[Storm2Cool]

Blackberry keeps falling further and further behind. I see that the Motorola Droid is now 4g with Verizon. I can't wait until my contract is up. I'm tired of being left behind. Even the company I work for has gone from Blackberry to the Iphone.

[jlspeed29]

I asked this same question a few months ago and got few responses...If I recall correctly, we may see a device late 2012 when the next, next devices come out =\

[andyahs]

Blackberry keeps falling further and further behind. I see that the Motorola Droid is now 4g with Verizon. I can't wait until my contract is up. I'm tired of being left behind. Even the company I work for has gone from Blackberry to the Iphone.

When is iPhone going 4g?

[valorian]

RIM announced earlier this year they are not interested in LTE or 4G till the technology improves. RIM is most concerned about the poor battery life and the size requirements for LTE / 4G chipsets. I would not expect any 4G BlackBerrys in the next year maybe two.

[Jmilles]

RIM announced earlier this year they are not interested in LTE or 4G till the technology improves. RIM is most concerned about the poor battery life and the size requirements for LTE / 4G chipsets. I would not expect any 4G BlackBerrys in the next year maybe two.

I think that RIM will get some new stuff with their new Blackberry devices that will show up in the next year... they know that they are in troubles because of the unupdated devices and services... i believe that they will make some money with the Playbook and then start to fix things.

[Storm2Cool]

I failed to mention that Samsung has a 4G phone with Verizon as well.

LTE 4G shootout: HTC Thunderbolt, Motorola Droid Bionic, Samsung Droid Charge - International Business Times

[andyahs]

I think that RIM will get some new stuff with their new Blackberry devices that will show up in the next year... they know that they are in troubles because of the unupdated devices and services... i believe that they will make some money with the Playbook and then start to fix things.

RIM has more than enough money even before the Playbook to 'fix' things they have just been slow out of the gate.

[mark_rivers19]

i will try NOT to make this a BlackBerry vs. ( put your phone here) debate.
the OP mentioned about the Thunderbolt but left out all the problems that current owners have, specifically the battery.
having 4G on your smartphone sounds like a good idea until you see the drain in the battery.

Why not consider a smartphone/ tablet and a Mi-Fi that is 4G.
this can give you 4G and 4 other devices ( laptop, ipod touch, etc)

[TMFoughty]

I left BB earlier this month for the Verizon Thunderbolt. Today is a bad day because the LTE network is down, and frankly, the phone sucks when it's not in 4G.

The 4G speed is nice, but I get 4 hours with the 1600 battery. 4 HOURS! If you are looking to get away from BB, then nothing will change your mind, but don't do what I did, get pissed off, switch, and now have to wait until 2/16/12 when my year contract is up to switch back....

[qbnkelt]

No way....FOUR HOURS?!?!?

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[sleepngbear]

A few things are going to have to happen before I think we'll see 4G on BB's:
- 4G will need to be widely available AND affordable from the carriers that would be selling those 4G devices. So far it's only available to a small percentage of the population.
- There will need to be a strong demand for it; meaning there will have to be a LOT of people wanting it, not just a few screaming loudly for it.
- Handheld technology is going to need to mature to the point that 4G-capable devices can run all day on a single battery charge while utilizing 4G.

That last one is going to be a tall order, because those devices will have the double-whammy of also running higher-end hardware (i.e., QNX & dual-core processors, hi-def displays, etc) that even further taxes energy consumption.

It will happen, but I wouldn't expect it on a BB for at least another year.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[rdiddy_25]

When is iPhone going 4g?

Bazinga!!! What's the point of having a 4G device, paying extra for "Premium Data" and then NOT even have 4G coverage in your area??? I can see why RIM is waiting till 4G is rolled out in more areas, by then they should have smaller chips and hopefully better battery life as well.

[Mr One 2]

Personally I'm glad the new bb's are not gonna be 4g. I don't wanna pay ten bucks extra for something I can't use for another year or two. That being said in two years when its widely available, I hope and am quite sure BB will be 4g.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.comy

[avt123]

No way....FOUR HOURS?!?!?

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

The battery life on the TB is a joke. My friends sister had to turn off all her widgets and other updates besides email just to get the thing to last till the night.

HTC devices in general are known to have relatively ****ty battery life. Throw in a first gen LTE chip to the mix and it gets even worse.

[qbnkelt]

Makes you wish for the analog days!!!!!
Just kiddin'.....

[southlander]

I failed to mention that Samsung has a 4G phone with Verizon as well.

LTE 4G shootout: HTC Thunderbolt, Motorola Droid Bionic, Samsung Droid Charge - International Business Times

I live near a major metro area and Verizon has no 4G here. They said next year. So RIM is playing this correctly. Interesting to know how truthful the VZW store people are about the fact that the 4G phones they are pushing will only be using 3G in our area. I mean 4G sounds better, so you know they push it. But it would be useless in this area right now.

[pantlesspenguin]

Wow, that battery life is really horrible. I'm nervous because I'm kinda looking forward to the HTC Sensation, but I'm really worried about battery life. The device I have now is an HTC phone, & it gets pretty decent battery life, but the screen is only 3.8 inches. Also, the Sensation will be HSPA+ and not 4G (same as my current phone) so hopefully that will help, as well.

I can totally see why RIM is holding off on 4G at the moment...but at the same time you would think that if there was a demand for 4G blackberries RIM would cater to that demand if at all possible.

[valorian]

Having worked in R&D, you can bet RIM has a 4G prototype sitting on their shelves. They're just waiting for the right time do any serious developments with it.

[1812dave]

Personally I'm glad the new bb's are not gonna be 4g. I don't wanna pay ten bucks extra for something I can't use for another year or two. That being said in two years when its widely available, I hope and am quite sure BB will be 4g.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.comy

what are you referring to? I'll be getting 4G for the same $30/month (I might get the Sammy Charge tomorrow, unless it looks like a POS). I ALREADY verified the cost of unlimited 4G service, with Verizon yesterday.

[1812dave]

Having worked in R&D, you can bet RIM has a 4G prototype sitting on their shelves. They're just waiting for the right time do any serious developments with it.

the "right time" was last month. I've already given up on them because of no 4G NOW, and no huge improvement in their OS. QNX has potential down the road, but I don't live for next year. I want results NOW. I won't rule out the possibility of getting a QNX BB in the distant future, but right now my hopes are on Android. Good god, Android has taken over the marketplace. I feel if they are good enough for a huge percentage of customers, they are good enough for this old guy.

[pantlesspenguin]

what are you referring to? I'll be getting 4G for the same $30/month (I might get the Sammy Charge tomorrow, unless it looks like a POS). I ALREADY verified the cost of unlimited 4G service, with Verizon yesterday.

The $10 "premium" fee is just a Sprint thing, I believe.

[valorian]

the "right time" was last month....

Sorry but I have to disagree with you here. BlackBerry's are known for having very good battery life. The battery life in 4G phones just is not good enough for RIM right now. The technology just isn't there yet.

[1812dave]

Sorry but I have to disagree with you here. BlackBerry's are known for having very good battery life. The battery life in 4G phones just is not good enough for RIM right now. The technology just isn't there yet.

I've heard that argument from RIM for months now. Guess what--Rim is just not good enough for me.

[pantlesspenguin]

Sorry but I have to disagree with you here. BlackBerry's are known for having very good battery life. The battery life in 4G phones just is not good enough for RIM right now. The technology just isn't there yet.

I think, though, there may be BB users out there that would be willing to compromise a little bit of awesome battery life for some faster speeds.

Edited to add: Even if the battery life isn't where they want it to be, I think that releasing a device w/ 4G speeds that may not have the outstanding battery life that BB users are accustomed to it would at least show consumers that RIM is still trying to advance in this area, you know? I definitely think people would buy it, & in the meantime RIM can continue working on a 4G device w/ amazing battery life.

[valorian]

I think, though, there may be BB users out there that would be willing to compromise a little bit of awesome battery life for some faster speeds.

This would make for an interesting poll. How many BlackBerry loyalists would be willing to sacrifice some battery life for 4G speed on a BlackBerry?