Verizon: HTC Thunderbolt is Still Coming!

In a move to appease angry fans awaiting the delayed launch Verizon’s first 4G LTE smartphone, the HTC Thunderbolt, which runs the HTC Sense user interface on top of the Android 2.2 operating system on a single-core processor, Verizon has taken to social networking site Facebook to let eager customers know that the handset is still coming. Unfortunately, however, Verizon still did not give a specific date for launch.

The carrier posted:

Hey fans, we appreciate all the excitement about the anticipated launch of the ThunderBolt by HTC. We’re excited too! Verizon 4G LTE is America’s fastest, most advanced 4G network & we want to ensure the advanced technology behind our first 4G LTE phone is flawless. We will announce its release date as soon as it is confirmed. Thanks for your support & patience while we work to bring you the ThunderBolt by HTC.

Verizon’s statement of wanting to “ensure the advanced technology behind our first 4G LTE phone is flawless” suggests that there may be problems with its 4G LTE technology, which delivers “blazing fast,” according to HTC’s Peter Chou, mobile broadband access. The most current information regarding the delayed launch could be due to poor battery life in which HTC is working on optimizing the Thunderbolt’s firmware to deliver better battery performance. The carrier has since pulled its Thunderbolt commercials from its YouTube channel, suggesting that the launch may be further away than anticipated.

At the Consumer Electronics Show where the Thunderbolt was first officially unveiled by Verizon, the carrier and HTC noted that the device shown was a working prototype and that more development efforts were needed still.