coverage

Gadget skin maker Wrapsol this week introduced a new version of its thin adhesive protectors called Wrapsol Ultra that promises to keep your gadgets safe from drops up to 6 feet. And like the Slinky, Silly Putty, and Post-It notes, the technology was created almost by accident.

In a call with CNET on Friday, Wrapsol President Lew Cohen explained that while experimenting with different manufacturing processes for the adhesive layer of the skin, they ended up creating a compound that could take a lot of abuse.

"With more flexibility, we get more impact resistance," Cohen said. "We … Read more

If you are like the overwhelming majority of Americans, you are likely to read or hear about this story again on TV, the radio, newspapers, and other Internet sites. A recent survey found that 92 percent of Americans get their daily news from multiple sources.

The Pew Research Center's Project for Excellence in Journalism report, released Monday, finds that the Internet is now the third most popular news medium, trailing behind local and national television but ahead of newspapers and radio broadcasts. Almost two-thirds (59 percent) people get news from both online and offline sources, according to the report.… Read more

Root Wireless, a company that offers a performance-mapping service of cell phone carriers, took the opportunity to test the wireless data performance of all four nationwide carriers at Sun Life Stadium during Sunday's big game. The results, according to Root Wireless, seem to show that T-Mobile came out on top, while Verizon came out at the bottom of the pack.

T-Mobile saw the fewest connection failures (3 percent), while Sprint came in close behind (9 percent). Both carriers had data speeds on par with their everyday service levels--T-Mobile's was 237Kbps down/126Kbps up, while Sprint's was 231Kbps … Read more

We opened the stream early to do full coverage of Apple's iPad event. Sure, you already know everything there is to know about the iPad. But just think of the fun you can have reliving this glorious event with us! (sarcmark)

Tom and Rafe discuss the gear they used to cover the consumer electronics show and how well it fared.

I once sent a letter to Santa Claus. He never replied. The bruises, like an ill-timed tattoo commemorating a one-night stand, have never really gone away.

However, AT&T offered me a little hope. The company has a service that allows you to text Santa with all of your wishes. All you have to do is text "SANTA" to 1224 if you are an AT&T subscriber.

"Bah, humbug," my innards whispered. "Santa doesn't care about you. He won't write back."

However, some strange hope inside me stirred and I … Read more

When they're not asking about the best cell phone for their needs, CNET readers are inquiring about which carrier has the best coverage in their area. It's a great question, and a very relevant one, but answering it always has been tricky. Because CNET doesn't have the resources to accurately test wireless coverage across the United States, I've suggested that readers ask their neighbors to share their carrier experiences. While that is good advice--personal stories can be very helpful in making a decision--we couldn't offer hard data. That is, until now.

Over the past year CNET has been hard at work creating a better solution. In doing so, we've teamed with Root Wireless to create a powerful tool for determining the best carrier for your neighborhood, commute, or workplace. Next time when you're shopping for a new mobile phone or considering switching to a new carrier, we hope we can help.… Read more

Thanks to the hard work of Kent German, Bonnie Cha, and Nicole Lee, CNET's reviews of mobile handsets are unparalleled: we are the place on the Web to get in-depth evaluations of nearly every handset offered by the major carriers.

But we're not satisfied because we know you're not.

Judging a phone by its features, design, and quality is just half the story when determining whether it is worth purchasing. The other half of the equation is the quality of service provided by the carrier--and that's a factor we have not yet provided. After failing to … Read more

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.

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:… Read more