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Jul

Verizon 4G LTE Hitting 28 New Markets, Expanding In 8 Cities On July 21st

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in News, Verizon Wireless

Regardless of what carrier you're currently shackled to, you have to admit that Verizon's LTE rollout is very impressive. Already the 4G service is available in more markets than Sprint's - despite being publicly available for about half the time.

Well in just three days (July 21st), even more metropolitan areas will be blanketed by LTE - 28 more metropolitan areas, to be precise. This Thursday, customers in the following areas will be able to turn on their ThunderBolts, DROID Charges, or Revolutions and experience the power of 4G for the first time: Decatur and Huntsville, Ala.; Colorado Springs, Colo.; Lakeland and Sarasota-Bradenton, Fla.; Augusta, Ga.; Hilo, Honolulu, Kahului-Wailuku and Lahaina, Hawaii; Carbondale, Ill.; Wichita, Kan.; Louisville, Ky.; Baton Rouge and Hammond, La.; Springfield, Mass.; Greensboro/Winston-Salem/High Point and Raleigh-Durham, N.C.; Toledo, Ohio; Tulsa, Okla.; Portland, Ore.; Wilkes Barre/Scranton, Pa.; Charleston, S.C.; Chattanooga and Knoxville, Tenn.; Olympia and Tacoma, Wash; and Charleston, W.Va. The company is also expanding its 4G LTE network in Phoenix, Ariz.; Los Angeles and San Diego, Calif.; Las Vegas, Nev.; Northern New Jersey; Dallas-Ft.

Jul

[Scorching Hot] Motorola Droid 3 Now $69.99 For New Accounts, $129.99 For Upgrades (Normally $199.99) At Amazon Wireless

Posted by Artem Russakovskii in Deals, Droid 3, Motorola, News, Verizon Wireless

I absolutely love posting deals and helping save our readers money, especially if the devices in question are brand spanking new. Therefore, today's late-Friday price drop on the Verizon Motorola Droid 3 that literally came out within the last few days, gives me double the pleasure.

Motorola's first dual-core phone in the Droid series, the Droid 3 sells for $199.99 directly from Verizon but was being offered at a discounted online price of $149.99 at Wirefly and Amazon Wireless as of yesterday.

Today, Amazon Wireless decided to throw down the gloves and pushed down the Droid 3 price for new accounts to only $69.99.

Jul

Unboxing & First Hands-On With The Motorola DROID 3

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in Droid 3, Motorola, Phone Reviews, Reviews, Verizon Wireless

Last Updated: July 24th, 2011

I'm fairly certain that I don't need to tell anyone about the impact the original DROID had on Google's mobile OS. It almost single-handedly brought Android to the masses, saved Motorola from bankruptcy, and made Verizon's then-stale smartphone line-up interesting once more.

Then there was the DROID 2. While it was by no means a bad phone, it would be difficult to argue that it carried the same significance as its predecessor - not to mention its locked bootloader and the godawful addition of Ninjablur.

Well here we are, just about one year later, with yet another iteration in the DROID series: the DROID 3.

Jul

Motorola DROID 3 Now Available At Wirefly For Just $149.99 On Contract

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in Deals, Droid 3, Motorola, Verizon Wireless

What day is it? Technically, you'd be correct if you answered "Thursday" or "July 14th," but in the smartphone realm? Why, today is the DROID 3's official release date, of course!

Now, the phone has been available from VZW's website for just about a week now, but if you have an eye for deals, you'll have steered clear of that venue and instead held out hope that some third-party retailer would be able to offer the device for less than $199.99. And today that wish has become reality - Wirefly has put up a product page for the DROID 3, and assuming that you'll be picking it up with a new two-year contract, the handset can be yours for just $149.99.

Jul

[Deal Alert: X2 Edition] Get The DROID X2 For Just $100 On A New 2-Year Agreement

Posted by David Ruddock in Deals, Droid X2, Motorola, Verizon Wireless

I'm not sure why anyone would want the DROID X2 (our own Aaron Gingrich didn't exactly love it, either - and that's putting it nicely.) But, some people do seem to like the X2 - probably most owners upgrading from the original X. Why? Because it looks and feels exactly the same. So, if you want this Motorola monster, now's a decent time to get it - as it's just $100 with a new Verizon account on Wirefly or AmazonWireless.

The X2 is packing an NVIDIA Tegra 2 dual-core processor, a 4.3-inch qHD display (some people hate qHD for its Pentile subpixel rendering), 512MB of RAM, and an 8MP rear shooter.

Jul

[Deal Alert] HTC Thunderbolt Just $100 On New 2-Year Agreement At Wirefly

Posted by David Ruddock in 4G, Deals, HTC, Thunderbolt (Mecha), Verizon Wireless

Stay tuned - this is a multi-part "Deal Alert," everyone. First on our list: the HTC Thunderbolt. If you open a new Verizon account (sorry, additional lines and renewals aren't eligible) today, you can pick up an HTC Thunderbolt from Wirefly for just $100. Not shabby. The Thunderbolt was Verizon's debut 4G LTE device, and it has enjoyed substantial popularity since launch. It's also probably the best 4G handset on Verizon presently, though its battery life and lack of a Gingerbread update have put off many owners.

The Thunderbolt packs a 1GHz single-core next-gen Qualcomm processor, 768MB RAM, and a 4.3-inch SLCD display (with Gorilla Glass).

Jul

Motorola DROID 3 Pricing Leaked: $199 With A New Two-Year Contract, $459 Without

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in Droid 3, Motorola, News, Verizon Wireless

Those (im)patiently awaiting the upcoming launch of the DROID 3 now have even more info on what to expect: thanks to Droid Life, we now know what the phone's pricing will look like, both on- and off-contract.

If you're cool with signing a new two-year agreement, you'll be paying the now-standard price of $199. Alternatively, if the shackles of a contract are enough to scare you away, you could purchase the phone off-contract for the fairly reasonable price of $459 (I say "fairly reasonable" since other carriers, such as Sprint, happily charge over $600 for an contract-free phone).

Droid Life says that "direct fill orders" (though we haven't a clue what that means) will begin tonight around midnight EST, and if the latest round of rumors is to be believed, you'll be able to pick up a DROID 3 starting July 14th.

Jul

[Rumor] Is The Droid Bionic Launching On August 4th?

Posted by Cameron Summerson in Bionic, Droid 3, News

Well, isn't this interesting... it appears that Android Central has gotten a hold of a leaked screen with some pretty promising release dates for some highly anticipated phones, including the Motorola Droid Bionic. Let's push that one of to the side for just a moment though and address the first phone on the list: the Droid 3.

We've basically known everything there is to know about the D3 for a while. This image echoes the previously rumored July 14th release date, so I will be really surprised if we don't see the newest Droid incarnation hit the Big Red sales floor in a week-and-a-half.

Jun

[Deal Alert] DROID Charge Now Just $129.99 At Wirefly On New 2-Year Agreement

Posted by David Ruddock in Charge (i510), Deals, News, Tips & Tutorials

I'm not a big fan of the DROID Charge, but hey, to each his own. And apparently consumers haven't been such huge fans of the phone's notoriously high original MSRP ($300 on upgrade or new agreement), making it the most expensive subsidized Android phone to date.

Well, Wirefly has started playing hardball, and after having dropped the Charge down to $180 a month or so back, they've gone price-slashing yet again: you can now pick up the Samsung DROID Charge for $129.99 on a new Verizon account with a 2-year agreement, or when you add a line to your existing plan (sorry, it's still $200 if you want to upgrade).

Jun

[Updated: Existing Customers Can Keep Unlimited Data] Editorial: Why Verizon's Tiered Data Plans Will Punish Everyone - Not Just Heavy Data Users

Posted by David Ruddock in 4G, Carriers, Editorials, Verizon Wireless

Update: According to two separate Verizon memos intercepted by Droid-life, existing Verizon customers can keep their existing data plan pricing when renewing or upgrading. Unfortunately, as with all offers of this type, just how long it will last remains to be seen. But, given that the BIONIC is coming some time soon-ish, it seems very likely that existing Verizon customers will be able to get the device without being forced into tiered data.

This should sate a lot of potentially angry current Verizon customers, but will definitely punish those coming over from AT&T for the iPhone 5 later this year.