hey m_p, with the recent announcement of the Prime most likely landing on Verizon possibly in October i'm sure there's going to be a bunch of people here in the 'bionic forum' that will tell you to get something in-between to bide your time as you wait with many others through an as-of-yet in-determineable launch cycle.
but i'll just say this. the day i made that switch from an LG Chocolate 2 to the now OG droid 2 years ago on day1, fully excited, nothing prepared me for how gamechanging owning a smartphone would be. There was really nothing like it and it had forever changed how i'd think about what could be possible in the palm of your hand as well as forever making me wonder what's taken people so long to take the jump. the intimidation factor perhaps.
In any event, at this point, in 2011, i believe that your first smartphone SHOULD BE a superphone. And yes, the Bionic qualifies IMO even without the 720p screen/vga front camera/etc. The reason the purchase is validated IMO is that it would be really great for you to experience as i did the wonder that such a thing can bring you. Yes, even though the specs don't 'blow you away,' you absolutely WILL be blown away by the performance jump from your withering enV Touch. To jaded daily updaters in a field where mere hours can bring a revolution of changes to both product development and public opinion, there's ALWAYS going to be something better. But make no mistake the Bionic is non-the-less a BEAST for what it's capable of. Nevermind when it get's rooted (and it will), tweaked, and overclocked, what will be possible then.
I've been honesty kicking myself for not having gotten an LTE enabled phone all this time to take advantage of the heralded verizon speeds (which we're all paying a premium for and are entitled to). Meanwhile frustrating slogging through the nation's WORST 3g while consumed in the waiting game for the now-DCd GSII which i was completely enthralled with for the better part of the year as my OG limped on day after day.
In the end? After never having any interest in it until the loss of the GS2, i'm firmly committed to finally retiring my OG with a d1 purchase of the bionic from costco for what i consider a total steal with the accessory package at $299. i'm sure i'll love the hell out of it even if i have to charge it throughout the day or heaven forbid swap out with my FREE extra battery just to enjoy streaming netflix wherever i am. I mean, i do that daily with my OG brick as it is. and hey, if Prime really does drop at the end of october, right skippy 'on time' as hopeful future buyers have predicted there's always the option to trade back and up with costco at no additional charge or peddle the phone off on ebay for more than your money's worth or hey even keep it as a TERRIFIC backup.
Anyway, just thought before everyone starting throwing down on their opinions that i, a long time lurker, would offer mine to a newcomer in the smartphone scene. happy hunting m_p, and welcome!