Next on our TechGuySmartBuy review list is the Samsung Droid Charge, the second 4G LTE for Verizon. The Droid Charge is offering an alternative to the HTC ThunderBolt with a 4.3inch Super AMOLED Plus touchscreen w/ 800 x 480 resolution, powered by a 1GHz Hummingbird processor, running Android 2.2 w/ TouchWiz UI, 512MB of RAM, 2GB of internal storage + 32GB microSD card included, 1.3MP front-facing & 8MP rear-facing camera w/ 720p HD video capture, DLNA/Bluetooth/Wi-Fi support, and mobile hotspot up to 10 devices on 4G/ 5 devices on 3G. Is the Charge any competition for the ThunderBolt, let’s weigh in below.
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| Photographed in an area where only 3G was available |
At first grasp of the Charge vs. The ThunderBolt, you notice that the ThunderBolt has a more solid, premium built but the Charge isn’t a cheaply constructed device either. The Charge has a plastic-based build that is reminiscent of the Nexus S in the back of the device with an original design style in the front with a silver bezel. The Charge is about an ounce lighter than the TBolt. One can truly appreciate the weight difference when you are armed with a smartphone with 4.3inch screen yet doesn’t feel like it.
At first glance between the two LTE devices, the display on the Charge will make any ThunderBolt owner completely jealous. The Super AMOLED Plus display offers bright & sharp colors and on a 4.3inch screen, makes anything viewed on it quite a visual treat. And in case you thought it was the same AMOLED screen on the Galaxy S devices (Captivate, Epic 4G, Fascinate, & Vibrant), think again. This is definitely the new and improved version of it and it definitely rivals Apple’s Retina Display as you’re gonna wish every phone had this type of screen.
The Droid Charge is equipped with a 1,600mAh battery and was better than the stock battery on the ThunderBolt. The battery on the Charge still isn’t gonna last you all day due to the LTE & Super AMOLED Plus displays are both battery killers. I averaged about 8 hours of battery life on 4G without any adjusting of settings and on 3G yielded even better results. Apparently Samsung did a better job than HTC did in making sure their 4G Android device could keep a charge (pun intended).
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| Droid Charge Day Photos |
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| Droid Charge Night Photos |
The shooters on the Charge work quite well. The 1.3MP front-facing on the AMOLED screen looks like a 2MP and does the job for your video-calling or self-portrait needs. The 8MP on the back is no slouch as you can get bright & clear photos despite however the lighting environment is. You have the ability to use tap-to-focus along with the auto-focus for getting great photos that will surprise people. The video capture on the Charge was pretty good but by default the video settings are 720 x 480 and need to be changed to 1280 x 720 (720p HD). With the Charge being armed with an HDMI out port allows you to plug in and play media from your phone on your TV to retain HD quality as well. The notable thing about the video recording on the Charge is that it automatically focuses while recording. Definitely a bonus for this shooter.
Although I think the Droid Charge has an advantage on the ThunderBolt, paying $50 more on contract maybe a huge turn off. Does offering the same blazing fast LTE speeds, with an immaculate screen, great shooters, and slightly longer battery life justify the $299.99 price point of the Charge? I doubt it but you can wait until an amazing online deal arrives for it if you are seriously interested in picking one up. The Charge’s price point is set to match that of a 32GB iPhone 4 since it comes with a 32GB microSD card pre-installed. Do I think this is a better device than the TBolt? Yes, I do. The Charge processor blazes through multitasking without a hiccup and haven’t experience any buggy activity as I have with the ThunderBolt. Definitely a portrait example of what a 4G phone experience should be like. I never was a huge fan of the HTC Sense UI (though I still enjoyed using TBolt despite it), the TouchWiz interface used on the Charge was less intrusive & closer to the stock Android which I personally prefer. My only real beef with the phone is the name. I would have definitely preferred the code name it was running with prior to the official name, Stealth, as the Droid Charge moniker is terrible. That’s is really the only thing this phone is lacking, a name to match its capabilities. Despite the delayed release to the masses, the Charge keeps Verizon’s growing 4G smartphones ahead of the competition.
