Inside CNET Labs Podcast

AT&T charges an iPhone user with a service that's not available on the iPhone.

(Credit: Screenshot by Dong Ngo/CNET)

I've been a customer of AT&T ever since 2003, when I got myself my first cell phone ever, and I've been a very good one. The proof: I set my bill to autopay from day one and even convinced a few friends to move to AT&T (mostly so that we don't have to use the minutes to talk to each other.)

I found out Thursday that AT&T hasn't been very nice to me.

So far I've tested four flat-fee GPS applications for the iPhone with built-in offline maps: Navigon, iGo My Way, TomTom, and CoPilot Live. They all have pros and cons, but they share a few common shortcomings: a lack of real-time traffic, no support for text-to-speech (except for Navigon with its recent update), and outdated maps.

AT&T Navigator's real-time traffic works well most of the time, even where 3G signal is not available.

(Credit: Screenshot by Dong Ngo/CNET)

I've just finished testing a GPS navigation app that offers all of those previously unavailable features: the AT&T Navigator (version 1.2i.5). The catch? It doesn't have built-in maps (meaning you will need a working data connection to download the maps in real time) and it requires a monthly subscription of $10. The app itself is free.

This is one of the first GPS navigation applications made for the iPhone. It's actually a product by TeleNav and is also available for other cell carriers, including Sprint and Alltel.

Unlike the other aforementioned apps that take an hour or so to download using Wi-Fi, the AT&T Navigator has no built-in maps and therefore is a snap to install on the iPhone, even via a 3G or Edge connection. This makes it a perfect quick add-on when you suddenly need a GPS navigator.

The app also launches very quickly, taking just a second or two on my iPhone 3GS. When it can (more on this later), it also picks up GPS signals very fast. After about a week of use, I can say I really like the real-time traffic updates--which warn you both onscreen and audibly--and the text-to-speech features. This is especially helpful when you are in a unfamiliar town.

However, I found out that the traffic updates are available mostly for freeways only, unlike Google Maps, which offer them all the way down to street level for major cities.

Since I got my iPhone 3GS a couple of months ago, I've been wondering when I would really benefit from its highly anticipated faster 3G capability. I finally got the answer, and as it turns out, the wait is far from over.

AT&T announced Wednesday details of its rollout plans for High Speed Packet Access (HSPA) 7.2 3G technology. This is the next generation of 3G, and it offers up to 7.2Mbps data connection speeds (as opposed to the 2Mbps and 3.6Mbps of the current 3G).

(This is, of course, just the theoretical number. Typical real-world downlink and uplink speeds will likely be less than that depending on location, device, and overall traffic on the local wireless network at a given time. Nonetheless, this promises a significant boost. HSPA 7.2 is part of the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) family of technologies, which include GSM, UMTS, and the Emerging LTE technology. HSPA 7.2 offers backward-compatibility, meaning it also works with existing 3G and 2G devices at the lower device-specific speed.)

According to the announcement, the new speed will be available by the end of the year. Unfortunately, it's available only in six cities in the U.S., including Charlotte, N.C.; Chicago; Dallas; Houston; Los Angeles; and Miami. This means the rest of the country, including the San Francisco Bay Area where I am, must continue to wait.

The iPhone 3GS is a HSPA 7.2-compatible smartphone from AT&T.

(Credit: Dong Ngo/CNET)

It's unclear how long the wait will be for the rest of the cities, but the company says it plans to deploy HSPA 7.2 in 25 of the nation's 30 largest markets by the end of 2010, and to reach about 90 percent of its existing 3G network footprint with HSPA 7.2 by the end of 2011.

While this is rather sad news for me, for most people it won't mean much, as chances are your phone is not compatible with the higher 3G speed. Currently, the iPhone 3GS is the only HSPA 7.2-ready smartphone I know that AT&T offers.

However, AT&T assures that it will offer more compatible devices with the rollout of HSPA 7.2. The company expects to have six HSPA 7.2-compatible smartphones in its device portfolio by the end of the year, as well as two new LaptopConnect cards.

The rollout of HSPA 7.2 is part of AT&T's plan to invest some $18 billion this year, of which more than two-thirds is going toward broadband and wireless. Key projects of this investment include, in AT&T's words:

Riding the success of the iPhone, AT&T, apart from trying to keep the phone exclusive, seems to be learning from Apple in another way--its retail stores.

The company announced Monday that it has done a major makeover to more than 2,200 retail locations across the country. The aim is to provide consumers and small-business customers with a better hands-on experience when shopping for devices and service plans.

According to the telecom giant, the overhaul brings a refreshed, more intuitive organization of products and services. For example, all wireless devices now show up on new power-enabled displays, making it easier for customers to experience and compare features such as touch screens versus full QWERTY keyboards.

These store enhancements are also part of the company's effort to prepare for the nationwide introduction of Netbook data plans and the availability of AT&T ConnecTech services. These services include a nationwide next-day in-home service and 24-7 remote support for Netbook computers.

Personally, I think the makeover is good news. The last time I was at an AT&T store, there was not much else to do about a phone besides look at it.

However, I'd rather see AT&T overhaul its sketchy 3G connection for the iPhone, especially in the San Francisco Bay Area. Now that would make great news.

(Credit: Dong Ngo/CNET)

If you want to quickly buy a phone, or just check out what AT&T and Verizon Wireless have to offer, it just got a little more convenient.

Amazon announced Thursday its beta launch of AmazonWireless, a new Web site that offers cell phones and service plans from, for now, AT&T and Verizon Wireless. The online store features Amazon-style shopping, without the rebate hassles that cell phone carriers are notorious for, and free two-day shipping on a large selection of phones.

During this beta-testing phase, Amazon plans to expand the selection of phones and services as well as add carriers. It will also be testing features and gathering input from customers.

According to Paul Ryder, Amazon's vice president of consumer electronics, AmazonWireless is designed for both existing cell phone customers who want to upgrade and those who want start a cell phone service.

AmazonWireless currently offers more than 120 phones, including a large selection of high-end smartphones, as well as the latest budget models. Customers can use their existing Amazon accounts to upgrade their phones or shop by carrier, phone feature, price, color, and brand. You'll also find other familiar Amazon features, such as bestseller lists, product descriptions, and customer reviews.

It's important to note that not every phone offered by the carriers is listed. For example, I checked for the iPhone 3GS just now and it wasn't even mentioned.

One of the Netbooks offered by AT&T.

(Credit: Nexus404)

If you've been waiting for AT&T's Netbook data plans to come to your area, the wait is almost over.

The company first offered these plans exclusively in Philadelphia earlier this year. Saying that trial was a success, AT&T announced Tuesday its intent to expand these data plans to the rest of U.S. this summer.

This means you'll soon be able to buy mini ultraportable laptops made by Dell, Lenovo, and Acer at a discounted price when you get a 3G data plan at one of AT&T's retails store or on its Web site.

According to an IDC report published in April, by the end of 2009, worldwide shipments of mini laptops could reach 22 million. Obviously, AT&T wants its share of the growing Netbook pie.

Currently, details on pricing and availability of the new devices and the data plans are not finalized and AT&T said it would announce that at a later time. However, the company has made it clear that Netbooks embedded with AT&T 3G services will also be available through other national retailers.

This Slingbox app for iPhone isn't out yet, but you are already no longer allowed to fully enjoy it on the go.

(Credit: Dong Ngo/CNET)

For a moment, I thought AT&T Wireless' new Netbook offerings were good deals. As it turns out, not so much.

According to Publicknowledge.org, the company silently revised its terms of service on Monday, just a few days before it announced the new program to offer discounted Netbooks to its 3G broadband service customers in Atlanta and Philadelphia.

In the "Prohibited and Permissible Uses" section, the new terms of service explicitly state:

This means you are potentially no longer allowed to stream content from third-party Web sites, such as You Tube, and may not even freely use video-streaming applications, such as Slingbox (both the existing Windows Mobile and upcoming iPhone versions) anymore. In terms of the bigger picture, AT&T is now treating its 3G wireless data network differently from its wired high-speed DSL network, which still allows you to do whatever you want. This is probably because the company does have to pay for the wireless spectrum, in addition to other investments.

Atlanta and Philadelphia residents can get discounted Netbooks with the purchase of AT&T's new "Internet at Home and On the Go" broadband services with a two-year contract.

The company announced the program earlier this week, and it will be immediately available in select stores.

With this program, customers can choose from a variety of Netbooks, including the Acer Aspire One, Dell Inspiron Mini 9 and Mini 12, and LG Xenia, with discounted prices ranging from $50 to $250.

The service plan starts at $59.95 per month and features access to AT&T's 3G network and Wi-Fi network, which includes nearly 20,000 hotspots nationwide.

Apart from this, AT&T is also offering similar Netbooks at promotional prices with the purchase of its DataConnect plans in eight AT&T retail locations in the Philadelphia area. The plans includes 200MB of data usage for $40 per month and 5GB for $60 per month.

It's unclear what AT&T will do to make sure customers don't break the contract and keep the computer, as some of these Netbooks can cost up to $650 on the street.

It's also interesting that the company is offering this program in select areas only. I'd assume these are where its 3G network works well. If you've been to California or New York, you've probably been surprised at how bad AT&T's 3G signal is, both for voice and data. Personally, I have to turn my iPhone's 3G feature off to have a steady voice connection.

My iPhone 3G showed the "No Service" sign before switching back to Edge Wednesday morning.

(Credit: Dong Ngo/CNET Networks)

Update at noon PDT: AT&T said it has fixed a problem that caused many Northeast iPhone users to complain that they couldn't access the mobile Web.

I saw a post Wednesday morning that talked about the iPhone data signal outage in the Northeast and thought to myself "Northeast? How about Northern California?"

I live in the San Francisco Bay Area and wasn't able to get any 3G signal at all this morning during my commute. The phone automatically used Edge and if I manually reset it to use 3G, it said "No Service" for a while before using Edge again. And even in Edge mode, it was super slow.

I remember AT&T claiming to be the fastest 3G network in the U.S. just one day before the launch of the iPhone 3G. I've had my iPhone 3G for more than a month now and so far it's been rare that I've been happy with both the speed and stability of the 3G signal. The phone switches back and forth between Edge and 3G randomly, and if the switch takes place during a call, the conversation gets interrupted. Most of the time, I turn off the 3G to have a more stable voice signal.

None of my friends or co-workers are totally happy about the 3G signal either, except for one who traveled to Minnesota and reported that it was very good there. But hey, we live in the Bay Area.

So admit it, AT&T, there's something wrong with your data network. I hope this widespread data outage happening right now in the Northeast becomes a cry for improvement. A big improvement.