Crave

In this week's Buzz Report, I suggested (gently, of course) that the iPhone sucks on AT&T. I'm certainly not the first to suggest it: there's a pending class-action lawsuit over flaky 3G connectivity and AT&T and Apple are pointing fingers at each other over ongoing network and connection issues. Plus, every person in the background of my rant is someone who works at CNET and has had trouble with their iPhone (mostly because we don't even get service in our downtown San Francisco office).

So far, the feedback I've gotten leans heavily toward problems with iPhone/AT&T connectivity, but not everyone is having the same experience. So, here's your chance to tell us your story! What's your iPhone-on-AT&T experience like?

Yes, I am going for click bait with that title. And here's what "Sugarlumps" is all about (warning: some explicit language, but it's Flight of the Conchords, not hard-core rap). See it in HD on CNET TV proper.

The future is now.

(Credit: Kotaku.com)

With Sony releasing version 2.40 of the PlayStation 3 firmware today, it's no surprise that talk about a new Xbox 360 dashboard update has surfaced.

Aside from the normal list of technical updates, this rumored dashboard update will supposedly incorporate an entire new graphical user interface as well. Right now, reports point toward a sort of 3D experience, deviating from the current "blade" system. There's also talk that this alternative GUI will take advantage of some sort of motion-control device yet-to-be-announced by Microsoft.

Kotaku describes the new interface as a nod to the control scheme in the film Minority Report--and now it seems that they were really on to something. They're reporting that the company responsible for the new dashboard design involves the man who actually helped create the motion-controlled effects in the 2002 film. Small world.

We'll get you the latest details on the rumored new Xbox 360 interface as they come. While you're waiting for that, why not tell us what you'd like to see in it?

(Credit: CNET Networks)

"Justin...Justin...JUSTIN!!!"

This happens at least once a day...I'm at my desk, typing up a review or blog post on my computer, when all of a sudden someone sneaks up behind me and unintentionally make me jump 10 feet in the air with a simple tap on the back. How do I allow this to happen? Am I deaf? Well, not right now, but it's quite possible that I might be if I continue to constantly blast music out of my Princess Leia headphones.

A recent report out of Australia titled "Is Australia Listening?" reported 70 percent of people between the ages of 18 and 34 experience a constant ringing in their ears, which can be a symptom of permanent damage to the ear canal. The report goes on to claim that 76 percent of young adults in Australia listen to music through headphones on portable MP3 players, and I wouldn't be surprised to see a higher number in relation to the United States.

At 24, I represent the first generation to see the rise of portable music players. I remember when the headphones to my first Sony Walkman cassette player might as well have been glued to my ears. Since then, I've been addicted to personal, portable audio and I fear that I, along with the rest of my generation, will soon experience severe hearing loss due to years and years of listening to loud music through headphones. Professor Harvey Dillon of the Hearing Australia program says his general rule of thumb is if "people have to raise their voice or actually shout at you to make themselves understood while you are listening to music in your ears, then that is loud enough to be potentially damaging." As a self-professed audiophile, I take every opportunity to listen to my music. It moves along a boring work day, drowns out crazies on the subway, and helps put me to sleep at night. Some days, I feel like I spend more time with my headphones in than out. I also listen to a lot of different kinds of music, from hip-hop to metal to classical to Disney, but no matter what the genre, I must admit that I crank up the volume to the highest possible level to experience the bliss of surround sound. It sounds like my days of listening to music might be numbered...

But what about these new noise-cancelling and inner ear-canal headphones that are starting to pervade the industry? I wonder if those particular types of monitor earphones pose a greater danger than the over the ear style? Either way, my future doesn't look very bright. Are there any Millennials out there who have already started to experience hearing loss? I'd love to hear other opinions on how these listening trends will affect our health down the line.

(Credit: Leica)

In collaboration with Leica, auction house WestLicht Photographica is looking to fetch $46,600 for a first-series production Leica M8 digital rangefinder. While it is not clear if this camera was the very first unit assembled in its maiden year of 2006, it has the serial number 3100000.

Hardcore fans of the German company are going to have a field day trying to outbid each other in a furious war on June 7 in Vienna to lay their hands on this ultra-exclusive camera. The prize will come in the original M8 box with a certificate of authenticity signed by Leica's CEO, Andreas Kaufmann.

The proceeds from the auction of this shooter will help fund the journalists organization, Reporters Without Borders. The funding will help journalists craft their stories and, where needed, support their families.

Not that we aren't supportive of press freedom (after all, we're on the same side), but we think the money could be put to better use elsewhere, such as quake-torn Sichuan, China, or cyclone-struck Myanmar where natural disasters have already claimed thousands of lives.

(Source: Crave Asia)

I'm not a big fan of surveys, so I don't quote them often. But a recent Consumer Reports survey about PC manufacturers listed Apple as No. 1 in tech support, with Lenovo second, Dell third, and HP dead last. I should also say that Dell came in second in desktops.

I thought the headline should be "Survey says leading PC maker HP dead last in tech support." But that's not what happened. The media hailed Apple, trashed Dell, and gave HP a pass.

Horror stories about Dell's support are all over the blogosphere. Why is that? I mean, why does the media give Dell such a hard time?

Because perception is reality. But aside from being a pithy statement, what does that really mean? ... Read more

One question we get pretty frequently is some variation on "Which laptop brand is most reliable?" It's an important question, as laptops can be tough to fix, with pretty much no user-serviceable parts inside (yes, I'm sure you're all clever enough to pop open your laptop chassis and tinker around; I'm talking about all the other laptop owners out there). That means if something goes wrong with your laptop, it's a pretty much guaranteed trip to a repair center.

Most people rely on anecdotal evidence to pick a laptop they think won't break down--relying on horror stories from friends or the Internet. Of course, every manufacturer has a mile-long list of angry customers who have not gotten satisfaction from indifferent tech support telephone drones, fine-print-filled warranties, or shady third-party repair services.

(Credit: Consumer Reports)

The detail-minded folks at Consumer Reports have just put out their annual look at the computer industry, and while our colleague Tom Krazit has already pointed out that Apple ranks at the top of the list for laptop tech support, (with HP in last place), we're more interested in the brand repair history chart from the same issue.

The chart shows data from about 75,000 laptops purchased between 2003 and 2007, recording how many have had a serious problem requiring repair. The companies listed are Lenovo, Compaq, Sony, Toshiba, Dell, HP, Gateway, and Apple, and all scored between 20 percent and 23 percent. Consumer Reports says a difference of less than three points is statistically "not meaningful."

So, there you have it--no major laptop brand is really much more likely to break down than any other. Why? Because most laptops are essentially commodity products, made from the exact same components, and differentiated only by their outer shells and extra features. So, next time someone says not to buy a laptop from a certain vendor because they "break down all the time," you can assure them that there's about a 1-in-5 chance their laptop will develop a major problem, no matter where it came from.

In case you missed its one-night gig at Caesars in Vegas last month and are still dying to see it, Microsoft's "Surface" is reportedly scheduled to make a debut in four cities today.

Already delayed for months and still a pipe dream for consumers (until at least 2011), the company plans to display the much-anticipated touch-screen tabletop computer at a handful of AT&T stores in New York, Atlanta, San Antonio, and San Bruno, Calif., just south of San Francisco, according to Boy Genius Report. The exact addresses are listed here.

Unfortunately if you wanted to use it to order wine, you may have missed your chance.

Consumer Reports has put out its regular list of the best cell phones and carriers. Though this time around, I'm more in agreement with the results, like last year there were a few phones on the list I didn't love quite as much. And I'm surprised again as to just how many older models are included. Given Consumer Reports' lead time, keep in mind that none of the phones introduced in the last couple months (such as the LG Voyager) are on the list, but by and large it's quite comprehensive.

The leader of the pack...vroom, vroom.

(Credit: CNET Networks)

Out of the 40 phones that Consumer Reports included in its testing, T-Mobile's Motorola V195 took top honor with a score of 68 out of 100. On the whole it was a solid handset with dependable call quality, even though it is a year and a half old. We also liked that it was one of the first phones without a camera to offer Bluetooth. Second place went to AT&T's Samsung Sync SGH-A707 (another 2006 model) with a score of 67, while AT&T's Sony Ericsson W810i secured third place with a score of 65. I'm a bit mixed on these two. Though the Sync wasn't a bad phone by any means, it certainly wasn't one my favorites. On the other hand, I did approve of the W810i. Finally, on the other end of the list were Verizon's LG VX9400 and Sprint's Motorola ic502, which tied for the bottom spot with 51 points each. We actually liked the V Cast Mobile TV-enabled VX9400 but we concur that the ic502 was a stinker.

When broken out by carrier, Consumer Reports also produced some interesting results. The top three Verizon Wireless models were the G'zOne Type-S (63), the LG Chocolate VX8550 (62), and the Nokia 6315i (61). The Chocolate was a very nice model, and the Type-S is one of the most durable handsets around, but the 6315i (yet another 2006 phone) was just average, in our opinion.

The top Sprint phone was the LG Muziq LX570 (60), the Sanyo Katana DLX (58), and the Sanyo M1 (57). All three of those devices were ranked highly in our tests, though it's too bad the magazine never got around to testing the Motorola Razr2 V9m or the LG Rumor. If it had, it would be interesting to see if those handsets would have swayed the results.

For T-Mobile, the aforementioned V195 took the top spot and was followed by the Nokia 6103 (64) and the Samsung SGH-T629 (61). These models were also decent, but I have to disagree with placing them at the top. Instead, I'd move up the Motorola Rizr Z3 and the Nokia 5300, which received scores of just 60 and 54, respectively. Also, the Moto V195s is a more recent update to the V195.

On the AT&T side, the Motorola Razr2 V9 (64) took third place after the previously mentioned the Sync and W810i. I'd disagree here, too, and would have to boost the Razr2 V9 and the (now discontinued) LG CU500v. I also found it odd that the Apple iPhone didn't make the top AT&T list, until I discovered that Consumer Reports left it for its smartphone rankings.

The best smartphone, or so says Consumer Reports.

(Credit: Corrine Schulze/CNET Netwroks)

To its credit, the iPhone topped the list of the best smartphones with a rating of 64. It was followed by the Palm Treo 755p (63) and the Samsung BlackJack (62). Though the BlackJack was fine, I'd ask why the AT&T Tilt or the Nokia N95 or the Samsung SCH-i760 didn't make the list. Verizon's Motorola Q was the lowest ranked smart phone with just 51 points. We pretty much agreed with that assessment and gave the Q a rating of 6.0.

The biggest surprises came from the magazine's carrier ratings. Verizon Wireless took the top ranking in 16 markets except in Minneapolis where T-Mobile was the winner and in Tampa, Phoenix, and Cleveland, where Alltel won. T-Mobile took second place in 14 of the markets, while poor Sprint ranked at the bottom in all but one. Only in Minneapolis did it take the No. 3 spot bumping AT&T down to last place. And speaking of AT&T, America's largest carrier consistently ranked in in the penultimate spot except in Minneapolis and Dallas, where it was the second-best carrier. Interestingly enough, Consumer Reports said AT&T is "home of the iPhone but trails the better carriers in almost all respects." Our own ratings from CNET readers agree.