stick

First introduced at CES 2011 and made available just a little more than a week ago, T-Mobile's Rocket 3.0 Laptop Stick USB 4G modem faced huge expectations as the company said that it would offer twice the download speed of other 4G devices, up to 42Mbps.

In our testing in the San Francisco Bay Area, the device didn't deliver.

Throughout the city of San Francisco, including in specific locations designated by T-Mobile as offering the new speed, the modem's connection capped at about 13Mbps. Now, this is by no means slow, in fact it's one of the fastest speeds we've seen from a 4G device, and it is capable of downloading a full 1080p movie (about 10GB of data) in about or under 2 hours. Still, it's quite far from 42Mbps.… Read more

Sony is a venerable name in the world of consumer electronics. This is, after all, the company that invented the CD, the Walkman, the Blu-ray Disc, and has made a deep impression on the tech world and mainstream culture.

That's why when Sony screws up--something a company is apt to do every now and again while in business more than half a century--it's notable. Sometimes it's a singular event, other times it's a product with high expectations that ends up being a dud.

The latest mistake, the hacking of PlayStation Network customers' personal data, is … Read more

Orlando, Fla.--T-Mobile had more than the LG G2X and Sidekick 4G to show at CTIA 2011. And no, we're not talking about a plan as to how customers will be affected form the planned merger with AT&T.

No, T-Mobile also introduced four products for its HSPA+ network: a portable W-Fi hot-spot and three USB laptop sticks. The devices are optimized for the carrier's "4G" network--we know T-Mobile's definition of 4G is a little fuzzy--but they're compatible with the carrier's 3G and EDGE networks when you're not in a HSPA+ … Read more

It looks like it's turning into the year of the next-gen gaming handhelds, now that Sony's rumored PSP2 is expected to be announced on Thursday, right on the heels of the Nintendo 3DS event last week. Though it's not a surprise that sooner or later a new PSP would emerge, the real question is whether it can recapture any of its lost market share.

It's an interesting time for the venerable and somewhat struggling handheld game market. Smartphones and low-priced apps have become a more popular gaming platform for many. What makes a PSP2 any better … Read more

LAS VEGAS--If Flix on Stix has its way, you may soon be downloading movies directly from kiosks to a USB flash drive.

Officially unveiling and demoing its movie service at CES this week, Flix on Stix will offer thousands of movie titles--both recent films and older titles--from its upcoming line of kiosks.

Starting in the first quarter, the company will be launching kisoks across shopping malls, supermarkets, bookstores, and college campuses. The kiosks will debut across the U.S. initially, but Flix on Stix says there's been interest from other countries as well.

Each kiosk contains a hard drive … Read more

The Flybar is a futuristic reboot of the Pogo Stick, complete with a sleek new design and a sophisticated system of propulsion, and it boasts the ability to rocket its rider up to 5 feet in the air.

It was created by SBI Enterprises (original inventors of the Pogo Stick), along with MIT-trained physicist Bruce Middleton and champion skateboarder Andy Macdonald. There are two models: the Flybar 1200 and the Flybar 800. The 1200 was designed for experts weighing up to 250 pounds, and the 800 was designed for less experienced riders between 80 and 180 pounds, including teens and smaller adults.

The devices, whose prices start at about $200, have been around for a while now, but I finally got the chance to take the Flybar 800 for a jump in New York's Central Park. … Read more

If you hadn't noticed from all the advertisements on TV, the age of 4G wireless is here.

Verizon Wireless will be the latest company to launch its shiny, new 4G network. Starting Sunday, roughly 110 million people in 38 cities will have the opportunity to subscribe to this new generation of wireless service from the nation's largest cell phone operator.

But Verizon isn't the only wireless carrier with a next-generation wireless network. T-Mobile USA and Sprint Nextel also have new networks they are aggressively marketing. And AT&T, which has upgraded 80 percent of its network … Read more

Aftermath is a challenging, top-down, zombie-themed arcade shooter with innovative dual-stick controls and a dread-inducing atmosphere.

Similar to other dual-stick shooters, you move around and fire with two touch-screen virtual joysticks, one under each thumb. What Aftermath does differently (and which greatly contributes to the game's tense, anxious feel) is that the left joystick controls movement while the right joystick just turns you left and right, letting you light up the otherwise dark, urban terrain with your handheld flashlight--and automatically using the weapon you're holding to "light up" any zombies in the field of your flashlight. … Read more

A nice option that now comes tucked away in the MacBook Air's included documentation is a USB key containing a full version of the Mac system software and iLife '11 suite.

When plugged into the computer, holding down the "C" key as you boot up treats the USB stick just like an optical disc, letting you run system diagnostics, or do a clean re-installation of OS X. Apple has long included the same tools on CDs, and later DVDs, but given the Air's reliance on external disc drives, this proves to be a much more user-friendly … Read more