Wirefly, an online seller of phones and wireless plans, began taking pre-orders for the device on Tuesday at $199.99, and later said its first day , noting that the ThunderBolt accounted for one-fourth of sales on Tuesday.

Verizon has with the ThunderBolt, but it isn't clear how long that will last because the carrier is committed to setting up data usage limits.

Wirefly notes on its Web site that the ThunderBolt ships without mobile video calling software from Skype, although Skype is to providing the capability.

Analysts have linked potential battery drain to Skype video, since the app would run in the background, tracking signals.

Instead of Skype, ThunderBolt does come with Tango's mobile video calling software installed, which makes use of the device's dual cameras. The phone also features a 4.3-in. touchscreen, and 40GB of total storage.