Original Tablet Review

- Ultra-fast, 4G-enabled smartphone running Android 2.2 with 4.3-inch multi-touch Super LCD display

- GPS for navigation and location services

- 8-MP camera; 1.3-MP front-facing camera for video calls; HD 720p camcorder; Bluetooth stereo music;

- 1400 mAh rechargeable battery for extra-long talk time and video playback; released in February, 2011

- What's in the Box: handset, rechargeable battery, charger, 32 GB microSD memory card, quick start guide

- microSD expansion; HTML web browser; corporate and personal e-mail

- See more specification of HTC ThunderBolt 4G Android Phone Review

The phone itself feels well put together. Make no mistake about it: it's LARGE. But it's not too large. Personally, I think it's the perfect size for cell phone. Screen size is the same as the Droid X at 4.3 inches, although the phone itself is smaller in profile and feels a lot nicer to hold than the Droid X. It's great for any type of video, Google Nav, etc etc. The list goes on, but the screen is big, bright, and beautiful. Is it the latest and greatest screen technology out there? I doubt it, but it certainly looks really good, I can tell you that much.

The phone is substantially bigger if you are used to the iPhone. The size alone might rule this phone out for some people. It works out well for me since I have bigger hands and felt myself squinting at the iPhone screen. Reading and viewing text is made a very pleasurable experience on the Thunderbolt given the screen size. In terms of data speed, the phone is blisteringly fast when on Verizon's 4G. The speed of the GUI is smooth, albeit not as smooth as the iPhone 4. For example, when scrolling amongst apps, it's just not as fluid. It's not a deal breaker by any stretch and perhaps they might tweak this a bit in future OS revisions.

We both like the touchscreen keyboard features on this phone better than on other smart phones that we have tried. The phone gives you tactile feedback with a subtle vibration whenever you hit a key, and, as you get more used to this feedback it really speeds up your typing. I still find that I need to type in landscape mode, else the keys are too small for my fingers, but it really works pretty well.

Web-browsing is lightning fast and zooming in and out and moving across web pages seems instantaneus. This makes it very easy to read newspapers, etc. For me, this phone is as good as a tablet for reading newspapers.

The camera and the video recordings work pretty well. Due to limitations of the lens, etc., the 8 Megapixel camera is not even close to what you get from even the cheapest of digital cameras, but it is still a big improvement over earlier phones.