PhoneTalk

I've been busy reviewing the ThunderBolt by HTC this week. It's Verizon's first 4G LTE phone and sports a spacious 4.3-inch touchscreen. There are quite a few interesting features. For starters, the phone comes loaded with some fun apps such as RockBand and Bitbop, an online video repository of TV shows and videos that can be streamed directly on the phone or downloaded to watch later. Additionally, these apps aren't exactly preloaded so if you want them you'll need to download them when you launch the application. Plus there's a Verizon App store as well as the Android market, so you have even more places to get apps.

RockBand is just a fun game and a good way to get accustomed to using the screen. While Bitbop has a nice variety of shows you can watch and some nifty management features, but I was particularly impressed with the streaming quality. You could easily download some shows to watch on a plane. This is where the phone's built-in kickstand really comes in to play. Just imagine using it to watch a show on the tray table in front of you.

Another plus are some of the enhancements found in the HTC Sense overlay. There are more ways to customize your phone and the keyboard has an important improvement: arrow keys. The arrow keys are great because they let you easily maneuver through text you've already entered. The touchscreen keyboard is still spacious and the predictive text function still works well. You can also use the arrows to choose the correct word or tap it at the top of the screen. This definitely speeds up input. While the ThunderBolt by HTC doesn't come with the popular SWYPE keyboard it's really not missed.

I haven't had a chance to try out the 4G or really put the battery through its paces, but that will be included in the full review that should be up next week. In the meantime, check out the video below for an overview of the cell phone's UI. If you have any questions about the phone, leave a comment below and I'll do my best to answer them.

Topics: In The Know Verizon Wireless Smart phones WiFi Video HTC Android Google 4G