Motorola Droid Bionic (Verizon Wireless)
Manufacturer: Motorola Part number: DROIDBIONIC
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- Bottom Line:
- The Motorola Droid Bionic is everything you want from a high-end smartphone--it's sleek, fast, and powerful, with features that will please both consumers and business users--if you're willing to pay the high price.
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CNET editors' review
Motorola Droid Bionic (Verizon Wireless) price range: $0.00 - $99.99
- Reviewed by: Nicole Lee
- Reviewed on: 09/06/2011
- Released on: 09/08/2011
The good: The Motorola Droid Bionic has a nice slim and sleek design, with a 4.3-inch qHD display and the double whammy of a dual-core processor and Verizon 4G LTE support. Multimedia features are plentiful and business users will be pleased with its enterprise abilities like the Webtop application and solid security.
The bad: The Motorola Droid Bionic is saddled with Motorola's custom UI, which might not be for everyone. It's also quite expensive, and the Webtop accessories aren't cheap.
The bottom line: The Motorola Droid Bionic is everything you want from a high-end smartphone--it's sleek, fast, and powerful, with features that will please both consumers and business users--if you're willing to pay the high price.
We've been waiting for the Motorola Droid Bionic for so long that it's been hyped to near-mythical proportions. We first heard tell of the superphone at CES 2011, where Motorola came out with a cavalcade of powerful Android devices that included the Motorola Atrix 4G, the Motorola Xoom, and, of course, the Motorola Droid Bionic. With its dual-core processor, Verizon LTE speeds, HD video recording, HDMI port, and luscious 4.3-inch qHD display, the Droid Bionic was a pioneering handset in many ways.
Since its announcement, however, many other dual-core phones have arrived ahead of it, such as the T-Mobile G2x and Motorola's own Droid X2. The HTC ThunderBolt also beat the Droid Bionic to the punch as Verizon's first 4G LTE phone. The Droid Bionic began to lose its luster, while consumers grew even more impatient for this phone to finally arrive. Even we here at CNET had begun to question whether we would ever see the Droid that has suffered delay after delay.
Nine months later, Motorola is finally ready to give birth. And we have to admit; it was worth the wait. The Droid Bionic that Verizon will have in stores in September is remarkably different from the one we saw in January. The hardware is slimmer, sleeker, and definitely more polished. Indeed, Verizon claims that the Droid Bionic is its thinnest 4G LTE device yet. Also, while there are many dual-core smartphones and Verizon 4G LTE handsets on the market, the Droid Bionic is the first to be both. And we're glad that Motorola wisely shipped the phone with Android 2.3.4 Gingerbread instead of just Android 2.2.
While we've seen its features before on other handsets like the Atrix and the Motorola Photon 4G, we are still impressed by its multimedia capabilities, enterprise-friendly applications, and the powerful Webtop application that helps turn it from a phone into a portable PC with the aid of accessories like a laptop dock. We were reluctant to embrace this overhyped handset, but in the end, we have to say we're very pleased with its power, speed, and style.
The cost of the phone is why we hesitate in recommending it. The Droid Bionic is $299.99 after a two-year contract with Verizon Wireless. If you want the laptop dock accessory, that's another $299.99, though Verizon will knock $100 off that price if you have a data plan of $50 or more per month. The HD Station dock is around $99.99, and the tiny Webtop adapter is the cheapest option at $29.99.
Design
We have to admit that the Bionic's final design was a huge surprise to us. The Droid Bionic we saw at CES 2011 was wide, bulky, and thick. Indeed, the original January prototype was probably more similar to the Photon 4G. Measuring 5 inches long by 2.63 inches wide by 0.43 inch thick, the actual Droid Bionic isn't exactly a tiny handset either, but it's certainly much slimmer. As we mentioned earlier, Verizon claims it is the thinnest LTE handset in its lineup.
Not only is it thinner, the final iteration of the Droid Bionic is also much more attractive. The glass on the display goes from edge to edge with a slight curve at the sides that results in a smooth and sleek appearance. The metallic housing and understated chin add to the phone's polished look. The back is clad in a soft-touch finish with beveled edges. Fans of the Droid series of handsets will recognize the Droid's familiar bump at the top, which adds a touch more bulk, but not much. Indeed, we actually like it, as it provides a little more grip when holding the phone. The Droid Bionic weighs in at 5.6 ounces, which we think is decent considering its size.
The 4.3-inch qHD display on the Droid Bionic is similar to the one we saw on the Droid 3. It's crisp, clear, and colorful. We enjoyed the vibrant graphics and sharp 960x540-pixel resolution. It doesn't pack as much pixel punch as a Super AMOLED display, but we still liked it. The Droid Bionic uses Corning Gorilla glass, which boasts a dual-layer anti-reflective coating. While it did appear a little washed-out under bright sunlight, we were still able to see what was on the screen.
What truly impressed us was how smooth and fast the navigation was. Thanks to the Droid Bionic's 1GHz dual-core processor, screens and pages just flew by as we scrolled and swiped around. We were a little bit surprised that Motorola opted for a TI processor instead of something from Nvidia, but we still thought it was fast. It definitely felt faster than phones with just a single-core processor. Certain applications like the camera and the browser did take just a touch longer to launch, but it wasn't a huge difference. Multitasking was easy and quick as well.
The user interface on the Droid Bionic is very similar to on the Droid 3. Both have a scaled-down version of Motoblur--you get the social-networking widgets and connected gallery, without the required log-in and setup. The main menu is the same, with side-to-side navigation instead of the vertical default. You can read more about the Droid Bionic's Android 2.3 interface in our review of the Droid 3.
Beneath the display are the four Android shortcuts for the menu, home, back, and search functions. On the right is a volume rocker while the Micro-USB port and Micro-HDMI port sit on the left spine. On the top are a 3.5mm headset jack and screen lock/power key. A front-facing VGA camera is above the display. On the back is the camera with a single LED flash. This is a departure from the original Droid Bionic seen at CES 2011, which had a dual Xenon flash.
Verizon Wireless packages the Motorola Droid Bionic with an AC adapter, a USB cable, and reference material. As we mentioned earlier, you can purchase several different accessories to take advantage of the Droid Bionic's Webtop application: a laptop dock, the HD Station, or a Webtop adapter. The laptop dock is the most complete package as it combines a screen and keyboard, along with a couple of USB ports. The HD Station lets you charge the handset and it too has a couple of USB ports and Bluetooth capabilities so you can use a mouse and keyboard, but you have to provide them yourself. The Webtop adapter can only be used with a Bluetooth mouse and keyboard. With the HD Station and the Webtop adapter, you have to provide your own display. Other optional accessories include a car dock and a normal charging dock. All of these accessories are only for the Droid Bionic and cannot be used with other phones.
Features
Clearly the most compelling reason to get a Droid Bionic is that it combines two speedy technologies in one handset: a dual-core processor plus Verizon's 4G LTE. As we mentioned earlier, navigation certainly felt much snappier than single-core handsets. The phone's 1GB of RAM helped boost performance too.
But it was the Web browser where the 4G LTE speed boost was evident. Motorola packed the browser with HTML 5 support and full Adobe Flash support. With most handsets, this can result in slow page loading on Flash-heavy Web sites, but not so with the Droid Bionic. We loaded up our full CNET.com page in just 7 seconds, with all the Flash and Java ads as well. We were actually able to play Flash videos directly in the browser, with absolutely zero buffering time. We also managed to scroll through Web pages and switch between different tabs without any lag or hesitation. In short, the marriage between the dual-core processor and 4G LTE is a very good one indeed.
Other connectivity options include Wi-Fi, GPS, and Bluetooth. You can also use the Droid Bionic as a mobile hot spot for up to five devices with the activation of a Mobile Broadband plan. Other features include a speakerphone, speed dial, voice commands, conference calling, Skype Mobile, and text and multimedia messaging.
The Droid Bionic has an 8-megapixel camera with a single LED flash. We have to admit we're a little disappointed that it's not a dual LED flash, or the dual Xenon flash that we saw at CES. We're also not pleased with a slight shutter lag--if we moved even a little bit, the image would appear a touch blurry. Still, the results impressed us. Photo quality was pretty good. Images looked tack-sharp, and colors were accurate.
The Droid Bionic is also the first 4G LTE handset to have 1080p video recording capabilities, which results in crystal-clear videos that can play back on big high-definition TV screens. This is made even easier because the Droid Bionic has an HDMI mirroring mode, so you can view your phone's contents on the TV. The phone also has DLNA support so you can stream your content to DLNA-compatible devices. We're still testing the video quality at the moment, and we will update this review with that information once we have it. The smartphone has 16GB of internal memory and ships with a 16GB microSD card, though it's capable of accepting 32GB cards.
As we mentioned, the Droid Bionic ships with Android 2.3.4 Gingerbread, which means it gets benefits like a great multitouch virtual keyboard. If you would rather have Swype, it comes with that too. Of course, you still get access to all of Google's mobile services like Gmail, Google Maps Navigation, YouTube, Google Talk, Books, Places, Latitude, and Google Search with voice. The Droid Bionic is also compatible with Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync so you can sync corporate e-mail, tasks, and calendars.
Other software and apps preloaded on the Droid Bionic include the Quickoffice Suite, the Amazon Kindle app for Android, Slacker, Blockbuster, and VideoSurf. Motorola also added its own ZumoCast app, which lets you remotely access your documents and media files as long as you have the companion app installed on either your Mac or PC. Motorola also preinstalled Motoprint for printing via Wi-Fi-enabled printers. As the Droid Bionic is a Verizon phone, it has a variety of different Verizon service apps like V Cast Music, Videos, Tones, Media Manager, and VZ Navigator. You can remove some but not all of the preloaded apps.
One of the more powerful features of the phone is the Webtop application, which is similar to the one on the Atrix 4G. Simply dock the Droid Bionic in one of the three accessories mentioned earlier (laptop dock, HD Station, or Webtop adapter), and you can access the Webtop platform. The interface is similar to that of a Netbook, and it has several Webtop-only applications like Firefox. For more on the Webtop platform, please read our review of the Atrix 4G. You can also use the Webtop platform for creating and editing office documents, which is a great feature for business users.
Indeed, Motorola claims the Droid Bionic is "business-ready," with features like resizable and scrollable e-mail, calendar syncing, and advanced security policies that enable you to encrypt both the device and the SD card. It has remote wipe capabilities for the device and the SD card as well.
Performance
We tested the dual-band (CDMA 800/1900; LTE B13 700) Motorola Droid Bionic in San Francisco using Verizon Wireless. Call quality was decent, but it had a few flaws. On our end, we experienced solid call quality, with good volume and natural-sounding voices. We heard very little background noise.
Motorola Droid Bionic call quality sample
Listen now:
Quality was slightly more mixed on the other end. While callers could certainly hear us loud and clear, there was a tiny bit of distortion that prevented the call from sounding perfect. Callers also heard the occasional crackle, and voice quality was a little robotic. Speakerphone calls were all right, though callers said the echo effect was more pronounced.
As we mentioned earlier, the 4G LTE speeds were very impressive. We'll have to get back with more thorough tests, but initial testing showed very fast page loading and speedy downloads.
The Motorola Droid Bionic ships with a 1730mAH lithium ion battery that promises battery life of 10.8 hours of talk time and 10.4 days of standby time.
Conclusion
We have to admit that we didn't want to like the Motorola Droid Bionic. After so many months of waiting, we were prepared to be disappointed. After all, when the Droid Bionic was first announced, dual-core phones were rare and 4G LTE phones were nonexistent, and the market has changed considerably since then. Yet, we found a lot to love about the Droid Bionic. Its new sleek hardware is really quite attractive, and is miles better than the original edition we saw at CES in January. Its feature set is admirable too, with great multimedia capabilities and enterprise-friendly features. Performance is where this phone shines, with speedy navigation and zippy browsing. We also like its Webtop application, though we don't like the fact that you have to spend a lot for the required accessories. The Droid Bionic itself costs around $299.99 after a two-year service agreement with Verizon Wireless, which is already quite expensive.
User reviews
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Best Verizon Offering to Date!
by R-Adams on October 10, 2011
Pros: It is faster than any phone I've ever had
Speakers are nice and loud
Battery life is pretty good
Verizon is a great service
Display is amazing! It's a LARGE 4.3 qHD display
Social media apps are AWESOMECons: Some Verizon "bloatware" on it
Summary: I'll start off by stating that I WAITED for this phone. I read its announcement at CES 2011 and waited for it. It took much much longer than I ...
Summary: I'll start off by stating that I WAITED for this phone. I read its announcement at CES 2011 and waited for it. It took much much longer than I thought it would to be released, and when it finally was, I was there at a Verizon store that morning, but now that I've had it and used it for the better half of a month, I feel comfortable saying that this phone was definitely worth the wait. Before this phone, I've had all sorts of phones; iPhones, Androids, smartphones, dumbphones, Motorola, Sony, Samsung, LG, Nokia.... I can go on and on, but I bring this up just to say that I do have experience with many different handsets and OS's. But back to my Bionic.....
First, the physical aspect of the phone: It's thin and trim, but it has a good solid build to it. More plastic than some previous Droids, but it doesn't feel cheap in the least. It's got a good weight to it and feels snug and right in the hand. I've heard from a few people that the placement of the volume rocker and power button is awkward and takes some getting used to, but not for me. I'll admit that there were a few times in the beginning when setting this phone into its dock that I'd overreach and accidentally hit the power button, but only for the first few times. Another gripe about this phone I've heard was its screen. Some people say they see heavy pixelation in the screen; that because it's a Pentax screen, you can see the pixels and so on. I'll admit that even though this screen is not as crisp as the iPhone 4, it is still a gorgeous screen. I have perfect vision with no need for corrective lenses, and for me to see the pixelation, I have to have the screen at an uncomfortably close distance to my eyes. The colors are vibrant, the pictures are clear, and best of all, this screen is easy to see in natural sunlight.
The speed of this phone is out of this world. It is faster than any phone I've ever had. You can literally run program on top of program on top of program, and this bad boy DOES NOT bog down. I've got apps running in the background all the time while I'm surfing the internet and playing music, and this phone can take it with ease. The bigger screen really makes good use of some of the HD games in the marketplace. Reading my Kindle books on this is a breeze. Watching Netflix is a delight. I've never experienced any kind of lagging or choppiness.
The speakers are nice and loud. I love watching movies and listening to music on my Bionic. When I'm stuck in waiting rooms or bored and away from home, I watch a few of my favorite shows to kill the time.
I've added widgets to pretty much every page of my homescreen, and it did not bog my system down in the slightest. My boyfriend who is an absolute iPhone fanatic played with my phone last night and had a hard time getting used to the widgets. It's a completely different experience from iOS, I know. And it's not for everyone, but it's definitely for me.
Battery life is pretty good considering all the apps and 4G I have running all the time. I dock my Bionic every night and with moderate to heavy use, I can expect about a day's charge out of it. If you plan on being out all night, however, I do suggest you invest in a travel charger or extended battery. Me personally, I haven't needed one of those yet, but again, I'm able to charge mine every night.
The optional accessories are also a must with this phone. I bought both the standard and HD docking station as well as the car dock. The HD dock stays in my living room next to my 40" LCD and from that I can pipe through my Netflix or Webtop. The standard dock stays in my bedroom and makes for a good customizable alarm clock as well as stereo if you have a set of speakers to plug into the AUX input. When needed, my car dock serves as a perfect little GPS with all my contacts readily available as well as the awesome Google Navigation where you can just speak your address and get easy turn-by-turn directions.
This phone does have a few cons, albeit small ones, and not nearly serious enough for me to even begin to regret this purchase: The price is a tad steep. Considering the price of all the other available handsets on the market, this one was pretty steep, even for a new customer like me. The add-ons are also on the expensive side, and that makes it hard to consider purchase. Even though I love the docks I bought, I did not love the price I had to pay for them. I personally haven't noticed any of the reported bugs that have to come to light with this phone (knock on wood) so I can't speak to those.
Verizon is a great service. A little pricier than some, but coming from Sprint, T-Mobile, and most recently, AT&T, Verizon is the best for me. Their customer service seems friendlier, their coverage is superior, and they offer the best Android phones.
The Bionic isn't for everyone, though. It definitely takes some getting used to and is geared toward those who maybe like to tinker with their gadgets more or want a highly customizable experience. It's night and day from the iPhone, and most non-Droid phones, for that matter.
For me, this Bionic will be the last phone I buy for a while( but before you will buy this phone I suggest you have to check for best deal at https://sites.google.com/site/motoroladroidbionic4g ). I haven't been this satisfied with a cell phone in literally years. I've hopped from service to service, phone to phone, for years. But I'm quite confident that I won't be doing that with this one. There is just so much this phone has to offer. I haven't been able to stop playing with it yet.22 out of 24 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Very much worth it, but MotoBlur can be annoying
by flipm0de23 on September 9, 2011
Pros: saying the processor is quick is a major understatement, 4g is faster than my home isp, battery life is amazing, screen looks quite good and auto brightness works very well
Cons: built in task manager isn't the greatest, motoblur can get annoying, a lot of bloatware installed by big red
Summary: This phone is excellent, and I'll highlight a few things for some of the reviewers who haven't really explored / found all the phone's options just yet.
RE: ...Summary: This phone is excellent, and I'll highlight a few things for some of the reviewers who haven't really explored / found all the phone's options just yet.
RE: WiFi is unstable / have to reboot your phone
I thought this was a problem at first, but you have to take a look at the Settings > Battery & data manager > Battery mode. They use the idea of peak / off-peak hours to turn off the data connections to your phone, even if you are on WiFi. You need to set up the custom battery mode to have off peak hours to suit your needs AND tell it to keep your data "Always On" so that your WiFi doesn't cut out. The default setting is that WiFi / 4G will turn itself off after 15 minutes of inactivity. THIS IS NOT A FLAW PEOPLE, try exploring your phone a little more =)
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RE: the screen is bad
i agree it isn't the best screen out there, but at full brightness, Netflix looks awesome over either 4G or WiFi, and pictures look great. The text is very crispy and easy to read too. I look at screens all day, everyday as a technology professional, and i've seen some bad screens / monitors. The Bionic's screen is nowhere near as bad as what people make it out to be.
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Motorola's custom skin "MotoBlur" tries to centralize a bit too much. For those of you who use Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Flickr, and YouTube to share a lot, then this centralization may be a nice feature. I found myself downloading Facebook for Android within the first day, because their built in version was difficult to navigate.
The task manager is set up differently, in that you see a full list of all programs, they have an interesting way of saying which ones get ended automatically, etc. Again, I found myself downloading Advanced Task killer on day one.
Other than those couple of things / having to dig through some of the custom menus, the actual device is great. What cell phone camera is perfect in all conditions, but in sunlight or a bright room the pictures come out more than good enough to post on Facebook or send to friends. Build quality feels very solid and I like the fact that there's HDMI output. Battery life is great given the screen size and processing power, and if you set up the Battery Settings just right, it will have great battery life.
All the "problems" I really see with it have to do with options in software that people are used to because of non-custom or other custom skins / roms that they've used. My suggestion to those is to do some diving into the menus, long key presses, options on different screens of programs, etc. to see what's really there. Also, I haven't been able to find a problem that I couldn't find a widget or a 3rd party piece of software as a remedy.
Long story short: if you are up for a new phone / upgrade from Verizon and you are fortunate enough to have an unlimited data plan from before they started having the tiered plans, I'd snag this phone. If you want to wait for the Droid Prime, it may be incrementally better but I can see Motorola being quick about updating their software for the Bionic to stay competitive if / when that happens.12 out of 12 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Truly amazing phone. Incredibly FAST!
by LMacNeill on September 11, 2011
Pros: Verizon's amazing 4G network -- if you're in a place where you can get it. When on 4G, you can talk and surf at the same time - FINALLY! Dual-core CPU is BLAZINGLY fast - makes task-switching a breeze. Tons of built-in storage and RAM, so you won't have
Cons: qHD display is not *quite* as nice as an AmoLED would've been -- but I'm not seeing the pixellation that some people have complained about. No physical slide-out keyboard like my original-generation Moto Droid. With Verizon's amazing 4G network, if you d
Summary: I've had this phone for about 2 days now, and overall I'm extremely happy with my purchase. It is SO much faster than my original-generation Motorola Droid -- ...
Summary: I've had this phone for about 2 days now, and overall I'm extremely happy with my purchase. It is SO much faster than my original-generation Motorola Droid -- zips right through menus and switches tasks with no delay whatsoever.
The screen-quality is extremely good -- definitely wouldn't say it's the best available today, but it's far better than some people are saying in their reviews here. I'm not seeing the pixellation that a few others have complained about -- the display is quite clear and sharp. Would've been nice to get an AmoLED display instead of qHD -- but I'm very pleased with the display's quality and sharpness nonetheless.
The phone is advertised as having 16GB of built-in storage plus a 16GB SD-card -- however, you DO NOT have access to all 16GB of the built-in storage. Seems like the phone itself reserves 8GB for system-stuff and application storage, and you get to use the other 8GB for your own stuff (the phone calls this the "Media Area"). But you do have access to 100% of the available space on the pre-installed 16GB SD-card, and that SD-card can be upgraded to 32GB if you want, so you can have 40GB of user-controlled storage, which (let's be honest here) is a LOT of space for a smart-phone.
The main thing you'll notice about this phone at first, however, is its INCREDIBLE SPEED! This will be especially true if you've currently got a 3G single-core Android-based phone right now. This phone is, so far, the absolute best marriage of 4G technology and CPU technology -- the 4G can serve the data as fast as the CPU can take it, and the CPU never gets bogged down waiting for something in the background to finish, because it's got two cores -- one core can pretty much always be dedicated to running whatever app you have in the foreground, while the other one takes care of other system business (if there is any). And it's totally seamless, just like in a multi-core PC. It just plain works, and works very well.
I will warn you about one thing, though -- if you're not an existing Verizon Wireless customer with an existing unlimited data-plan, you're going to have to purchase one of Verizon's limited data-plans. The most common would be (I'm sure) the 2GB plan for $30 per month. Now, this phone is new to me, and I've been playing with it a LOT in the past two days -- but I've already used 1.4GB of data during that time (you can REALLY suck down the data with the Netflix-streaming app, which is available to download on the marketplace). Luckily, I upgraded from an original-generation Motorola Droid with an existing unlimited data-plan that I was allowed to keep. So I don't have to worry about the amount of data I use -- but you might, if you're not in the same situation I am. So that's not really a complaint about the phone itself, but a complaint about Verizon's new policies... It's something you DEFINITELY need to consider before buying this (or any other) Verizon 4G phone. That amazingly fast 4G network makes it amazingly EASY to download TONS of data, without even realizing it. (Luckily, one of the pieces of "bloatware" that Verizon pre-installs on the phone is a data-usage meter that you can put right on your home page -- I highly recommend keeping that visible at all times if you're not on the unlimited data-plan.)
Another complaint here, albeit an extremely minor one -- even with all this CPU power, scrolling through my contacts-list is still not *qute* as smooth as I was expecting. The iPhone definitely has every Android phone beaten in that department. The other animations (swiping from one home-screen to another, for example) is far smoother than I've yet seen on any other Android phone, and when you rotate the screen it's extremely smooth... It's just the contact's list (or any other very long list of stuff you'd need to scroll through) in which Android shows itself to be a slight underdog to Apple's iOS. But, this is, overall, a VERY minor thing and will not detract much (if at all) from your enjoyment of this phone.
I love the fact that there is a Motorola-designed-and-approved extended-life battery available, right from the beginning. They designed all the accessories to fit the phone, both with and without the extended-life battery -- very forward thinking, and something I wish they had done with my original Droid. Thanks, Motorola for listening to our previous complaints! I purchased the extended-life battery, the standard desktop-dock, the car-dock, and the car-charger. They all fit the phone perfectly, there's no "squeezing" the phone into the docks, like I had to with my original Droid when it had it's extended-life battery in there -- everything has been designed very well, and it shows. Very happy with everything about the accessories I purchased -- except for the price (wish they were a bit cheaper). I did NOT buy the "laptop dock" that turns the phone into a Netbook-like device, although I was sorely tempted... And still am... Might re-consider that next month, in which case I'll update this review...
Everything that you've come to expect from an Android phone -- Google Talk, gMail, Google Maps & Navigation, etc. -- are all included for free on this phone of course. Only difference is, it runs all that stuff FAR faster and smoother than you've ever seen on any other Android phone to date. Maps and Navigation, especially (if you're in an area with 4G coverage, of course) are so much smoother than before, it's almost like you bought a dedicated GPS device. If you like the Android OS's Google-based services, you're going to LOVE them on this phone. Very well done.
A few folks have complained about the MotoBlur intrerface -- but frankly, I don't find it to be all that bad. I ditched their built-in Facebook for the Facebook For Android app on the marketplace, and I'm totally happy now. Everything that MotoBlur does, if you don't like it, you can find a replacement for it on the marketplace, so the fact that this phone uses a subset of MotoBlur features really shouldn't affect your decision to purchase or not purchase this phone...
That's about all I can think of right now -- I'm absolutely happy with the purchase of this phone, it's an absolutely excellent replacement for my original Motorola Droid, and other than the few flaws I've mentioned herein, I think just about anyone (other than an iPhone Fanboi) would be extremely happy with this phone as well.9 out of 10 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Fast, smooth, light. Avoid if you use phone as a camera
by Vereynn on October 14, 2011
Pros: Insane data speeds when in LTE coverage
Very thin and light
HDMI out
Dual Core processor + full gigabyte of RAM = consistently smooth, responsive UI
Some Moto apps included improvements (Finally, SELECT ALL in email app!!! Imagine getting and deleting 20Cons: Battery life is "iffy"; some Bionics go through a wireless network "shuffle" of 4G->3G->None->repeat that will destroy the battery quickly. Sometimes it simply loses the data connectivity after being plugged into a charger for a while; sometimes
Summary: I strongly recommend anyone considering this phone get one in their hands. The screen can, depending on the person involved, be a deal-breaker. Assume you won't be using the ...
Summary: I strongly recommend anyone considering this phone get one in their hands. The screen can, depending on the person involved, be a deal-breaker. Assume you won't be using the camera much, certainly not indoors.
I'm very happy with my Bionic, although I probably would have gone with the upcoming Samsung Nexus on Verizon if it had been available.
re: something pulling data; I've had an original Droid for over two years, and averaged 600mb or so a month. The only time I came close to 2GB data in a month was when I left Pandora running overnight for a week. On the Bionic I'm hitting 2GB data each of the first two months. Not a huge worry as I'm still unlimited data, but bothersome nonetheless.
Typical amount of Verizon bloatware (monthly-fee VZNavigator? Srsly?)
Something not often discussed; the internal storage is split into two partitions, one for "applications" and one for "media storage". Since it also has a microSD card slot, that doesn't make a huge amount of sense to me. Uses the "media area" instead of the actual mSD card as optional "out of main memory" app installation area. Reportedly a bug fix is coming in November to address issues w/ apps installed to media storage erroring as "not installed on phone".
Power/Lock switch is in an odd location for me (top left). I keep trying to find it in the top right.
Finally, while I haven't tried it personally, Moto/Verizon have also apparently said that the fact that NitroDesk's Touchdown app (very nice Outlook/Exchange client) doesn't work on the Bionic is "as intended". In other words, they're doing something non-standard with the whole account and/or email subsystems that breaks a really good email/calendar/task app that I depend on for my Android tablet.
So yeah, I gave it 4/5 stars (excellent) even though my Cons is twice as many characters as the Pros. Only major cons though for me are the data disconnect, battery (I have a charger @ work so it's not even an actual major con in practice) and the camera. Everything else is workable, and the data speed, UI/app smoothness, and comfortable size and weight (I have large hands) more than make up for the cons for me.5 out of 5 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Couldn't Be Happier!!!
by lynchburghornet on September 7, 2011
Pros: - 4G LTE
- Dual Core Processor
- 1080P Video Recording and Mirrored Image to TV via HDMI
- Bright Screen
- EVERYTHING ELSECons: - Possibility that the DROID Prime could come out next month with a 1.5 processor
Summary: Couldn't be happier with this phone! Got it a day early since I know someone at Verizon. You better be there tomorrow to get this phone before they're ...
Summary: Couldn't be happier with this phone! Got it a day early since I know someone at Verizon. You better be there tomorrow to get this phone before they're all sold out! I absolutely love how smooth and fast it is with everything (compared to my OG Droid).
4 out of 5 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Wow, I have to respond to some of this
by realpariah2 on November 9, 2011
Pros: Dual Core
QVGA HD Screen
Slim for its components
Battery Life is upper middle of the road [for smartphones that means you should see roughly a full day or day and a half [WITHOUT BATTERY MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE]Cons: 2 stars until this phone is fixed and fully operational
OVERHEATS
First OTA Update BRICKED the phone
It constantly drops the data connection [including mobile data, WiFi and Bluetooth]
Motorola Bloatware and OverlaySummary: Oh and if you need to verify what I am writing below is truthful please just search Google for bionic WiFi problem, Bionic Mobile Data problem, etc. and start counting ...
Summary: Oh and if you need to verify what I am writing below is truthful please just search Google for bionic WiFi problem, Bionic Mobile Data problem, etc. and start counting the threads and offered fixes
Look this phone looks awesome and could be great that I don't debate, but trust me I am a computer tech and have been for a long time [I am also an Android ROM Developer] when I say this thing has some REAL issues. I am flabbergasted to see what has been posted on CNet in regards to this phone, but then I look and the editors review as well as most ALL the front page comments are from fanboys, and folks who JUST got their phone. My reports comes in after 2 weeks of having to help my boss with his new Bionic.
He has gone through 4 FOUR [not kidding] Bionics in a little over 10 days now. The problem all began after he has had it for a bit and all of a sudden he got awoken late at night by some weird noise. He looks over and the phone is stuck on a screen stating OTA update. He waits and several hours later samething so he reboots. Gets to the same point and same thing. He then restarts again, all of a sudden after he sees the bootsplash screen stating Dual Core the whole thing went dark and he could not boot it after that. He comes in and speaks with me and a Verizon tech. As soon as I get online and read up I see reports of Bluetooth Wireless [WiFi] and Mobile Data [3g, 4g] connection issues and figured thats what the OTA was about. I have him call Verizon and as soon as we got a tech on the line and he told them what happened he got 2 sentences in and the tech groans NOT ANOTHER ONE [oh great that really inspires confidence]. So they say no problem we will send you another one. He gets it in 2 days and un-boxes it and sets it up and is happy right? NOPE, he comes to find out a couple hours later that the one he got which is supposedly a "certified" reconditioned phone has no working phone speaker. The Bluetooth and wired headsets work, but come on no ringtones on phone when called, no notifications same way, etc. so he calls in again and gets another phone in a day or 2. This one has a working speaker [YAY!], but after setting it all up the next day it begins dropping his mobile data and WiFi randomly [yes when he has full signal]. I look at it and make sure no apps are getting in the way, no battery managers, etc. Still he now has to reboot his phone roughly 3x an hour to maintain mobile data. We have tried connection re-setters, juice defender etc etc etc trust me this is my boss I have been tearing through information online and all the settings to get this figured out this is NOT due to human error.
I would say this phone COULD be the best phone soo far, BUT YOU SHOULD WAIT UNTIL YOU GET TOTAL CONFIRMATION MOTOROLA HAS FIXED THE MOBILE DATA AND THE CPU AT IDLE BURNING ITSELF OUT BEFORE BUYING THIS DEVICE. DONT TRUST MOTOROLA WHEN THEY SAY AN UPDATE IS PENDING BY THE WAY MY CLIQ XT WAITED 18 MONTHS TO GET OFF DROID 1.5 AND THEN THEY JUST GAVE UP AND IT STILL TECHNICALLY DROID 1.5 [IF I HAD NOT GOTTEN IN TO BUILDING MY OWN ROM AND NOW HAVE ANDROID 2.3.7 FULLY WORKING [THANKS MOTO I COULD DO WHAT YOU COULDN'T I GUESS LoL].
Just goes to show how much they actually care about customers when they make a mistake and you end up paying for it. I used to be all about Moto for quality and good equipment, but since the "smart"phone revolution they are just as bad a crap shoot as a Chinese black market white box phone
OH AND YOU SHOULD NEVER be forced in to buying docking stations if you have a Bluetooth keyboard, mouse and a Mini HDMI to VGA or PCI-E adapter you can make a computer out of any smartphone without docks or "Webtop" crap and save the money. This guy went totally overboard spending way too much money without proper research [IMHO] Please keep this post in mind when you complete reading his for a balance as I cant just sit here and let other unsuspecting people see this as the number 1 review on the front page when it is wrong.
Sorry for spelling and grammar I am in a hurry at work cant afford to sit here for long.2 out of 2 users found this user opinion helpful.
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This phone has some very irritating idiosyncrasies.
by Aunt_Cookie on November 7, 2011
Pros: Fairly fast, lots of options.
Cons: Terrible sound; Terrible battery life; Shuts down on its own and won't start back up without removing the battery. User manual almost worthless.
Summary: Sorry I purchased it, now I will have to suffer for the next two years. Wish I had opted for the IPhone.
Summary: Sorry I purchased it, now I will have to suffer for the next two years. Wish I had opted for the IPhone.
2 out of 2 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Great phone handicapped by battery life
by mab151 on September 17, 2011
Pros: Blindingly fast LTE, great customization of home pages via Gingerbread, excellent variety of applications
Cons: Battery life, battery life, battery life. Loaded with bloatware that you cannot get rid of.
Summary: Love hate relationship with this phone.
I love this phone, it is super fast and it does everything I could want it to do and do it well. That includes ...Summary: Love hate relationship with this phone.
I love this phone, it is super fast and it does everything I could want it to do and do it well. That includes email, weather apps, web surfing, office documents, super navigation almost as good as a full Garmin, games, etc.
I hate this phone. The battery originally didn't last longer than 4-5 hours. I got rid of my customized background, I turned off the 4G and only use the 3G, I only use one application at a time, I constantly am killing applications like VZ Navigator (which I have never and will never use but always wants to be running). I still don't make it through the day. I just am now turning it to be all the time on Maximum Battery Saver mode so that when it is idle it turns off all updating (and then grabs your mail when you turn it on).
Conclusion - I am fine with having to charge a phone at the end of the day. I will call Verizon in case they have advice and I will see how Maximum Battery Saver Mode works. If it is not better in the next 24 hours, I am returning this tomorrow. I am a bit incredulous and surprised at the number of purely positive posts about the phone and am not sure I believe the honesty of some of the reviews of the glowingly wonderful battery life. I'm starting to feel like you have to disable 60% of what makes the phone cool so that it will last through the day - this takes the fun out of it. This would take me back to my blackberry anxiously waiting the next few android phones due out.2 out of 2 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Locked down way too tightly by VZW
by lbeberdick on September 29, 2011
Pros: Fast over WiFi, haven't found 4G access. Love the large screen. Battery better than expected, but sill can't make it through a single work day. Virtual keyboard and spell suggestions work great, Corporate sync good but not continuous like BB.
Cons: VCAST doesn't work over WiFi, Can't download free Ring tones nor free Walpaper[VZW lock] VZ navigator on by default. Can't set up notifications for individual mail accounts. BLOATWARE out the Cazoo that can't be removed. Auto bright doesn't work.
Summary: Probably a great phone on a different network. the WiFi access is great, and some neat features like Zumo Cast. can display photos from my home computer over the air. ...
Summary: Probably a great phone on a different network. the WiFi access is great, and some neat features like Zumo Cast. can display photos from my home computer over the air. Moto Print is set up and found printers and installed, but won't print, never makes it out of the phone. VZW has this phone so locked down that it is not as user friendly or customizable as my old Blackberry 9630. Looked into the extended battery from VZW they are selling for $25. apparantly they knew this phone needed a bigger battery. am very disapointed at the price of the charging dock. $50.00 is way to high for a parking and charging station. Had 1124 contaacts on old phone, only 963 came over to the Bionic. Thought this was the phone to get to stay current. Should have gone with one of the new Black Berries. My son wants me to root it. am seriously considering or just returning. Will decide before my 30 days are up. maybe the new I Phone 5 will be available by then?
9-30--11 Midnight last night 4G came in my area. Tried the hot spot feature this morning 1220 KPBS from MobileSpeedTest.com. from full charge to empty 1 hour 40 minutes on regular battery. Found a way around the free ringtone download ban. Download to a computer and e-mail to a different account that is on the Bioinc. Save, Open and select Make Ringtone from Options.
Updated on Sep 30, 20113 out of 5 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Good feature set but unreliable radios ruin it.
by ZyanceBoy on January 21, 2012
Pros: Decent version of Android 2.3.4 and all the great things that go with it.
Cons: Some infrequent radio/network problems make it frustrating to use requiring use of airplane mode and sometimes power cycling to restore normal functionality.
Summary: Had this phone for 5 months now.
Problems with Droid Bionic:
1. 4G doesn't work right. Sometimes device shows 4G and strong signal but can't surf or use ...Summary: Had this phone for 5 months now.
Just received a major system upgrade over the air 2 days ago. So far, the connectivity problems seem to be fully resolved: WiFi functions 100% reliably now; 4G performs 100% reliably now. I am astonished at how much more reliable this phone is now. It's a shame it took Motorola 6 months to deliver this level of quality; my initial review would been much higher (probably 4 stars). Nevertheless, thank you Verizon and Motorola for this much needed update.
Problems with Droid Bionic:
1. 4G doesn't work right. Sometimes device shows 4G and strong signal but can't surf or use any Internet services. Power cycling resolves it temporarily. I have set phone to use 3G only for increased reliability.
2. Rarely the device won't turn back on. Have to remove the battery and put it back in to get it working again. This happens when the charge is still ok on the battery. This is very inconvenient and time consuming since it requires dismantling the Otter Box protective cover and then opening the very difficult battery cover.
3. WiFi sometimes does not work. Need to toggle airplane mode to get it working (FYI: also WiFi signal strength is much weaker than any other WiFi device and is very limited in range).
4. When syncing with IMAP email account, sent items synced originally when using "push" feature, but do not sync anymore when using scheduled sync.
5. Camera function is so slow it is almost useless. Camera picture clarity is poor. Hard to believe camera is 8 megapixel.
6. Sometimes email sync never stops and nothing comes in. Have to power cycle to resolve.
These problems were present before I loaded apps, so I beleive they are system/firmware problems.
Overall, I feel the problems are all related to poor software quality assurance.
Battery seems to last me the entire day - though I have email set to sync only every 15 minutes and I am using 3G CDMA mode almost exclusively since 4G networking is very unreliable (even with strong signal).
Performance is good. I highly recommend a dual-core design.
I would not recommend this phone. I would not buy another Motorola mobile phone product.
VERSION INFO:
System version 5.5.893.XT875.Verizon.en.US
Android version 2.3.4
Baseband version CDMA_N_03.1C .57R Itedc_u_05.15.01
Webtop version WT-1.3.0-108_DBN-21
Kernel version 2.6.35.7-g68606e6
vwm736@il93lnxdroid43 #1
Build 5.5.1_84_DBN-62
ERI version 5
PRL version 15098
Updated on Feb 14, 2012
Here are the new versions that appear to give a much better experience:
VERSION INFO:
System version 5.9.902.XT875.Verizon.en.US
Android version 2.3.4
Baseband version CDMA_N_04.07.00R LTEDC_U_07.1F.00
Webtop version WT-1.3.0-108_DBN-24
Kernel version 2.6.35.7-g83f1a47
vwm736@il93lnxdroid43 #1
Build 5.5.1_84_DBN-71
ERI version 5
PRL version 150981 out of 1 users found this user opinion helpful.
Specifications
- Manufacturer: Motorola
- Part number: DROIDBIONIC
- Description: Packing a dual core processor with each core running at 1 GHz, delivering up to two GHz of processing power, and 512 MB RAM, the sleekly designed DROID BIONIC smartphone with 4G LTE delivers a mobile Internet experience that's up to 10 times faster than 3G. This means consumers can stream their favorite music and TV shows with unparalleled quality experience. DROID BIONIC also races through loading of complex web pages and media that take advantage of Adobe Flash Player and HTML5, rendering graphics faster than previous generation single-core devices. Motorola's DROID BIONIC gives new meaning to the word "socialize" by delivering multiple ways for customers to stay connected. With the device's front-facing VGA camera and See What I See video feature, consumers can share experiences - either via Wi-Fi or 4G - with family, friends and co-workers. A rear-facing 8-megapixel camera also allows consumers to capture their favorite pictures and videos. DROID BIONIC's multiplayer gaming capabilities allow consumers to challenge friends to live peer-to-peer gaming, viewed through the device's 4.3-inch qHD quality screen that delivers console-quality graphics. DROID BIONIC's HDMI connectivity also enables consumers to connect the device to their HD televisions to experience their favorite games, as well as purchased HD content, in full 1080p. And for multi-taskers, DROID 4G's mirror mode function enables simultaneous streaming of video to the TV and on the device. As a fully featured work device, DROID BIONIC comes equipped with corporate email, remote wipe and data security and encryption capabilities IT departments appreciate. DROID BIONIC also features productivity tools such as Quickoffice for document review and editing, full calendar management, one-click access to conference calling, and a full suite of Google applications and services.
General
- Product Type Smartphone (Android OS)
- Form Factor Touch
- Phone Design PDA
- Integrated Components Wi-Fi hotspot,
GPS receiver,
2nd camera,
Digital camera,
Digital player,
Voice recorder - Width 2.6 in
- Depth 0.5 in
- Height 5 in
- Weight 5.6 oz
- Body Color Black
Cellular
- Technology CDMA2000 1X
- Band CDMA2000 1X 1900/800
- Mobile Broadband Generation 4G
- Service Provider Verizon Wireless
- Operating System Google Android 2.2
- Application Software Quickoffice,
Adobe Flash Player - Input Device(s) Touch sensitive screen , Capacitive
Messaging & Internet
- Cellular Messaging Services MMS,
SMS - Instant Messaging Services Google Talk
- Supported Email Protocols POP3,
IMAP4 - Messaging & Data Features Text messages,
Multimedia messages (MMS),
Instant messages,
E-Mail,
HTML Browser - Downloadable Content Games
- Mobile Services Gmail
Communications
- Data Transmission EV-DO
- Wireless Interface Bluetooth 2.1 EDR ,
IEEE 802.11b/g/n - Bluetooth Profiles Serial Port Profile (SPP),
Object Push Profile (OPP),
Personal Area Networking Profile (PAN),
Hands Free Profile (HFP),
Headset Profile (HSP),
Dial-up Networking Profile (DUN),
Phonebook Access Profile (PBAP),
Human Interface Device Profile (HID),
Generic Access Profile (GAP),
Message Access Profile (MAP),
Generic Object Exchange Profile (GOEP),
Advanced Audio Distribution Profile (A2DP),
Audio/Video Remote Control Profile (AVRCP),
Audio/Video Control Transport Protocol (AVCTP),
Audio/Video Distribution Transport Protocol (AVDTP),
General Audio/Video Distribution Profile (GAVDP) - Communication Features Internet browser,
Mobile Email client Phone Features
- Phone Functions Call timer,
Conference call,
Speakerphone,
Vibrating alert - Polyphonic Ringer Yes
- Sensors Proximity sensor,
Accelerometer,
Ambient light sensor,
Digital compass - Additional Features DLNA Certified,
Multitasking,
Intelligent typing (SWYPE) Organizer
- Personal Information Management Synchronization with PC,
Calendar,
Calculator,
Reminder,
Alarm clock Media Player
- Supported Digital Audio Standards eAAC+,
AAC +,
MP3,
MIDI,
AAC - Supported Digital Video Standards MPEG-4,
H.263,
H.264 Processor
- Type NVIDIA Tegra 2
- Clock Speed 1 GHz
Memory
- RAM 512 MB
- Bult-in Memory 16 GB
- Supported Flash Memory Cards microSDHC - up to 32 GB
Digital Camera
- Sensor Resolution 8 megapixels
- Still Image Formats JPEG,
EXIF - Focus Adjustment Automatic
- Digital Zoom 8
- Camera Light Source LED light
- Video Recorder Resolutions 1280 x 720 (720p)
- Features Video recording
Navigation System
- GPS Navigation - Simultaneous GPS (S-GPS)
- Navigation Software & Services Google Maps
Display
- Type Color
- Diagonal Size 4.3 in
- Display Resolution 960 x 540 pixels
Connections
- Connector Type Headset jack - Mini-phone 3.5 mm,
USB,
HDMI Battery
- Capacity 1930 mAh
Miscellaneous
- Included Accessories Power adapter , Power adapter
Product series
-
Motorola Droid Bionic (Verizon Wireless)
Manufacturer: Motorola
Specs: Verizon Wireless,
CDMA2000 1X,
With digital camera / digital player,
5.6 oz,
8 megapixels,
4.3 in -
Motorola Droid Bionic (Verizon Wireless) - Refurbished
Manufacturer: Motorola
Specs: Verizon Wireless,
CDMA2000 1X,
Up to 648 min,
With digital camera / digital player,
5.6 oz,
8 megapixels,
4.3 in
Accessories
- A-Data Turbo series flash memory card - 8 GB - microSDHC (33796783)9.99
- A-Data flash memory card - 16 GB (34642617)14.99
- A-Data flash memory card - 16 GB - microSDHC (34580093)12.99
- A-Data flash memory card - 16 GB - microSDHC (34641832)14.99
- Case-Mate Tough Case - case for cellular phone (35152117)34.99
- Incipio Feather Ultralight Hard Shell Case - hard case for cellular phone (35044555)14.44
Manufacturer info
- Manufacturer profile
- Browse Motorola products on Shopper.com
-
- Manufacturer:Motorola
- Address:
600 N. Highway 45, Libertyville, IL 60048 - Phone: 847/576-5000
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