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HTC ThunderBolt Ice Cream Sandwich Update Predictions

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It’s 2013. The iPhone 6 and Samsung Galaxy S4 rumors are plentiful. We have a bunch of exciting tablets on the horizon. And devices have been receiving their Jelly Bean updates seemingly on a daily basis. Unfortunately, there is also a dark side to 2013, at least for owners of one device. You see, HTC ThunderBolt owners are now closing in on their first month of 2013 without Ice Cream Sandwich, an update that was promised to them long before its previously scheduled August roll out.

Read: HTC ThunderBolt Ice Cream Sandwich Update Missing Into 2013.

As we’ve pointed out many, many, many, many times, the HTC ThunderBolt Ice Cream Sandwich update, an update that was promised in early 2012 for a roll out by August 2012, remains missing with no closure in sight.

And since August, HTC ThunderBolt owners have been holding on to the hope that their long-awaited upgrade to Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich, an update that was first released in 2011 and has since been passed by not one Android update but, two, might still roll out to their device before its two-year anniversary arrives in a few weeks time.

htc_thunderbolt_front2

The HTC ThunderBolt Ice Cream Sandwich is still missing. Seriously.

Many HTC ThunderBolt owners have given up. They’ve rooted their phones and installed unofficial versions of Ice Cream Sandwich. And some, have given gotten rid of their HTC ThunderBolt. Many owners continue to wait however. We know, we’ve talked to many in the countless weeks since the software update was delayed.

And those that are still holding out though are obviously wondering whether the update will ever roll out. Well, now that 2013 is underway, we want to make some HTC ThunderBolt Ice Cream Sandwich predictions in regards to its release date and more.

So, here now are our HTC ThunderBolt Ice Cream Sandwich update predictions.

Is the ThunderBolt ICS Update Still Coming?

We think that the HTC ThunderBolt Ice Cream Sandwich update, which again was supposed to be here by August, will still roll out to ThunderBolt owners at some point in the future. By now, HTC and Verizon would have cancelled it, flat out, if there wasn’t any hope. HTC cancelled the HTC Desire HD ICS update relatively quickly and we think if the ThunderBolt update was never going to come, it would have already said so.

It’s clear that someone, whether it’s one person or a team, is still working on it at HTC. How do we know this? HTC itself has said many times it’s still trying to figure out connectivity issues that are plaguing the device. We’ve also seen HTC say that the update would be rolling out “soon.”

These are things that we don’t think would have been communicated to users if the update was dead.

Less likely is a scenario wherein HTC says it did all it could to get the update out and then abandons it.

HTC-Thunderbolt

The HTC ThunderBolt ICS update situation is now beyond confusing.

When Will The Update Roll Out?

We’ve tried to pry this information out of HTC and Verizon on numerous occasions and we know that owners of the ThunderBolt have too. Neither is willing to commit to any kind of a date and given that they’ve waited this long after August, it’s anyone’s guess.

Our guess though is that it arrives before the HTC ThunderBolt’s second birthday which will take place on March 17th, 2013. That will really be the last symbolic date for the ThunderBolt, which is retired, as it will be the day that customers will be free from their two year contracts. We imagine Verizon probably will let users upgrade before that but for all intents and purposes, that is the date.

It would be odd to see that date pass with the ThunderBolt still on Android 2.3 Gingerbread. Odd, indeed.

A Nice Round of Golf Claps

Even if the update rolls out, which we think it will, don’t expect the disgruntled faces of HTC ThunderBolt owners to suddenly turn into smiles. Won’t happen. The damage here has already been done and those that have left have left and those that have stuck around will likely have a bad taste in their mouth for the months and probably the years to come.

Don’t Expect This To Happen Again

HTC has already changed its update policy around and it apparently will no longer be releasing charts with update schedules to the public any longer. That is both a good thing and a bad thing. Good, because it doesn’t set itself up to fail, bad because owners will likely be in the dark about future Android updates. How long HTC sticks with this policy, we don’t know, but we do think we know one thing.

What happened to the HTC ThunderBolt, and the Droid Incredible 2 let’s not forget, won’t happen to any other devices, at least from HTC, ever again. There’s just too much at stake now for a blunder of this magnitude to occur.

34 Comments

34 Comments

  1. Leo

    01/18/2013 at 2:46 pm

    Given up and moved on. Cancelled service with Big Red. Never buying an HTC again.

    • Bill

      01/29/2013 at 7:16 pm

      Did the same – not looking back

    • Dennis DeMara

      02/15/2013 at 7:11 pm

      I waited to long. With my first htc phone…Imagio…loved it but they did the same thing. Just got the ics update for my now 2 year old TB…like the features….hate it because it is slower than gingerbread… Don’t think the phone can handle it….I am forever done with htc and the promises.

  2. Mark

    01/18/2013 at 4:27 pm

    HTC and Verizon have been in a race to see who could get me to quit using them first. The way they have both handled the problems out of the gate until now with the Thunderbolt have made it a tie. That bad taste from HTC is going to flavor my smart phone purchases for a long time to come, as well as my comments to anyone who is even mentioning thinking about a buying an HTC phone.

  3. Grant

    01/18/2013 at 4:42 pm

    If it weren’t for the fact that my phone will be up for renewal in a month, I would be looking to root and put a ROM on my Incredible 2. I’ll never consider an HTC phone again, and I’ve already redirected a few who were considering an HTC phone.

  4. lifesabuffet

    01/18/2013 at 5:50 pm

    I’m eligible for an upgrade, but since there aren’t many phones running JB, I don’t see the value in upgrading to an ICS phone. I’m still hoping for the ICS upgrade for my Thundebolt, and if it doesn’t happen by May, maybe there’ll be other JB options by then. Overall I like my Thunderbolt, and have the windshield mount, and a Defender case for it. It would be a waste to get a new phone and have to get new accessories. Every so often I harass HTC just to make myself feel better.

    • ronhoo

      01/18/2013 at 10:41 pm

      lifesabuffet.

      got the iBolt car dock accessory for the GS3 ($30) and worth every penny, Responds to almost every command, Plays most of my 40gb worth of mp3s on command. Calls all of my 3-5 friends with no problems :-)
      After I got my verizon wireless gs3, I updated to JB no issues, No need to get ICS and wish I had JB.

      I upgraded to a refurb, no issues except for the price, You will pay more than the upgrade price, but u get to keep the unlimited data if u want,

      Good luck to all
      Ron

  5. ronhoo

    01/18/2013 at 10:27 pm

    i’ve moved on to the GS3. It’s all good, Can’t afford to wait around for something that may or may not come. I kept my unlimited data by purchasing a refurb S3. Not cheap but not as expensive as the Galaxy Note 2 I really wanted. Maybe in a few months down the line the Gn2 price will be reasonable.

    Once the Gs3 was in my hands I loved everything about it… or at least the things that didn’t occur i.e. the the dropped data connections. The performance is smooth. The Google Voice is great. Google Now! Too many features to list. Found a use for the bolt too. It’s my security monitor over wifi.

    i advise every one to move on if u can. Verizon (and HTC) want you to cash in your chips for something of less value (shared data plans). If you have to give up unlimited, u might as well switch carriers if anything to send a message. Any thing less they do not understand.

    Good Luck to all
    Ron

  6. Oliver

    01/19/2013 at 9:56 pm

    Never again, will I buy an HTC phone, and when my contract is up in April, I am leaving VZW. Both can suck it!

  7. Michael

    01/20/2013 at 4:56 pm

    Already moved on. .will never buy HTC again..They blame 90% drop in sales on marketing…

  8. Dave

    01/21/2013 at 6:01 am

    Honestly I don’t see VZ allowing this update before the 2 year mark. They don’t want people holding on to the thunderbolt. They want them to upgrade to another and lose their grandfathered unlimited data plans.

    • ronhoo

      01/21/2013 at 7:57 am

      Dave you are correct. VZ has no incentive to update the phone to ICS and have it actually work better. So if anyone is inclined to stay with VZ to keep unlimited get a certified pre-owned phone. You will pay more than an upgrade but less than the full retail price. You will then be month to month and still be upgrade eligible at your 2yr anniversary date.

      I suspect one day VZ will try to shut all the unlimited plans down. That is the day I switch carriers.

      Good Luck
      Ron

  9. Tony Perez

    01/24/2013 at 1:37 pm

    My wife and daughter used the Thunderbolt. This week, my wife is now upgraded to the HTC DNA with JellyBean. For her, this is the ideal handset that will easily last her two years. Her TB didn’t give her problems and she was hoping the update would be a positive experience but the wait was intolerable. At least with the latest ANdroid OS, she knows she’ll be fine for a long while. My daughter, however, is of another mindset. While she’s enjoyed HTC and the Sense interface, she’s also endured many of the problems that plagued some TB users. Hoping the ICS would help didn’t matter since the update still isn’t here. She’s now looking at every NON-HTC handset available to upgrade. Sorry HTC, you only got 50% there. I still have my HTC Rezound (which finally got its update to ICS) but when the time does come for me to upgrade, I can’t say if I will bother with HTC. That, my friends, is up to HTC. I’m watching. I would have considered the DNA but for goodness sakes! No external SD slot?! Even if the phone came with the slot and no SD card, I’d be fine with that. I purchased a 32GB card when I got to Rezound for net storage of 48GB. Why shouldn’t the latest HTC flagship handset have the same ability?! The Barcelona event is coming and we’ll see what HTC and the others have to offer us…

  10. Eclectic

    01/25/2013 at 8:35 am

    Glad I bought an external battery (New Trent) and only some universal chargers that should be compatible with my new phone. Contract is almost over and I like the larger displays from Samsung anyway. If they had a tablet with phone I’d get one and use Bluetooth to talk. I wouldn’t mind carrying even a 10″ or 12″ phone.

  11. Melissa

    01/25/2013 at 5:07 pm

    If you are grandfathered in to Verizon unlimited data plan and already have a smart phone…. Upgrading will not make you lose the unlimited data plan I would know the thunderbolt was my second phone upgrade. I will never use a htc phone again that is for sure… My upgrade will be in July so I have a log wait

    • Dizturbed

      01/26/2013 at 9:33 am

      “Upgrading will not make you lose the unlimited data plan” This is not true. You do lose unlimited if you upgrade. You keep unlimited if you buy a phone outright or don’t upgrade at all and just keep the phone you have. If you do upgrade, you not only lose unlimited but you will be charged a $30 upgrade fee too. Being grandfathered in applies to month-to-month, not contract. Don’t just take my word for it. Check out Verizon’s Facebook fan page posts for confirmation.

    • Mike B

      01/30/2013 at 8:13 am

      Dizturbed is correct. The only way to keep “unlimited” is to pay full price for your phone or be one of those people who add a 2nd line, upgrade/purchase a phone on that line, and then after the minimum activation window on the 2nd line, move that “new phone” over to the primary line. Downside? You still pay the 2nd line fee every month, but you do have a new phone on your primary line. Also, you can only do this once. After that, you are screwed unless you pay full price for the phone on your primary line and are “out of contract” (month-to-month). How do I know? I paid full price for a new phone and replaced the one on my only/primary line so that I wouldn’t lose unlimited data. Luckily, it is an unlocked iphone, so once my contract is up…adios Verizon.

  12. RADProducts

    01/30/2013 at 1:16 pm

    The delay caused me to replace my Thunderbolt and my wife’s. The zap form the missed thundering promise convinced me to NEVER again buy an HTC product. I can’t beleive that they don’t understand why they are financially hurting and Samsung is doing so well……

    Good bye HTC! I can’t say you will be missed!

  13. dealwithitfkcu

    02/06/2013 at 5:37 pm

    HTC/Verizon still suck, even after the update to ICS I cannot view videos that Ive recorded, “Unfortunately, View video has stopped” wtf is this chit!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    • lifesabuffet

      02/06/2013 at 6:44 pm

      I got my upgrade, and haven’t had a single issue. A few apps disappeared, but I downloaded them and they work fine. Even the video.

  14. Tracy

    02/06/2013 at 6:48 pm

    This update is awful! My phone worked perfectly well before this update. Now I can’t open my texts, my e-mail says that it is the incorrect email/password (which it isn’t), my contacts are all f***ed up, and it is so slow, it isn’t even worth turning my phone on. I pay over $100 for this service, and when I went to Verizon to see what the heck was going on…the ever so knowledgeable sales associate told me the phone was just old and I need a new one; then proceeded to tell me all the ‘great’ upgrades they have available.

    If I wanted an upgrade I would have gotten one, but I don’t want to lose my unlimited…I think its about time to switch services…

  15. AAMCSYSTEMS

    02/08/2013 at 2:51 pm

    DONT DOWNLOAD ICS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Its even buggier than gingerbread was. Can barely make calls, i dial, it will connect FIFTEEN MINUTES later!! I keep kicking myself for not sticking with gingerbread. Figured ICS works great on tablet, this would be same, shoulda known better. These are the same people that sent update that caused resets.

    Also, with ICS u have LESS memory now. Right now i have about 560 or so max. Before i had 7 hundred and something memory. When i installed ICS, the phone was so slow it barely worked at first. I had to uninstall almost 500mb of apps before it would work. And Go launcher barely works with 500mb of memory.

    I think its a plot to force Thunderbolt owners to upgrade and get off unlimited data, how else could 5 months of “testing” result in a phone this buggy.

    Its like Apple and Motorola have moles working for HTC to ensure my next phone is not from HTC (congrats guys, your diabolical plan worked) I’ll never trust an update from verizon again, guess ill get an iphone, and use my tablet for my android needs.

    Sorry had to get that off my chest, bottom line, ICS on the Thunderbolt is a little prettier, but not worth the upgrade!!!!!

  16. disappointed

    02/11/2013 at 8:35 pm

    I don’t have any problems with the upgrade. However, not all the apps that I read about in ICS seem to be in the download to Thunderbolt (like the voice-to-text recording engine or the panoramic camera feature). Did HTC or Verizon choose not to implement these on the Thunderbolt?

    • luddite...yes !

      02/13/2013 at 3:26 am

      Totally agree with all the recent posts about ICS and Thunderbolt. The ICS has totally slowed my phone down. Just exiting back to the home screen takes time as the screen has to “load.” I can’t believe Verizon would let HTC put out a so called ICS update that would kill their customer’s phones. I still don’t understand why HTC if they are able to push out ICS, that they cant push Gingerbread out to those who want it back. My phone was fine until Saturday when the ICS update came out. I could live with the dopey icons that attempt to look like an apple product, but to slow my phone down, have reduced screen resolution while in the internet is like they have just stolen my phone. Thanks for ‘pushing’ me into an Iphone. A much better product with less bugs and better speed between applications. That’s what I want in a phone anyway.

      • missy

        02/16/2013 at 7:10 pm

        UGH! Never had any problems with my phone until this upgrade. Takes almost a full 60 seconds to “load” when I exit back to my home screen. Phone so sluggish with everything. Extremely frustrated. Happy with my phone before this upgrade.If I wanted a different phone I would have bought one.

        • SLACKER

          02/25/2013 at 3:24 pm

          AMEN !!!

  17. Brian

    02/18/2013 at 8:50 am

    I keep reading quotes about “poor Thunderbolt” and “users have been waiting forever” for the ICS update. My phone automatically did the update and I don’t see the benefit. My Thunderbolt is not considerably slower to load everything, picture gallery, internet, even the log in screen. If anyone can give me a reason why ICS is a good thing, I’d love to hear it. Also, if anyone knows how to make ALL of the animations STOP (i’ve turned them all off in Developer Settings, to no avail), I’d love to hear it, as I think that might at least help a little.

  18. SLACKER

    02/25/2013 at 3:22 pm

    I GOT THE UPDATE. IT HAS CRIPPLED MY PHONE. IT IS SO SLOOOOOW NOW.
    I’M NOT HAPPY WITH IT’S POOR PERFORMANCE AND DO NOT
    RECOMMEND ANYONE WITH THIS FINE PHONE MOVE AWAY FROM THEIR CURRENT
    OS. TOOK IT TO VERIZION STORE. AND OF COURSE, THE POOR GUY
    HAD NO IDEA WHY IT WAS SO SLOW. “CAN YOU LOOK INTO IT FOR ME?”
    HIS ANSWER WAS NO, NOT REALLY. I WASN’T BUYING ANYTHING, I GUESS.
    BEING OLDER, CUTTING MY TEETH ON FORTRAN AND DOS WHEN THEY
    WERE INVENTED, THAT WAS THE WRONG ANSWER. SO, I’M HOPING THEY’LL
    GET THIS SQUARED AWAY. THE CORRECT ANSWER IS, “SIR, LET ME GET YOUR INFO AND BUMP THIS UPSTAIRS. AND TRY TO GET YOU AN ANSWER. IN THE MEAN TIME CAN WE STEP THROUGH THIS PROBLEM AND SEE IF ITS SOMETHING SIMPLE.”
    I WOULDN’T BE WARNING AND SHARING MY EXPERIENCE WITH YOU ALL. UNTIL
    ANOTHER WEEK GOES BY LOL WHEN THEY DON’T FOLLOW UP!

  19. Ordinary Bob

    02/25/2013 at 4:24 pm

    Slacker, uninstall all of the third-party system junk that ICS doesn’t need – anti-virus, app killers, launch systems, etc. Once I did that, the phone came alive. And shut down tasks during the day. Long hold the home key, then swap apps to shut them down. My battery life is double, and my phone works just fine. It didn’t when I first got ICS, but now it does.

    • Brian

      02/25/2013 at 4:29 pm

      I don’t have any anti-virus, launch systems, or app killers on the phone and it still draaaaags. At least triple the previous time to open text messages, and a full 6 seconds until I can use the browser after I open it. I know it’s still only seconds, but this stuff used to happen automatically.

  20. Missy

    02/26/2013 at 7:13 am

    The update made my phone pretty much useless. After 3 days of trying everything and making no progress, I decided to take it to Verizon.(I came close to throwing the phone against a wall) Extremely helpful but only solution was a factory reset. My phone is now working better than ever.

  21. Marie

    03/01/2013 at 12:17 pm

    Who in the heck asked for the update?—I was perfectly satisfied and got updated and blind sided in the middle of a Friday afternoon without warning—had no phone. Ever since a previously wonderful phone has issues of randomly shutting down, moving items around, and changing settings. I hate it and wish I could go back to the phone I had prior to the upgrade. They should give you a choice.

  22. SLACKER

    03/14/2013 at 2:17 pm

    WOOOOW !! ICS HAS CRIPPLED MY THUNDERBOLT. ANYONE ELSE HAVING THIS??
    HOW DO I PUT IT BACK TO OLD ANDROID? WANT MY PHONE BACK !!

    • Ordinary Bob

      03/14/2013 at 2:25 pm

      SLACKER, my Tbolt is faster and better than ever. Save your data, and do a factory reset. Don’t put any third party utilities back on the phone, such as anti-virus (not needed), launchers, or battery watchers. Once I did this, my phone was like new. ICS is great for managing power, and I’m keeping this HTC Thunderbolt until it dies. Long may it live.

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