive. Yes, it’s still likely that the iPhone 5 will be $199.99, but only for the 16GB model, with the 32GB model still being $299.99. That’s an extra hundred for the 16GB of memory and nothing else. Oh, and no 4G. But if you’re an iOS fan, I don’t blame you for waiting.

    As far as the Nexus/Droid Prime, I’m betting that the only perk besides vanilla is the Samsung screen. There are the rumored specs that include a faster processor (1.2-1.5 GHz) and NFC, but this may mean that $299.99 won’t be the highest price for an Android phone anymore. I doubt it will be any less.

  8. Anonymous

    09/08/2011 at 12:28 am

    I can’t understand how some can be surprised by the price of this phone. There are already $299 phones from Verizon, why would this be any different!?!? Like the Charge, its a Droid phone and this time with better specs, why wouldn’t Verizon charge the premium price? Kinda obvious to me but I also understand the denial. I don’t like it, but you get what you pay for with consideration to the the LTE data speeds. 

  9. Watzone

    09/08/2011 at 12:39 am

    I think you’ll see a lot of bill collecting going on within Verizon for their plans are flat out outrageous for data.  They are also killing thos egrandfathered in by not allowing it with any 4-G upgrade.  I have waited a long, long time for the Bionic, but I don’t have 200 bucks a month for their plan.  You almost have to go with the highest tier and there is no offer of an unlimited plan.  Personally, I have had it with Verizon.

    • Ryan S

      09/08/2011 at 1:53 pm

      I justchecked with Verizon…you are incorrect about in regards to grandfathered unlimited plan and going with a 4G device.  You are still grandfathered in if you get a 4G phone.
      YO scared the heck out of me!  :)

      • Kbarnes38

        09/08/2011 at 6:36 pm

        I was scared too I think I’m just gonna pull the trigger on the bionic. I have waited far two long with my original Droid1

      • drscot

        09/18/2011 at 9:48 pm

        Verizon didn’t let me grandfather in. I had a basic phone and bought the unlimited plan before it expired, and no less than three local reps told me I could then grandfather in with an upgrade in phone. I was waiting on the Bionic, but bought a 3G smartphone to tide me over. They immediately switched me to the 2 Gb tiered plan and told me there was no way I could keep the unlimited plan once I moved up from my basic phone (which didn’t need the data plan anyway). I complained to the local Verizon as well as customer service, and was told “no dice”. Was told that even if I stayed with the basic phone until the Bionic came out that I would have lost the unlimited plan the moment I upgraded to the Bionic. I feel like I was scammed. If anybody out there was successfully grandfathered in with a change in phones I would sure like to hear about the specifics.

        • Adam Zettel

          09/27/2011 at 4:48 am

          Well you obviously did not have the unlimited then or something because I got the bionic and was grandfathered in no problemo. Its even an option when activating it. Verizon was very helpful as always, so either you had the unlimited and returned the phone, switching back to a basic phone, which would make you lose unlimited smartphone data…… plus if you just upgraded to a 3G device, how are you eligible for an upgrade anyways?

  10. Anonymous

    09/08/2011 at 4:57 am

    Looks like I’ll be the only one picking one up tomorrow…

    • Koolaye

      09/08/2011 at 5:10 am

      No, we’ll be the only two! Along with a thousand others who have been waiting for this phone. XD

      • Nitin Nidhi1

        09/10/2011 at 5:11 am

        I’m in california and the cost of the phone here is $352 after taxes in store. These store rep said that amazon also charges the same tax. When I called amazon after buying the phone, they said that that they wouldn’t charge tax and the total will be 250. I returned the phone while I was in the store, but those f*****s didn’t let me return without the restocking fee of 35, even though I returned before leaving the store.

        • Adam Zettel

          09/27/2011 at 4:49 am

          That is total bullshit! I would have just disputed the charge on my credit card. bastards

  11. Scotty Braun

    09/08/2011 at 1:22 pm

    Im gonna try and sell my Droid 2 Global and my Droid Charge for just enough money, and Buy the Bionic out right full retail. I have 2 upgrades available and my new every two, but don’t want to use them.. We shall see if I can get this to work!

  12. Scotty Braun

    09/08/2011 at 1:22 pm

    Im gonna try and sell my Droid 2 Global and my Droid Charge for just enough money, and Buy the Bionic out right full retail. I have 2 upgrades available and my new every two, but don’t want to use them.. We shall see if I can get this to work!

    • Adam Zettel

      09/27/2011 at 4:50 am

      sell me your droid 2 global!!! I returned my bionic.

  13. Blakbeauty6031

    10/05/2011 at 11:25 am

    I have had both an Android and the IPhone and I will tell you that the Android was by far a better phone. I have an iPhone now and can’t wait until I can upgrade again because I hate my iPhone. All this having to plug into a computer to move files or add ringtones is BS. I should be able to do it right on the phone, but can’t. I won’t ever buy an iPhone again

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