Verizon Droid Bionic launches Sept. 8, $299

Verizon launched the Droid Bionic, another 4G LTE phone, on Wednesday, just a day before the handset will be available in stores. The Bionic, built by Motorola, complements 4G network support with a dual-core processor and a large, high-resolution touchscreen. Verizon will offer the Droid Bionic for a contract price of $ 299 starting on September 8.

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 anti-reflective 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’s 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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