The $199 device, which goes on sale Nov. 21, is part of a strong holiday line-up for Verizon, but it represents even more to HTC, which is struggling to regain its footing against Apple and Samsung. The Droid DNA should get some takers with its beautiful display and its quad-core 1.5 GHz Snapdragon processor. Like the HTC J Butterfly, another version of the same phone that appeared first in Japan, the Droid DNA will sport 2 GB RAM, 16 GB of storage and room for a microSDHC expansion slot.

The pixel density is a nice bragging point in this age of retina displays. But it’s unclear if people will be able to distinguish the added clarity. And there’s a question of whether the display will also burn through battery life faster. But HTC has packed on more features to sell the Droid DNA.

The display also features a wide 80-degree viewing area, can handle blurry action better and is reportedly 50 percent brighter than the Samsung Galaxy S III. The phone incorporates wireless charging, an ultra-wide lens for the front-facing 720p camera and improvements to Sense 4+ that provides better support for pictures and galleries. The phone also includes the Beats Audio profile and also comes with two amplifiers for headphones and the speakers.

The Droid DNA on its wireless charging pad

Even without a stylus, the Droid DNA will draw some comparisons to Samsung’s Galaxy Note II, which is the class of the so-called phablet market, selling three million units in its first 30 days. But HTC is pitching this as more of a Samsung Galaxy S III competitor, saying the styling and design keeps the form factor firmly in the realm of a smartphone. The slim design, which narrows to just 4 millimeters at the edge, pulls from earlier HTC Droid devices like the Incredible with red accents and a red side grill.

The Droid DNA, which is now available for pre-orders, will keep HTC in the conversation this holiday season, especially for spec heads who appreciate the souped up hardware. The harder challenge will be to explain why every day consumers will need all that power. HTC’s design director Jonah Becker said the company went with 1080p because it satisfied professional photographers, so it should also work for regular consumers. We’ll need to see more explanation about how consumers can make the most of hardware. But I have to give it to HTC. The phone is beautiful, very sleek and elegant. Not as thin or light as the Galaxy S III, but it feels less bulky because of its tapered edges. It’s a phone that looks good coming out of your pocket and feels good in your hand.

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Here’s what Motorola has shared about the the lack of updates for some devices:

“You may be wondering why all devices aren’t being upgraded to Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich). Here’s the deal. We work very closely with Google and cell phone carriers for every software update. And, obviously we want the new release to improve our devices. If we determine that can’t be done—well then, we’re not able to upgrade that particular device.

This stated reason is an example of precisely why I implored Google earlier this month to take greater control over Android in some way. It will reportedly be doing so as last week, reports of multiple Nexus device partners surfaced. And just this weekend, China approved Google’s acquisition of Motorola, paving the way for Google to own one of its Android hardware partners.

If you have a Motorola device and you’re wondering when or if you’ll see the Ice Cream Sandwich update, Motorola maintains the updated list here. I was surprised to see the Droid 3 not on the upgrade list, as were some commenters to Motorola’s recent post.

Why? Because the Droid 3 launched in July of 2011. That’s significant because at the Google I/O developer event just two months prior, Google announced a new partner initiative to allow all new devices to get Android updates for 18 months, “as long as the hardware allows.”

The quoted bit is the likely issue with Android 4.0 on the Droid 3. Although the device has a high-resolution 960 x 540 display, dual-core TI OMAP 4430 processor and 16 GB of internal storage, it only has 512 MB of RAM. I suspect the limited memory is the problem here.

That’s not to say Android 4.0 can’t run on 512 MB of RAM or less; the enthusiast community can probably make it work. But Motorola won’t invest the time and effort to do the same. So like some of the commenters to its blog post suggest, Motorola should unlock the bootloaders of these phones to allow device owners to install custom ROMs. Of course, Verizon might have some say in the matter and sadly keep it from happening.

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Indeed, at this year’s Mobile World Congress event in February, HTC said it would be altering its smartphone strategy by focusing on fewer designs. The HTC One series is the culmination of that approach, hence the similarity between the Incredible 3 and other HTC One models.

Like the HTC One X — its LTE cousin on AT&T — the Incredible 4G LTE uses a Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 processor. A key difference appears to the the processor speed: Verizon says it’s a 1.2 GHz S4; slower than those used in the GSM variants. But the phone uses HTC’s 4-inch Super LCD a 4-inch Super AMOLED display at 960 x 540 resolution, just like on the One S. Beats Audio, common to the entire HTC One line, is integrated in the new Incredible 3, as is the 8 megapixel, f/2.2 rear-facing camera with autofocus, LED flash and 28 mm lens.

HTC’s new Droid will run Android 4.0 and the improved Sense 4.0 software, just like the other HTC One models. Neither Verizon nor HTC have published the size and weight of the device, but I’d expect it to be slightly smaller than the 4.3-inch screened One S, which measures in at 2.56″ x 5.15” x 0.3″ and a weight of 4.2 ounces.

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The 3300 mAh internal battery is the big upgrade to this Droid, as most large-screened smartphone batteries have a capacity of around 1800 mAh. But there’s plenty more to like about the new handset, which I got a peek at during the Consumer Electronics Show:

Among the key specifications and features:

• Google Android 2.3.5 (Gingerbread), upgradable to Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich)
• 4.3-inch 960 x 540 resolution Super AMOLED display
• 8-megapixel rear camera with LED flash and 1080p video capture; 1.3-megapixel front camera
• 1.2 GHz dual-core processor
• 16 GB of internal storage; 16 GB microSD card included
• 802.11 a/b/g/n Wi-Fi; Bluetooth 4.0; location services through GPS and GLONASS
• Mobile hotspot use for connecting up to 8 devices

Although priced high at nearly $300 with contract, I suspect the Razr Maxx will be Motorola’s biggest hit on Verizon during the first half of the year. The phone addresses a key challenge with LTE devices: battery life. Super AMOLED displays — a Samsung component — are among the best on the market. And support for cutting edge connectivity such as GPS/GLONASS and Bluetooth 4.0 make the Razr Maxx a hot handset. Let’s see if the sales figures prove my prediction, or if this Droid gets lost in a sea of other Androids.

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Verizon Wireless didn’t unleash an army of new Android and Windows Phone LTE devices at CES like its archrival AT&T, but the handful of gadgets it did unveil Monday are worth noting. Motorola announced a new Droid for Verizon’s LTE network that appears to be a combination of all the Android smartphones Moto has released to date, as well as an oddly fatter version of its ultrathin Razr. Meanwhile, LG kicked in what can only be termed a ‘movie phone’, Samsung brought its new Galaxy Tab 7.7 to the U.S. and even RIM chipped in a new BlackBerry Curve.

Motorola’s LTE Droid 4, like the other Moto Droids before it, has a fold-out qwerty keyboard. Its hardware specs have improved with a dual-core 1.2 GHz processor, 1 GB of RAM and an 8 megapixel camera, which records 1080p video, but not much has changed in its software specs. It sports Android 2.3 (Gingerbread), but Motorola said it will eventually take the upgrade to 4.0, aka Ice Cream Sandwich, as will all of its new CES devices. The Droid 4 also mimics the Droid Bionic and Atrix in that it supports Webtop, hooking into Motorola’s lapdoc shell. Finally, Motorola is borrowing form the Razr’s playbook, adding support for Smart Actions, which allows users to automate power and application management.

Smart Actions was designed to account for the Razr’s remarkably thin battery, but apparently energy management wasn’t enough. Moto also unveiled a duller version of the Razr on Monday, called the Razr Maxx. At 8.99 mm (compared to 7.1 mm for the regular Droid Razr), the phone is still remarkably thin, but all of that extra space is devoted to a larger battery. Verizon and Motorola claim the Maxx will run 21 hours straight on a single charge.

LG’s contribution was a video-centric phone called the Spectrum, which utilizes the same in-plane switching technology as LG’s HD TVs. Like several of the new HD phones shown by AT&T, the Android 2.3 Spectrum packs a lot of pixel depth with a 1280 x 720 display and power with a 1.5 GHz dual-core Snapdragon processor, but the Spectrum’s 4.5 inch display is matched perfectly to the 16:9 aspect ratio of true cinematic video. The picture isn’t distorted – it’s a really long phone. Verizon also announced an exclusive deal with ESPN to stream full HD 720p video clips to the device through ESPN’s ScoreCenter app. Spectrum buyers who also happen to sports fans should probably sign up for one of Verizon’s fatter data plans.

The Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7 was introduced at the IFA in Europe last year, but this is the first appearance of Samsung’s miniature tablet in the U.S., complete with an LTE chip. The ultra-slim and lightweight tablet isn’t that much bigger than the Galaxy Note for AT&T, but it’s officially a tablet — not a smartphone — and doesn’t use the Note’s stylus interface. But the Tab almost seems underpowered in comparison to the Note, boasting only a 1.4 GHz dual-core processor compared to the Note’s 1.5 GHz chip.

Finally, BlackBerry unveiled a new Curve with Verizon, which, apart from its GSM radios allowing for global roaming and its low $99 price, doesn’t have much to recommend it. RIM still hasn’t built a single smartphone with LTE embedded. Granted most people don’t use BlackBerrys for high-bandwidth data services, but at this rate they never will.

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On the iPhone 4S launch day, I lined up with about 14 other people outside our Verizon store, my Motorola Droid in hand, checking the time until the store opened. I had never owned an iPhone before, which might come as a surprise from an Apple blogger. When I got the Droid in October of 2009, AT&T was the only carrier to have the 3GS, and rumors of the iPhone coming to Verizon were still just rumors. Two years later, almost to the day, the iPhone 4S came out on my network of choice, and here we are.

Since there are likely a lot of Android users who are considering making the leap thanks to Apple’s new iPhone 4S hardware and the improvements that come with iOS 5, I thought I’d list the things I miss and don’t miss about the Android experience after making the switch to help others determine if this is the right move for them.

Things I miss about Android

Customization

Android proponents are big on pointing out the degree to which the user can customize the OS. You can use different keyboards, lock screens, launchers, even install different ROMs, right from the device. The geek in me loved tinkering around with Android, and that part of me will miss it a lot. Sure, you can jailbreak iOS and get some of the same customizations, but not to the same extent, and it requires going against Apple policies.

Notification light

On nearly all Android phones, there’s an LED that blinks when you have unread notifications. This came in handy since if I got a new notification, I could tell immediately. With the iPhone, I have to press a button to make sure there aren’t any new notifications. It’s a small difference, but the added convenience of the notification light really makes its effects felt over time.

Global sharing menu

In Android, you can share something with any service that has its app installed. I could upload a picture from the Gallery app to any Twitter client, not just the official app. Apple has made headway into making sharing better by integrating Twitter into iOS, but it’s not as good as the Android share menu. I’d be happy if Apple just added Facebook integration, though.

Free turn-by-turn navigation

Google’s free navigation app is a big advantage for Android. I’ve used it often to find obscure restaurants and other destinations while I’m driving. I have yet to find any consistently reliable, free or cheap alternatives in the App Store (but feel free to suggest something in the comments).

File system and downloads

Being able to download a file to my SD card and manipulate it with a file manager was useful. The inability to do this on my iPhone annoyed me when I wanted to download a wallpaper that only came in a ZIP archive, which of course I couldn’t download or open. I ended up transferring it over from my Mac via Photo Stream.

Things I don’t miss about Android

Laggy UI

The first thing I noticed coming to iOS from Android is just how smooth and fluid iOS is in comparison. It tracks my taps and swipes without any noticeable lag, lending to the feeling that you’re actually manipulating an object. Android has never felt the same way. Scrolling isn’t as smooth; pinch to zoom lags and stutters; and sometimes, taps take longer than they should to register. This could all be attributed to the Droid’s old hardware, of course, but reviews of even current gen devices sometimes cite similar problems.

Widgets

I feel about Android widgets the same way I feel about OS X’s Dashboard widgets: They’re a neat novelty, but not very practical. If I want to read the news, I don’t want to just stare at a news widget while headlines go by, one at a time. Call me old-fashioned, but I’d rather just launch an app.

“Real” multitasking

In Android, apps can run in the background when you’re not using them, like on a PC. In iOS, apps are suspended when they aren’t active, but are allowed to do certain things in the background. Android’s approach uses more RAM and battery life. Apple’s uses less of both while providing nearly the same experience. I’m just fine with “fake” multitasking if it uses fewer resources to accomplish the same thing.

The Android market

There’s no arguing that iOS has a wider and better selection of apps. There isn’t a single third-party Android app I’ve used that doesn’t have a better iOS alternative. Couple that with the increased presence of malware on the Android Market, and I feel pretty good about living in a walled garden.

Google integration

With iCloud, I don’t need Google integration anymore. iCloud takes care of everything important that Google did, and does it without forcing me to use a clunky web app (except in the case of uploading documents from the Mac). This is why iCloud is such a huge deal for Apple: It takes away one of Android’s core advantages and improves on it in a way that Google can’t.

Final thoughts

One of the strongest assets Apple has is its ecosystem, and that’s more apparant to me now than ever. All my mobile devices — my computer, my tablet, and my phone — are made by Apple. The tight integration between them is all part of the design: The more Apple products I use, the better my experience becomes. With my Android phone, I couldn’t really use Apple’s ecosystem to its full potential. But with my new trifecta, I can play games on my Apple TV via mirroring, take a photo and have it appear instantly on my iPad and Mac, sync with iTunes without ever having to touch a cable, and easily locate any of my devices if I ever lose one.

Sure, I could do some of those things on Android, but the experience just wasn’t as good. Some will argue that that’s representative of Apple bullying users into buying only its devices, but for me it just represents greater convenience.

Have you recently made the switch from Android to iOS? Tell us about your experience in the comments.

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This high-end handset was shown off by Motorola back in January at the Consumer Electronics Show, where Sanjay Jha, Motorola’s CEO, said it would launch in the second quarter of 2011. That didn’t happen, but Android enthusiasts on Verizon’s network may forgive the carrier based on the hardware features and functions in the Bionic:

• 1 GHz dual-core processor and 1 GB of RAM
• 4.3-inch qHD (960×540) touchscreen with antireflective coating
• 32 GB of storage: 16 GB internal, 16 GB microSD card (included)
• Google Android Gingerbread 2.3.4
• 8 megapixel auto-focus rear camera supporting 1080p video recording
• Front-facing camera for video chat over 4G, 3G or Wi-Fi networks

Similar to the Motorola Atrix that debuted earlier this year on AT&T’s network, Verizon will offer a lapdoc solution for the Bionic. The $300 accessory is an 11.6-inch notebook shell that is powered by the smartphone when docked. A $99 dock option charges the phone and pipes video to a connected HDTV.

Stay tuned for a first-look video and full review of the Droid Bionic; we have a review unit in-house and will follow up with more details and impressions of Verizon’s newest LTE smartphone.

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