HTC Thunderbolt Review: The First Verizon 4G LTE Smartphone

Display

The display on the Thunderbolt is 4.3 inches and of the relatively standard WVGA (800x480) sort we’re used to seeing from Android phones. It’s a rather normal LCD-TFT panel, no fancy IPS or SAMOLED+ or Pentile like other phones that are starting to headline. As a result, it doesn’t really impress in the numbers department, delivering relatively middling contrast that isn’t insufficient but doesn’t make it a standout performer by any means. 

The other part of the picture is that qHD is rapidly becoming a feature that every next generation Android needs to have. In this regard as well as lack of dual core, the Thunderbolt feels a bit like it belongs to this current generation of smartphones rather than the upcoming one.

Absence of qHD isn’t a huge breaking point however since it still isn’t an officially sanctioned Android resolution. Though the official Android screen resolution guidelines have all manners of DPI-independent functionalities and four different display pixel densities, it’s ultimately up to each developer to implement proper pixel density agnosticism properly. In my time with the Arix for example, I’ve already seen a few applications that clearly have hard coded pixel values for UI elements and look weird. 

Again by virtue of the Thunderbolt having a relatively ordinary LCD display, it also doesn’t have anything overwhelmingly awesome for viewing angles inside or out. 

I grabbed a photo of the Thunderbolt outside right next to a Verizon 4G LTE eNodeB as well, and you can really see how outdoor viewing looks.

One of the only major gripes I have with the Thunderbolt is that there is noticeable light bleed from the capacitive button white LEDs that makes it onto the display surface. At the right angle, you can clearly see the reflection from the two LEDs that light up those buttons.

This is something which used to plague HTC’s designs way, way back, and I’m surprised to see it crop up again. It isn’t super noticeable, but it’s there if you look for it.