How could HTC Thunderbolt 4G be outselling Verizon iPhone?

Short answer: it's not.

Still, despite my smartphone rankings, which reveal numerous other -- superior -- devices available (including available on Verizon), the Thunderbolt is selling quite well. Possibly neck and neck with iPhone on the Verizon network. According to BGR:

BTIG Research analyst Walter Piecyk says HTC’s latest beastly smartphone for Verizon Wireless is going toe to toe with the iPhone 4, and is even outselling Apple’s iPhone at many Verizon Wireless store locations. Piecyk and his team made calls to 150 different Verizon Wireless stores across 22 major U.S. cities, asking which device was selling better. According to the analyst’s report, 61% of stores said the two devices were selling at about the same rate, 11% said the iPhone 4 was selling faster and 28% said they were selling more ThunderBolt smartphones than iPhones. This anecdotal evidence suggests a solid launch for Verizon Wireless, and it further supports recent data that large-screen smartphones are continuing to grow in popularity. We reviewed the HTC ThunderBolt recently and called it the fastest cell phone we’ve ever tested.

Thoughts?

With the caveat that I absolutely do not believe the Thunderbolt is outselling iPhone (in total and/or specific to the Verizon network), my thoughts on why Thunderbolt *may* be selling relatively as much as iPhone on Verizon, in order of importance:

• 1. 4G. Verizon has done an excellent job of marketing its network in general, and 4G in particular. Thunderbolt is built for Verizon's 4G service. 
• 2. Commissions. The analyst called Verizon stores. Do sales staff earn more by steering customers to Android devices? HTC devices? I would gamble that they do.
• 3. Big screen. A year in and I'm amazed at just how *clearly superior* the iPhone 4 screen is compared to *all* competitors. This should not be. Competitors are clearly doing a disservice to users. But, when buying a smartphone at a retail store, I bet that the buyer's eyes more quickly perceive bigger than they do sharper. The HTC has a bigger screen. Not a great screen, by any stretch. But it is bigger.
• 4. HTC. HTC has, in my view, done the best job of any smartphone handset maker, not named Apple, of branding their devices and associating quality, functionality, coolness with the brand. People now know HTC and what it stands for. Even more than, say, Motorola in the US. Kudos to HTC's marketing team.
• 5. Age. I do not think customers are well served by having a new iPhone every year. I'm not even convinced that Apple benefits by refreshing its hardware every year. Build the absolute best hardware and then continue to optimize the operating system with the device.  That said, Verizon got what was essentially a 9 month old AT&T iPhone. Those people who *really* wanted an iPhone were willing to suck it up and accept AT&T's sucky network. The old iPhone 4 creates a drag on sales for the iPhone network.

Having said all that, let me again reiterate. HTC Thunderbolt is not outselling iPhone. Though I hope it sells well enough to spur Apple to adopt 4G soon.