Droid Bionic Buy or Wait?

E

Enthusiast Extreme

Limp Gawd
Joined
Jul 1, 2011
Messages
334
Hey guys, I have been hunting for a new phone for a while now and bionic just came out. I am with Verizon and I like everything that it has to offer. I currently have a crappy DROID pro phone that I am not satisfied with... I work at best buy so I get discount on our buy back program which you know what it is. The question is, should I go for bionic and get buy back and just upgrade to nexus prime when it comes out later? Or should I wait? I will get my money back with buy back, but I haven't decided yet because I want to see what phone 5 brings. Should I buy or wait?
 
Might as well wait for Prime, assuming Verizon is getting some version of it. Nothing is confirmed with Prime yet.

The Bionic doesn't seem worth $300 at all.
 
Wait, it sounds like the prime should be out in the next couple of months. Of course, there are no absolute facts about what carriers will have it and its specs.
 
I'm holding on to my obsolete Droid too, so the Bionic is definitely tempting. I can get it for $250 from Amazon or Verizon (NE2 is $50 instant rebate), but I'll bet Amazon will have it for ~$150 in the next week or two like they do all phones eventually.

But the Prime is will be a big step up in software alone, so I'm definitely going to wait and see when some more official specs come out for it. I'm really hoping for the Oct. release that their pushing for, but I wouldn't be surprised to see it launch in December. If it's delayed more than a month, then I'll prolly just get the Bionic and pass it to my wife when her upgrade is due in Decmeber and get the Prime then.
 
In the same boat. Going to give it until the end of October. Hopefully there will be hard news on the Prime, and whether big red gets it. I'm set on either, just hope they don't show up with the iPhone 5 to put me back in confusion again.
 
Droid Bionic at $300 is DOA, a droid x2 + LTE does not warrant the price hike, i'm sure it will fall into the same fate as the Tbolt which is just another junk phone right now, and what is worse the bionic will fall quicker because the bootloader is locked and nobody likes to use motofail blur.
 
I guess I'm completely confused why the Bionic or even SGS2 is even a consideration for anyone right now. :)
 
Ravynmagi said:
I guess I'm completely confused why the Bionic or even SGS2 is even a consideration for anyone right now. :)
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If my Droid died right now, I would get the Bionic, then either sell it toward the Prime when it comes out or use it until December when my wifes upgrade is due. Just because it's not the bleeding edge phone (which it will be for at least the next month or two) doesn't make it any less stellar by itself. But that's about the only reason someone should get it; if they have to have a phone right now.
 
Ravynmagi said:
I guess I'm completely confused why the Bionic or even SGS2 is even a consideration for anyone right now. :)
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I'm getting a SGS2 now because I know it's coming out on the 16th, I know the specs, and I'm getting it for a good price.
 
Ravynmagi said:
I guess I'm completely confused why the Bionic or even SGS2 is even a consideration for anyone right now. :)
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Because of? As a Verizon customer what alternative phone are you proposing with that post?

Personally I am waiting likely until December to make a move. At that point based on what I will know then about the Bionic and the Prime I will make a decision. A lot will depend on if Moto decides to back up their word to unlock bootloaders on phones late this year. Also, if someone else unlocks that will help. By December support/bugginess of both phones should be pretty apparent and that may help the decision for me.
 
I went from an X to Bionic and I am loving it. The 4G capability it what pushed me over the edge.

There's nothing solid with Prime yet, spec-wise. But if you don't heavily mod your phones, there's nothing wrong with getting a Bionic now.
 
i say just jump on the bionic. everytime u wait for a better phone u can just wait even longer and get a even better phone might as well just wait till next year or better yet 3 years from now cuz u will get a better phone.
 
alphaqforever247 said:
i say just jump on the bionic. everytime u wait for a better phone u can just wait even longer and get a even better phone might as well just wait till next year or better yet 3 years from now cuz u will get a better phone.
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makes sense... as long as the person is not spending 300 dollars on contract for the bionic... that is completely insane as a price.

The phone is inferior to sprints galaxy s 2 variant at 100+ dollars in cost, much more when things like wirefly are factored in.
 
tybert7 said:
makes sense... as long as the person is not spending 300 dollars on contract for the bionic... that is completely insane as a price.

The phone is inferior to sprints galaxy s 2 variant at 100+ dollars in cost, much more when things like wirefly are factored in.
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I wouldn't say it's inferior. I think they're pretty comparable. Form factor/size is subjective to the customer and the internal hardware of both of them aren't too different in terms of speed. The GS2 may bench slightly higher since it has a 200 MHz higher clock and a lower resolution so it will bench higher in games too. That rarely translates well into real world usage anyways. But the Bionic does have a couple things on it, such as the higher res screen (even though its Pentile, it's received good marks in the reviews so far) and Verizons 4G is significantly faster in most areas.

The higher contract price is pretty retarded though. But the Wirefly argument can be used for the Bionic too. I'll bet it's on there or Amazon for $150 or so in the next couple weeks.

Edit: There's already some deals for it as low as $160. The Amazon price at $180 is for new customers only though :(. Maybe if you call up Verizon and talk to a rep, they might match if for you if you've been with them for a while. I've seen a few other people posting comments in news articles say they've had success doing it.
 
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Some say wait and some say there is some thing always better around the corner....(Love those replies)

Since the Prime will or may come out within a short period of time, with better spec's, then one should wait it out and not be disappointed with a current purchase and wish you had waited just a couple of months if not less.
 
I just bought the Bionic for $175.99, no tax, shipped free!
If I send my DX back to Verizon on a trade in they'll give me $75.
I could than say my Bionic only cost me $100.99 and a 2 year contract :)eek:).


As an FYI: I plan (hope) to purchase the Prime in a couple months at retail or lower too so keep that in mind.
I just really need to replace my tore up DX with something newer, faster, and 4G capable. The Bionic works for this.
 
J32P said:
I just bought the Bionic for $175.99, no tax, shipped free!
If I send my DX back to Verizon on a trade in they'll give me $75.
I could than say my Bionic only cost me $100.99 and a 2 year contract :)eek:).


As an FYI: I plan (hope) to purchase the Prime in a couple months at retail or lower too so keep that in mind.
I just really need to replace my tore up DX with something newer, faster, and 4G capable. The Bionic works for this.
Click to expand...
Let's Talk has it listed as backordered.
 
Well I went out and got the bionic and I love this phone. Everything about it is phrnomenal including the battery life... I did get buy back on it and if google comes out with something good I'll just exchange it for a small amount more :) this phone is epic!
 
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Enthusiast Extreme said:
Well I went out and got the bionic and I love this phone. Everything about it is phrnomenal including the battery life... I did get buy back on it and if google comes out with something good I'll just exchange it for a small amount more :) this phone is epic!
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What's buy back ?
 
Just wait, the Nexus-Prime will blow away the Bionic in every category, it should be out end of Oct / early Nov.
 
J32P said:
I just bought the Bionic for $175.99, no tax, shipped free!
If I send my DX back to Verizon on a trade in they'll give me $75.
I could than say my Bionic only cost me $100.99 and a 2 year contract :)eek:).


As an FYI: I plan (hope) to purchase the Prime in a couple months at retail or lower too so keep that in mind.
I just really need to replace my tore up DX with something newer, faster, and 4G capable. The Bionic works for this.
Click to expand...

Or you could craigslist your X for just about what you paid for the bionic.
 
Enthusiast Extreme said:
Well I went out and got the bionic and I love this phone. Everything about it is phrnomenal including the battery life... I did get buy back on it and if google comes out with something good I'll just exchange it for a small amount more :) this phone is epic!
Click to expand...

How is call volume for you? I have seen a few complaints about not being able to hear the other person on the phone. As in, it was clear but not loud enough. I'm trying to figure out if it is a user error issue or what.
 
Zorachus said:
Just wait, the Nexus-Prime will blow away the Bionic in every category, it should be out end of Oct / early Nov.
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$5 says the nexus prime is just a run of the mill dual core phone just like everything else out there. Every year people say the nexus will blow everything out of the water, every year its released with almost identical specs to phones that have been around a while.
 
Disposed said:
$5 says the nexus prime is just a run of the mill dual core phone just like everything else out there. Every year people say the nexus will blow everything out of the water, every year its released with almost identical specs to phones that have been around a while.
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It will have ICS and get updates pushed to it the fastest. That's the main reason I want it. If it's identical to the GS2 otherwise, then I'll still be happy. But it's almost guaranteed to have better specs at least on the display. Everything else is just gravy. ;)

I'll PM you my Paypal when it launches though :p.
 
A GS2 with metal, curved form and QHD screen running ICS = Winning!! :D
 
Disposed said:
$5 says the nexus prime is just a run of the mill dual core phone just like everything else out there. .
Click to expand...

Not this time. The Nexus-Prime is Google's phone to beat the iPhone5, they are pulling out all stops to make a Super-smartphone.

- 4.6″ Super AMOLED HD screen = 1280x800 res with a 324.6 pixel density :eek:
- Android 4.0 "Ice Cream" = Brand new next generation OS for Droid's. :cool:
- 1.5 GHz dual-core TI OMAP Processor = Very good for battery life, while also being crazy fast. :)
- Metal chassis for better solid build quality, and 8.88mm razor thin

I don't see any other phone on the horizon matching these spec's until at least Summer 2012. The Galaxy S2 is no where near these spec's, especially the new screen technology, and of course Android 4.0 "Ice Cream" coming to the Prime first, good luck seeing Samsung bringing out ice cream to the S2 anytime soon.
 
Zorachus said:
Not this time. The Nexus-Prime is Google's phone to beat the iPhone5, they are pulling out all stops to make a Super-smartphone.

- 4.6″ Super AMOLED HD screen = 1280x800 res with a 324.6 pixel density :eek:
- Android 4.0 "Ice Cream" = Brand new next generation OS for Droid's. :cool:
- 1.5 GHz dual-core TI OMAP Processor = Very good for battery life, while also being crazy fast. :)
- Metal chassis for better solid build quality, and 8.88mm razor thin

I don't see any other phone on the horizon matching these spec's until at least Summer 2012. The Galaxy S2 is no where near these spec's, especially the new screen technology, and of course Android 4.0 "Ice Cream" coming to the Prime first, good luck seeing Samsung bringing out ice cream to the S2 anytime soon.
Click to expand...
I'll be buying it at full price. Hope it doesn't top $650.
 
I got the bionic on launch date to replace my droid... i'm pretty satisfied with it, the only gripes i have are motoblur (junk imo) and the screen (pentile matrix... terrible choice of screen if you ask me). Other than that, the speed is great, and verizon's 4G is pretty amazing.

I would at most wait for the HTC Vigor. Rumored 1.5ghz dual core, 1280x720 screen, 4.3" screen, etc. For me the deal breaker on the Nexus Prime is the screen size. 4.6" for a mobile phone is getting kind of absurd if you ask me. If the screen size were smaller, I would definitely go with that given that it's what all the custom ROM devs will probably choose.
 
I picked up the bionic, coming from the droid 1. So far i like it. Size is good, not too thick, and i don't notice the extra size in pocket which was my biggest concern. Fast as hell coming from the d1 with cm7. Wish they would have used the flat black rubbery texture through the whole phone like the x. Glad to ditch the physical keyboard. Not a fan of the shiny crap. Screen is ok, however i think the d1 has an edge here. I was sick of waiting for new hardware. Worst case scenario i sell the bionic, activate old faithful, and pick up the next good phone out of contract. I dont see my self owning a phone that isnt a moto though. Been there, done that, ill stick with what works.
 
Bionic seems awesome from what I'm reading. The TIOMAP processor seems to have improved the battery life significantly and it seems to be a reasonable size/weight.

I'd go for it.
 
I picked up the Bionic last Friday and all I can say that it is amazing! Now keep in mind I upgraded from a 1st gen Motorola Droid, but damn this thing is awesome. The battery life is great, Verizon 4G is speedy. I was watching NFL Redzone all day yesterday from my phone using NFL mobile. And to top it off my unlimited data plan that I had from my 1st gen droid was grandfathered over to my bionic. I'm paying the 2gb data limit for unlimited 4g data. Life is great :cool:
 
skigz said:
I picked up the Bionic last Friday and all I can say that it is amazing! Now keep in mind I upgraded from a 1st gen Motorola Droid, but damn this thing is awesome. The battery life is great, Verizon 4G is speedy. I was watching NFL Redzone all day yesterday from my phone using NFL mobile. And to top it off my unlimited data plan that I had from my 1st gen droid was grandfathered over to my bionic. I'm paying the 2gb data limit for unlimited 4g data. Life is great :cool:
Click to expand...

I'm still holding onto my original Droid too and have unlimited data from my first contract with it. I just hope Verizon doesn't decide to kill it for us or throttle it eventually. The second they do, I'm ending the contract and going to Sprint. I don't think it will happen any time soon though, maybe after the next year or so.

I have a few Qs for the Bionic though;

- With root, does WiFi tether work on it on 4G? I use this occasionally for work to test VPN clients and definitely don't want to pay for it just for that reason (I very rarely use it otherwise).
- Do any flashlight apps work for it (that use the camera flash for light)? I use this on a daily basis at home and couldn't life without it. I'm sure one of them works, I just really like Mototorch which has a widget that I can click so I don't have to open the app, but it's not listed as compatible with the Bionic.
- Every review I've seen shows the Bionic really laggy when zooming in/out on pics in the gallary. Do you all see this too? I just thought it was weird that the phone is smooth everywhere except when zooming on pics. It actually looks slower than my Droid when doing that. Not a major concern at all for me, but was just curious about it.

I'm still not sure if I'm going to get this phone. I'm really frustrated with my Droid lately because its performance is getting worst to the point where I can't answer phone calls (doesn't seem to ring until right before voice mail picks up or it locks up and doesn't allow me to slide to answer), make phone calls (sometimes the phone app FCs! lol) and sometimes I don't receive SMS/MMS. If I could find a Froyo ROM that had all the features of this GB ROM I'm running (native ad blocking and disabling the keyboard waking the phone so my battery doesn't get murdered in my pocket, are the major ones), then I think that would fix most of the issues. If I see this phone drop to ~$100 on contract before the Prime launches, then I think I might go ahead and get it. Anything is significantly better than my Droid right now and I can just sell it toward the Prime later if I want.

Thanks in advance.
 
T4rd said:
I'm still holding onto my original Droid too and have unlimited data from my first contract with it. I just hope Verizon doesn't decide to kill it for us or throttle it eventually. The second they do, I'm ending the contract and going to Sprint. I don't think it will happen any time soon though, maybe after the next year or so.

I have a few Qs for the Bionic though;

- With root, does WiFi tether work on it on 4G? I use this occasionally for work to test VPN clients and definitely don't want to pay for it just for that reason (I very rarely use it otherwise).
- Do any flashlight apps work for it (that use the camera flash for light)? I use this on a daily basis at home and couldn't life without it. I'm sure one of them works, I just really like Mototorch which has a widget that I can click so I don't have to open the app, but it's not listed as compatible with the Bionic.
- Every review I've seen shows the Bionic really laggy when zooming in/out on pics in the gallary. Do you all see this too? I just thought it was weird that the phone is smooth everywhere except when zooming on pics. It actually looks slower than my Droid when doing that. Not a major concern at all for me, but was just curious about it.

I'm still not sure if I'm going to get this phone. I'm really frustrated with my Droid lately because its performance is getting worst to the point where I can't answer phone calls (doesn't seem to ring until right before voice mail picks up or it locks up and doesn't allow me to slide to answer), make phone calls (sometimes the phone app FCs! lol) and sometimes I don't receive SMS/MMS. If I could find a Froyo ROM that had all the features of this GB ROM I'm running (native ad blocking and disabling the keyboard waking the phone so my battery doesn't get murdered in my pocket, are the major ones), then I think that would fix most of the issues. If I see this phone drop to ~$100 on contract before the Prime launches, then I think I might go ahead and get it. Anything is significantly better than my Droid right now and I can just sell it toward the Prime later if I want.

Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...

The WiFi tether not working has been fixed by some XDA guys. They found a way around whatever Verizon and Motorola did.

Any flashflight app should work. You could probably just grab the Torch APK from a CM build and install it.

Don't know about the Gallery zooming issue. However, I would assume an issue with Blur as my co-workers EVO 3D does not lag one bit with the Sense 3.0 gallery.
 
T4rd said:
I'm still holding onto my original Droid too and have unlimited data from my first contract with it. I just hope Verizon doesn't decide to kill it for us or throttle it eventually. The second they do, I'm ending the contract and going to Sprint. I don't think it will happen any time soon though, maybe after the next year or so.

I have a few Qs for the Bionic though;

- With root, does WiFi tether work on it on 4G? I use this occasionally for work to test VPN clients and definitely don't want to pay for it just for that reason (I very rarely use it otherwise).
- Do any flashlight apps work for it (that use the camera flash for light)? I use this on a daily basis at home and couldn't life without it. I'm sure one of them works, I just really like Mototorch which has a widget that I can click so I don't have to open the app, but it's not listed as compatible with the Bionic.
- Every review I've seen shows the Bionic really laggy when zooming in/out on pics in the gallary. Do you all see this too? I just thought it was weird that the phone is smooth everywhere except when zooming on pics. It actually looks slower than my Droid when doing that. Not a major concern at all for me, but was just curious about it.

I'm still not sure if I'm going to get this phone. I'm really frustrated with my Droid lately because its performance is getting worst to the point where I can't answer phone calls (doesn't seem to ring until right before voice mail picks up or it locks up and doesn't allow me to slide to answer), make phone calls (sometimes the phone app FCs! lol) and sometimes I don't receive SMS/MMS. If I could find a Froyo ROM that had all the features of this GB ROM I'm running (native ad blocking and disabling the keyboard waking the phone so my battery doesn't get murdered in my pocket, are the major ones), then I think that would fix most of the issues. If I see this phone drop to ~$100 on contract before the Prime launches, then I think I might go ahead and get it. Anything is significantly better than my Droid right now and I can just sell it toward the Prime later if I want.

Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...

1. http://droidbionicroot.com/droid-bi...i-tether-mobile-hotspot-on-your-droid-bionic/
2. TeslaLED on Market
3. Looks fine to me
 
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