HTC Thunderbolt Release Confirmed for Thursday

Verizon’s long-awaited first LTE smartphone in the HTC Thunderbolt 4G will finally be released this Thursday March 17th with pricing yet to be confirmed. The phone had previously been slated for a release closer to Valentine’s Day last month but was delayed due to issues with battery life on account of the LTE radio putting a bigger than expected strain on the phone’s battery.

The phone will feature Android 2.2, a 4.3 inch capacitive display, 1.3 megapixel front facing camera, 8.0 megapixel main camera with LED flash, 1GHz Snapdragon processor, LTE radio, Wi-Fi with mobile hotspot support for 8 devices, Bluetooth and kickstand.

Third-party online retailer Wirefly has also confirmed that the phone will ship with simultaneous voice/data support, but will not ship with the  Skype Mobile with Video application first announced during Verizon’s keynote at CES in January. The retailer will begin presales for the smartphone beginning tonight at midnight PDT.

Update: Verizon has confirmed the Thursday launch date and pricing through Verizon sales channels is now set at $249.99 after new 2 year agreement and $29.99 4G data plan. Verizon has also confirmed that it will be offering its Mobile Hotspot access for free until May 15th, when the service will be offered at its standard $20 monthly rate with 2GB of data access per month. Third-party retailer Wirefly is currently offering a $50 discount on the post agreement pricing for the Thunderbolt 4G at $199.99.