droidStory

DroidX users got their first OTA update pushed to them this morning. If you have not gotten the update notification yet, you can easily check manually via:

Home Screen -> Settings -> About Phone -> System Upgrades

The changes seem all minor and frankly not very exciting (“cleaner looking status bar for GPS symbol”… seriously!) .  I’m also not a big fan of Verizon pre-loading apps, which can quickly turn into a crap-ware nightmare of useless apps that are difficult or impossible to uninstall.  Let’s hope Android 2.2 (Froyo) makes it quickly onto the DroidX. I’m already missing the application bulk/auto update function I had with Froyo on my N1.

Improvements:

• Improved battery charging status indicator.
• Smoother transition for camera and camcorder functions.
• Redesign of weather widget icons.
• Faster Exchange ActiveSync® email loading.
• Streamlined organization of newly downloaded applications.
• Organized favorite contacts by call count.
• Updated Bluetooth® connection for enhanced video sharing experience.
• Coordinated date and time across phone displays.
• Cleaner looking status bar for GPS symbol.
• Improved sync capabilities for 3G Mobile Hotspot.
• Faster Visual Voice Mail loading.

Enhancements:

• Take advantage of the enhanced, preloaded My Verizon application.
• Preloaded Amazon Kindle® application lets you read Kindle books on your Android™ phone, including thousands of free books.

Wow! Both high-end Droid’s, the Motorola DroidX and the HTC Droid Incredible are sold out at Verizon. What’s up with that? It seems odd that powerhouse Motorola can’t keep up with the sales demand, manufacturing enough units for the launch.

Is this just the latest marketing fad in showing off the popularity of a product by artificially limiting initial supply, or are component shortages truly to blame? Either way it looks like both phones are sold-out online and in stores.

Although both Motorola and Verizon claimed to have plenty of stock on hand, it does not come as a big surprise that the DroidX already sold-out online. Shipments are expected to resume by July 7/23, which is still ahead of the next shipments of the Droid Incredible . If you want to get your hands on the DroidX now, your best bet is to call your local Verizon store or Best Buy to pick one up.

FYI: The $100 mail-in rebate is waived and instantly credited for qualifying “new-every-two” customers and some other customer loyalty criteria. It’s always good to ask. I managed to skip the tedious mail-in rebate.

The much anticipated DroidX will be hitting Verizon stores this Thursday, July 15th. Many East Coast stores open early at 8AM, and some reports seem to indicate limited supply. Are you planning on getting your DroidX this Thursday, or are you playing it safe and rather wait a few weeks to see what others think about this latest Droid?

Over the last couple of weeks there were a number of hints that Verizon is working on an extensive marketing campaign for the DroidX release similar to the launch of the original Droid.

Of course there was the cool first DroidX TV commercial, followed by a DroidX YouTube video and now a Twitter based DroidX Scavenger Hunt is beginning today.

During the Promotion Period, there will be a Scavenger Hunt, where 21 Certificates for a free Droid Phone will be hidden across the country. Clues as to where the 21 Droid Certificates (“Certificates”) will be hidden will be tweeted on a regular basis from @DroidLanding. To view the tweets, visit http://www.twitter.com/droidlanding. Dates and times of Certificate placement will vary, but the final clue of each GPS location for each Certificate will be tweeted at the time it is hidden.

In case the specs of the upcoming Motorola DroidX haven’t convinced you yet… Verizon just launched this YouTube video, telling you: “This phone is awesome.”