Microsoft on Thursday announced a new round of challenges for its “Smoked By Windows Phone” contest series. If users with non-Windows Phone handsets can perform a variety of tasks faster than a Microsoft Windows Phone, they can win a limited edition Hunger Games PC (HP Folio 13 Special Edition) valued at $1,049.00. Even those who lose the challenge can still win, however, as Microsoft will be handing out unlocked Windows Phones to those willing to trade in their current smartphones. It should be noted, however, that this is a skill-based competition and has nothing to do with benchmarks. “The object of this Contest is for You to come into the Microsoft Store and try to beat the Microsoft Windows Phone in a series of five (5) “Smoked by Windows Phone” challenge scenarios selected by Microsoft at its sole discretion including: (1) Pocket-to-Picture-to-Post, (2) Real-Time Information with Live Tiles, (3) Using the People Hub to Stay in Touch with the People You Care About Most, (4) Updating Your Status Across Multiple Social Networks, and (5) Local Scout (“Challenge”).” The contest runs from March 22nd to March 29th in Microsoft’s 14 U.S. retail locations.

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AT&T has a lot of work to do before its emerging 4G LTE network provides coverage that even approaches Verizon Wireless’s year-old LTE network. Verizon LTE covers more than 200 million people across 190 U.S. cities as of December 15th — though the network suffered a major network outage early Wednesday morning — and the carrier is committed to continuing its rapid expansion in 2012. While AT&T’s 4G LTE service is only live in a handful of cities right now, a recent study conducted by wireless device testing firm Metrico Wireless shows that AT&T’s LTE network is no slouch when it comes to throughput. Read on for more.

Metrico conducted a series of controlled tests on both networks, and the results were somewhat surprising. Using the HTC Vivid and Samsung Galaxy S II Skyrocket on AT&T’s network and the HTC Thunderbolt, Samsung DROID Charge and Motorola DROID BIONIC on Verizon’s, the firm determined that the mean download speed on Verizon’s network was 10,153Kbps while AT&T’s network was 30% faster at 13,775Kbps.

“Data performance of the AT&T and Verizon networks, as measured by stationary HTTP download and upload speeds, was comparable,” Metrico stated in its report. “All devices under test achieved a mean stationary data download speed exceeding 10 Mbps, and maximum download speeds above 30 Mbps were observed on both carrier’s networks. Although AT&T’s results are higher than those of Verizon, the longer time in market of Verizon’s offering likely means its network is also more loaded with subscribers.”

AT&T’s LTE network launched just recently and traffic at this point certainly pales in comparison to traffic across Verizon’s LTE network, which has been marketed heavily for over a year. As we’ve seen, however, increased traffic on Verizon’s 4G network has yet to result in any significant slowdown. By design, LTE is much better equipped to handle heavy traffic loads, so the continuous impressive speeds exhibited by Verizon’s network shouldn’t be surprising. In this context, AT&T’s 30% edge in download speed could represent a continued advantage; AT&T’s wireless data speeds have been significantly faster that Verizon’s for years, but it was thought that LTE adoption by both carriers would level the playing field.

AT&T’s 4G strategy was hit with a major setback earlier this week when the carrier was forced to abandon its plans to acquire T-Mobile USA. As a result, the company will have to explore new options to prepare itself for the imminent rush of LTE-hungry subscribers that will adopt 4G phones as the AT&T’s portfolio expands. LTE is theoretically better-equipped to accommodate the growing population of wireless data users than earlier technologies, however, and as evidenced by Metrico’s recent tests, AT&T is off to a solid start.

BGR noted during our hands-on look at the LG Nitro HD that AT&T’s next-generation 4G LTE network has gone live in New York ahead of launch, and it looks like another market has gone live as well: Phoenix, Arizona. Our speed tests Thursday night on AT&T’s fledgling 4G LTE network were nothing to scoff at — we saw nearly 7Mbps down and about 9Mbps up — but AT&T subscribers in Phoenix will be excited to learn that early speed test results reveal blistering download speeds up to 40Mbps and upload speeds in excess of 10Mbps. Read on for more.

The screenshot above, supplied to BGR by a reader, was captured Thursday night outside Phoenix on a Samsung Galaxy S II Skyrocket. The same reader also confirmed that speed tests performed on his Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9 tablet reached download speeds of 40Mbps. These speeds, while impressive, may not be an accurate indication of network performance once 4G LTE service from AT&T launches in Phoenix.

AT&T has yet to confirm official launch dates for its 4G LTE networks in New York or in the Phoenix area.

Thanks, Scott

BGR exclusively reported last week that AT&T’s 4G LTE network has gone live in both Chicago and Atlanta, and at that time it was unclear if LTE was only available intermittently for testing or if the network had been soft-launched. Here we are a week later and the network is still live in both of these markets — and in the Dallas/Forth Worth area as well as in Houston, BGR has learned — so it is likely safe to say the latter is the case. More importantly in light of the fact that Labor Day is behind us and AT&T has been touting a summer launch for months, the carrier should make the launches official any day now. Considering AT&T’s network was recently ranked worst in the nation by J.D. Power, 4G LTE service can’t come soon enough. In the meantime, however, BGR was sent a video of AT&T’s new $700 Jetstream tablet running on the carrier’s LTE network in Chicago. A speed test shows that downloads peaked at over 22Mbps while upload speeds climbed above 6Mbps. AT&T’s previous-generation fourth-generation HSPA+ network is hardly lacking in the speed department, but it looks like LTE will top its performance and then some. A video showcasing a live test of AT&T’s 4G LTE speeds on the HTC Jetstream follows below.

Following BGR’s exclusive report on Monday revealing that AT&T’s 4G LTE network has gone live in Chicago, we have received new images confirming that the network is alive and kicking in Atlanta as well. A source has provided BGR with multiple images of AT&T’s 4G LTE service in action, and we have verified that the tester is indeed located in Atlanta, Georgia. Our source in Chicago had trouble finding full service, but Atlanta seems to be blanketed a bit better at this pre-launch stage. Using an AT&T Elevate 4G LTE mobile hotspot, our tester in Atlanta saw download speeds approach 25Mbps and upload speeds in excess of 8Mbps — much faster than the already speedy tests we saw up north. Again, these pre-launch tests do not necessarily represent the data speeds AT&T subscribers will see when the 4G LTE network officially goes live this summer. And just as was the case in Chicago, it is unclear if AT&T’s 4G LTE network has been soft launched in Atlanta or if service will only appear intermittently while the network is being tested. Images showing AT&T 4G LTE speed tests in Atlanta can be seen in our photo gallery, which is linked below.

AT&T’s 4G LTE network went live this past weekend in the Chicago area, and initial speed tests reveal impressive download speeds. AT&T has yet to announce the availability of LTE service in Chicago or any other launch market, but BGR has obtained exclusive images and speed test results from a source who has tested the network there. Ahead of an official launch, AT&T 4G LTE service is likely to be available only intermittently during testing, though it is also possible that Chicago has been soft launched following the launch of AT&T’s first two 4G LTE devices last week. Read on for more.

Our source used an AT&T Elevate 4G LTE mobile hotspot to perform speed tests in the Chicago area. Using both an iPhone 4 and a MacBook connected to the Elevate via Wi-Fi, he found that download speeds topped out at around 13Mbps and upload speeds reached just over 2Mbps. It should be noted, however, that the speeds achieved during these tests do not necessarily represent the data speeds AT&T subscribers will see once the network officially goes live. In addition, our source said that the Elevate never had more than three bars of service during the tests, which is another indication that AT&T’s 4G LTE network is not in a launch-ready state. Images of 4G LTE speed test results on the iPhone 4 and MacBook can be seen in our photo gallery, which is linked above.

Verizon Wireless just sent us the 4G LTE-equipped version of Samsung’s flagship Android tablet, the Galaxy Tab 10.1, and we’re ready to deliver our initial impressions. First things first: this should go without saying at this point, but this puppy is ridiculously fast. Verizon Wireless’ 4G LTE network is unmatched when it comes speed and latency — from the user’s perspective, it’s pretty much like being connected to a Wi-Fi network. A few quick tests performed just outside New York City showed the blazing-fast speed we’ve come to expect from Verizon’s 4G network, ranging from about 12-15Mbps down and 3-5Mbps up. On the hardware side of the equation, Samsung’s LTE tablet has undergone a handful of cosmetic changes. Holding the slate in landscape orientation, the stereo speakers have been moved up the sides of the device to accommodate the power button and the volume rocker, which are now on the left side of the Tab 10.1 instead of up on top. The back of the tablet is also slightly different. It now features a gray plastic rear cover with a brushed metal effect. We like the look of the new back but unfortunately, the quality seems to be a bit lacking. Within a few minutes of removing the new Galaxy Tab 10.1 from its box, there were already a few scratches on the back case. Overall build is solid, however, just like our original limited edition 10.1 model, and it’s still remarkable that Samsung was able to make this tablet so thin. Check out our hands-on 4G LTE Galaxy Tab 10.1 photo gallery below for more photos of this sleek, speedy slate.

A new page on T-Mobile USA’s website makes some fairly bold claims about the carrier’s premier Honeycomb tablet, the LG G-Slate. In comparing the sleek device to its steepest competition at AT&T and Verizon Wireless, T-Mobile says the G-Slate is “more than two times faster than the Apple iPad 2 on AT&T and Verizon, and three times faster than the Motorola XOOM on Verizon — and it’s less expensive, too!” At $399.99 with a 2-year data contract or $599.99 off contract, there is no question that the G-Slate is cheaper. Apple’s 3G iPad 2 is $729 with the same 32GB of storage and the Motorola XOOM is $599.99 on contract or $799.99 contract-free. Regarding the speed-related claims, some questions have been raised as to how T-Mobile came to those conclusions. “An independent third party conducted testing to compare T-Mobile’s G-Slate, AT&T’s iPad 2 and Verizon Wireless’ Motorola XOOM,” a T-Mobile spokesperson told BGR in an email. ”The testing was conducted in two cities – New York and Seattle – across 30 locations and at least five repetitions with each device per location per market. The total sample size was 300 tests encompassing at least 70 percent of a market.” T-Mobile has once again pitted its 4G HSPA+ service against comparable networks from its two largest competitors, and according to this third-party study, the nation’s No. 4 carrier has again come out on top. BGR reviewed T-Mobile’s G-Slate tablet this past April and found that the hardware was best-in-class, though we were not impressed with Google’s initial build of Android 3.0 Honeycomb.

During Microsoft’s MIX conference in Las Vegas, Windows Phone director Joe Belfiore took the stage to demonstrate how well Microsoft’s new Internet Explorer 9 mobile browser can render HTML5 websites. He fired up a device running Microsoft’s new Windows Phone “Mango” update with IE9 installed and hardware acceleration, and then started an HTML5 speed test pitting the Mango device against the iPhone 4 and the Google Nexus S. Belfiore was so confident in the new browser that he gave the iPhone 4 a head start. Nonetheless, IE9 loaded the demo faster and came out on top, having displayed the test at 20 frames per second. It was followed by the Android browser on the Nexus S, which rendered the same demo at 11 frames per second, and then the iPhone 4 at 2 frames per second. This wasn’t exactly an independent test given that it was preformed by Microsoft and likely under optimal conditions, but we are definitely still impressed with what we’ve seen so far — let’s just hope the update to Mango goes a bit smoother than NoDo. Hit the jump for the video comparison.

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While Verizon Wireless just announced two new 4G LTE devices that are going to serve up insanely fast mobile broadband speeds, Samsung’s 4G LTE Mobile Hotspot is the first one in our hands. We’ve been rockin’ and rollin’ over Verizon’s 4G LTE network for a little while thanks to the new mobile hotspot, and we’re happy to report extremely fast speeds around 12Mbps down and 5.5Mbps up on average — the fastest speeds that the device is rated for. In terms of size, it’s just a tad thicker than the original Novatel MiFi unit we rely on for our mobile connectivity. We haven’t had enough time to test battery life for ourselves, but we’ll report back. The Samsung 4G LTE Mobile Hotspot is available online from Verizon Wireless starting today, and will be in stores beginning tomorrow for $99.99 with a two-year service agreement. Check out our hands-on gallery with some comparison photos!

Following its announcement last month, LG’s Optimus 2X has become one of the most anticipated upcoming Android handsets thanks to the dual-core Tegra 2 processor buried within its sleek, slim case. Of course, all that will change on Thursday when new dual-core Android phones are introduced at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, but for the time being, all eyes are on the 2X. Zealous enthusiast blog Android Arena has uncovered a short comparison video that pits the Optimus 2X’s Tegra-fueled Web browser against the iPhone 4, and LG’s Android beast certainly appears to come out on top. Though the tests are anything but scientific and only two Web pages were visited on camera, the video clearly shows the iPhone 4 being bested by the Optimus 2X, which apparently loads images and other content much faster than Apple’s iPhone. Hit the break for the video.

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There’s nothing like starting a carrier flame-war to get you through the rest of the week is there? PC Mag has just finished a mobile broadband study pitting the data rates of U.S. carriers AT&T, Cricket, T-Mobile, Verizon Wireless, Sprint 3G and Sprint 4G against one another. Now, before we all get hot under the collar, the study parameters clearly state:

We didn’t test voice quality, dropped calls or coverage areas; while those are very important measurements, these tests were all about mobile Internet. We ran approximately 1,000 rounds of tests (totaling more than 10,000 individual tests) in 20 cities.

The PC Mag data has crowned AT&T as the overall winner; not to mention the winner of the Southern, Central, and Western regions of the United States. T-Mobile, thanks to their HSPA and HSPA+ rollouts, took the speed title in the Northeast region. We understand that a cellular phone isn’t much good without the phone component, but what do you think about the network speeds? Surprised?

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Some of you might be privy to a little bit of confidential BGR info, but for those of you who are not: I went to Chicago recently. In a car. Besides me harboring a hate for the entire of state of Pennsylvania, (because it’s ridiculously long to drive through) the trip was quite successful. One of the main reasons why I didn’t mind being in a car seven times longer than being in a plane was because I was blessed by two MiFi units; a Verizon Wireless unit and a Sprint unit. Plus, what better way to really test out two mostly identical devices on two completely different networks when you’re covering around 1700 miles round trip. I didn’t do a really vigorous string of tests or anything near our much-loved BGR Carrier Wars series. Instead I used one unit exclusively on the way to Chicago from New York City and the other unit on the way back. Here’s what I found…

The first MiFi I used was the Verizon Wireless unit. We all know how good Verizon’s reputation in the data department is and I had high hopes for this little bad boy. Before we get into how it fared, let’s look at the physical unit itself. It’s definitely smaller than you’d imagine if you have never seen or held one before, and Verizon opted to go with a glossy black top plastic piece with a soft touch rubberized finish on the underside. While this obviously goes well with Verizon’s black, red, and white color scheme, the review unit was scratch city already when I received it. Will this affect the device’s performance? Absolutely not, but I’m not terribly sure high gloss black plastic was the best of ideas as far as exteriors go. On the underside of the Verizon unit is a nice little sticker that will give you the pre-set passcode for the wireless network it transmits.

This is helpful so you can get going immediately when you purchase the unit instead of fumbling for the user manual or frantically calling that bastard salesperson that sold you the device. What’s really fantastic about the MiFi in general is that you get access to a router configuration page just as you would on your Linksys, Belkin, or whatever brand router you use at home or at the office. On that page you can customize just about anything including presents for different network modes (temporary hotspot, secure, open, etc.), port forwarding, MAC filtering, power and standby settings and a bunch more. You’ll see that Verizon and Sprint have different network configuration pages and we’ll go over both of them a little further down.

Here’s Verizon’s wireless configuration page and you’ll notice it looks just like their horribly-designed and crafted VZAccess Manager apps. But, Verizon isn’t about sparkle, they’re about substance and their configuration page (and arguably VZAccess Manager software) is extremely simple and quick to navigate and setup. After renaming the wireless network to something a little more clean (Verizon MiFi — original, I know) and setting a new Wi-Fi passkey, I was ready to go.

Immediately 5 bars of glorious mobile Wi-Fi appeared on my MacBook Pro. I entered the passkey and was off and running. After knocking through some work over IM, in the web browser, and in Outlook, I decided I’d start to speed test the Verizon MiFi. The highest speed I saw was around 950kbps and the lowest was around 780kbps (in Rev. A coverage areas). I think I completed one speed test over 1X and that was about 120kbps.

You can see a shot of one speed test I did that yielded 802kbps down and 557kbps up. Not bad at all if you need to have data access while on the move and definitely in line with Verizon’s other data products like USB sticks or ExpressCards.

Both MiFi units support high level security including WPA2-PSK and WEP Wi-Fi networks.

As far as Sprint’s unit goes, the finish is quite different on the top part of the casing. There’s a brushed aluminum texture which is glossed over with a clear coat that really doesn’t show scratches. Major bonus. Besides just looking lighter and being less scratch-prone, the Sprint MiFi externally is basically the same exact hardware as the Verizon device. Sprint doesn’t have a sticker on the underside of the unit with a default passkey for the Wi-Fi network, but since this review unit came with an open Wi-Fi network it wasn’t an issue I had to deal with. Bets are that it would be on the box or in some sort of included paperwork…

After selecting and configuring the Wi-Fi network to my liking (again, Sprint MiFi2200 — totally brilliant, right?) I was a happy camper on I-80 East. For some reason, and this might not actually be the case with every unit, I noticed the range of Wi-Fi signal to be a little worse on the Sprint MiFi than on the Verizon MiFi. I had read about this somewhere and it mentioned that since the Sprint unit was part metal compared to all plastic the Wi-Fi range suffered a bit. That’s obviously not true as the Sprint unit is not any part metal, so I’m not sure what exactly the reason for that was or if maybe the unit I was testing was a little broken in. Just think about how many Wi-Fi clients had been using that MiFi before me. Yikes.

While both units are pretty much identical when you get down to the nitty gritty, Sprint’s MiFi offers the ability to use the built-in GPS. This is really cool if you don’t have a GPS-enabled mobile phone and could possibly be a life-saver in some situations. You have the option of searching directly from the router configuration page using your GPS location, and displaying the coordinates of where you are, among other things. Very nice and very cool. As far as the look and feel of the configuration page goes, Sprint’s was really clean and had a bit more polish, shall we say, over the Verizon page. There was also an option in the power preferences to have the MiFi enter standby mode when plugged into a charger which the Verizon page didn’t have.

Not too surprisingly, speeds were a bit better on Sprint’s unit. We’d say an average of around a 150kbps difference even though there’s about a 300kbps difference from the speed tests we took photos of. The trade off is that Sprint’s coverage was not as good as Verizon’s and many times the Verizon unit would be in a Rev. A coverage area when the Sprint unit would only be chugging on 1X. Battery life was the same on both units at around 4 and a half hours of straight usage which actually ended up lasting throughout maybe half the day when going about the city on and off.

Both MiFi devices can support up to 5 wireless clients each simultaneously which is an incredible feat for a device so small and compact. You can also connect your MiFi via a microUSB cable to your computer and tether it while also charging the unit. The downside here, though, is that once the unit is connected to a computer over USB, routing data over Wi-Fi is not possible. Obviously if the unit is plugged into a microUSB wall charger you’re free to charge and surf without a hitch. Both units got mildly warm with strenuous usage, nothing alarming or even concerning. While I’m not daring enough to keep a MiFi in my pocket, when left in my backpack it turned out to be an awesome traveling companion, gladly picking up the slack from AT&T’s horrendous Chicago coverage.

As you can see from the review, both units are pretty much identical at the end of the day. Little minor exterior differences and even smaller hardware differences (I actually believe they are identical, just Verizon doesn’t enable the GPS function that Sprint does), it’s pretty tough to immediately call one a winner. I wish I could be more clear and really recommend one over the other — Sprint’s was a little bit faster in places, Verizon’s had better coverage and was a tad more reliable — but it’s really personal preference. I’ve been a Bell Atlantic customer and now a Verizon customer for a very long time and like their coverage. After I ship back the Verizon unit, I’ll be purchasing a Verizon MiFi for my personal use, but that’s not to say I wouldn’t be happy with a Sprint one.

Both devices retail for $99 with a 2-year agreement with qualifying monthly data plan.

Well boys and girls, welcome to the final installment of Carrier Wars — the series of features in which we call upon our readers who represent each of the four major US wireless carriers to report the 3G speeds they’re experiencing across the country. It’s been quite a trip but the fourth and final carrier, T-Mobile USA, is now accounted for, which means its time to line everyone up side by side and see where the chips fell. So sit back, relax and hit the jump to see how your carrier stacks up against the competition.

To quickly recap where we’re at right now: AT&T was first up and recorded a pretty respectable average download speed of 933kbps, besting next in line, Verizon Wireless, by a solid 232kbps. The nation’s number three carrier, Sprint Nextel, was next to bat and it knocked one out of the park. Sprint set the bar quite high with an average download speed of 1361kbps, leaving T-Mobile with quite a hill to climb should it manage to register an upset. Tmo has the newest 3G network with the least amount of congestion however, so number four could definitely swoop in and surprise us all, Right? Right? Yeah, not so much.

• Average download speed: 786kbps
• Median download speed: 748kbps
• Average upload speed: 177kbps
• Median upload speed: 136kbps

According to the speeds experienced and recorded by our readers, T-Mobile slides into the number three slot having bested Big Red by 85kbps. On the upload side of things, T-Mobile comes in dead last with an average speed of 177kbps, just short of the equally pathetic 180kbps put up by AT&T. Of note, T-Mobile was definitely the most consistent carrier our readers tested — the speed test results were very level compared to the sharp peaks and deep valleys found in other carrier’s test results. In fact, trimming the download data to omit oddities as we did with the three other carriers barely affected T-Mobile’s numbers at all: Dropping the top and bottom five results left us with a download average of 767kbps and cutting the top and bottom 10 yielded 773kbps.

All things considered, Tmo has poured a lot into its 3G network — despite being insanely late to the party — so these results are somewhat disheartening. Subscribers shouldn’t despair, however. T-Mobile has no intention of getting caught with its pants down twice and it is already hard at work developing its 4G network, which will reportedly be deployed not long after the big boys’ LTE setups get the green light.

Let’s take a quick look at everything lined up nice and pretty:

Average Download Speed

1. Sprint: 1361kbs
2. AT&T: 933kbps
3. T-Mobile: 786kbps
4. Verizon: 701kbps

Average Upload Speed

1. Verizon: 322kbps
2. Sprint: 267kbps
3. AT&T: 180kbps
4. T-Mobile: 177kbps

There you have it folks — the final act of Carrier Wars is officially a wrap. While these numbers shouldn’t be considered absolute or scientific, they certainly give an accurate representation of each carrier’s 3G network speeds as experienced by our readers. So what does everyone think? Did the carriers’ performances land where you thought they would or were you surprised by our findings? Hit the comment section and be heard.

Again; for those interested, here is the data collected for T-Mobile.

Disclaimer: The results of these tests are not collected in a controlled environment and therefore should not be considered to represent a concrete indication of the above carriers’ 3G network speeds and/or performance in general. These results merely provide the average 3G network speeds of the above carriers as experienced by those readers who performed speed tests and shared their results. Stop whining.

What a long strange trip it’s been, mobile fans. Our Carrier Wars series has managed to tons of conversation surrounding the state of wireless carriers here in the US. Sure a lot of it is senseless banter, but beyond that there are legions of subscribers who are genuinely interested in learning what kind of performance BGR readers from across the country experience on their respective carriers. We told you each of the big four here in the US would be covered and sure enough, here we are at the last stop: T-Mobile USA. While T-Mobile’s 3G network is still in its infancy — albeit horribly late in the game — subscribers are often quick to sing Tmo’s 3G performance praise. Well T-Moblers, it’s your time to shine. If you have a 3G-ready handset and happen to find yourself in a covered region, we want to know what kind of speed you’re seeing. Remember, an ideal report includes handset model, AVERAGE download speed, AVERAGE upload speed and a link to a screenshot of your test. Feel free to throw your maximum speed numbers in there as well but they don’t concern us. Ok — hit the comments section and get to work!