The HTC Thunderbolt, the first smartphone for Verizon's 4G LTE network, will be available on Thursday, March 17 for $249.99 with a two-year contract, the carrier announced Tuesday.
The HTC Thunderbolt, which is exclusive to Verizon, runs Android 2.2 and includes a 4.3-inch WVGA display, HD video recording, and wireless DLNA capability. It runs a 1-GHz Snapdragon processor and includes HTC Sense 2.0. There's an 8-megapixel rear-facing camera and 1.3-megapixel front-facing camera for video chat.
The Thunderbolt includes hotspot support for up to eight Wi-Fi enabled devices. The service will be available for free until May 15, after which it will cost $20 for 2GB of data. Customers can track their usage via the My Verizon app, available from the Android Market.
The smartphone includes 8GB of onboard memory, a pre-installed 32GB microSD card, and a built-in kickstand. Verizon said the device will also include 4G-optimized apps such as EA's Rock Band, Gameloft's Let's Golf, Tunewiki, and Bitbop.
News of the Thunderbolt's release first hit the Web Monday night when online retailer Wirefly said it would start pre-sales for the Thunderbolt at midnight. Wirefly is offering the Thunderbolt for $199.99 for those who create a new Verizon account.
The HTC Thunderbolt was one of 10 4G LTE devices that Verizon unveiled at CES this year. The carrier also introduced the LG Revolution, the Motorola Droid Bionic, and an unnamed smartphone from Samsung, in addition to two tablets, two mobile hotspots, and two notebooks.
The smartphone is not to be confused with Intel's Thunderbolt, a new connection technology that supports transfer speeds of up to 10Gbps between the laptop and a Thunderbolt peripheral.
For more, see PCMag's hands on with the HTC Thunderbolt and the slideshow below.