We know that T-Mobile would add the stylus-toting Samsung Galaxy Note to its roster, but now we have a release date and pricing. The jumbo phone lands at T-Mobile on August 8 for $249.99, after a $50 mail-in-rebate and with a new two-year service agreement. T-Mobile’s version of the phone, which debuted in the U.S. …

CNET Reader Mike Smith asks: Is there some kind of burn-in procedure to run on new plasma TVs? I’ve read some crazy stuff online that says all sorts of things and I just don’t know what is real from what is nonsense. Please let me know. Thanks. You aren’t kidding, there is some crazy stuff out there. Plasma TVs, actually …

Google’s Android operating system for mobile devices has gained significant traction in the market. Will Google follow this success up by pushing the OS into more sophisticated computing devices? Or will it use its browser based-OS Chrome to take on Apple and Microsoft in the PC software market? These are the questions I tackle in this edition of Ask Maggie. …

About a year ago at this time, iPhone 5 rumors and leaked photos were flying fast and furious. In fact, it was in early August 2011, that I speculated, “Is this what the iPhone 5 looks like? MacRumors says yes.” Of course, the answer turned out to be “no.” Could we be looking at a similar disappointment this fall? Perhaps, …

Think that the pen is mightier than the keyboard? Google does too, with its new Handwrite system that lets you search using your own writing. (Screenshot by Matt Elliott/CNET) Google Handwrite translates your written words on a touchscreen into searchable terms. Activate the feature by going to Google.com on your phone or tablet’s browser and click on the Settings link. …

From Olympic rings to giving people a ring… if you think that was a strained segue, it’s time for an even more tenuous tie-up: the Samsung Galaxy S3 London 2012 Olympic edition! Samsung is a big sponsor of the Olympics, and if there’s one thing the British public loves right now it’s sponsors of the Olympics. They’re almost as popular as bankers …

Bad news if you bought a Sony Ericsson Xperia phone last year, I’m afraid — the most powerful of the 2011 crop, the Xperia Arc S, will not be upgraded to the latest Android 4.1 Jelly Bean software, Sony has confirmed. “Unfortunately Arc S won’t be getting the Jelly Bean update,” Sony product manager John Cooper posted on Sony’s Facebook …

The software developer kit (SDK) for Microsoft’s upcoming Windows Phone 8 release has leaked to online forums, revealing numerous features and enhancements before Microsoft can officially announce them. The new Camera Lenses feature found in the Windows Phone 8 SDK. (Credit: WPCentral) A Chinese blog scored the code first, with the WPCentral team the first to sift through its contents. …

Early iPhone designs have emerged, showing what the people at Apple were thinking when they designed the iPhone and iPad. The early designs for the iPhone and iPad have emerged in court documents submitted for the legal spat between Apple and Samsung, which reveal that Apple was inspired by Sony, of all people. The Verge has collected various versions of …

Here’s a fun thing to try last thing on a Friday. Go to Google.com on your phone’s browser, go to settings, hit enable handwriting, save and refresh the page, and boom! You can now write searches with handwritten letters, scrawling over your screen like a toddler who hasn’t yet learned about personal property. “Say you’re standing on a busy street …

Now playing: Watch this: The powerful HTC One X on AT&T 2:39 Radio Shack announced today it is cutting the price of AT&T’s HTC One X in half to just $99.99 this Sunday, July 29. And as of this afternoon, AT&T has matched that price online. This new price matches up with similar reports hitting the Internet in the early …

Virgin Mobile USA has added another Android smartphone to its lineup, today unveiling the PCD Chaser. Priced at just $79.99 without a contract, the handset has plenty of hardware for folks ready to make the jump from a feature phone to a smartphone. Powered by Android 2.3.4 Gingerbread, the Chaser has a 3.2-inch display, a 3-megapixel camera, and an 800MHz …

There are few events quite as exciting as the Olympics. With athletes from all over the world competing for their respective countries, it’s easy to get excited as you root for your country to win. Obviously, I’ll be rooting for my American compatriots, but seeing the drama of each event, no matter who the winner is, can be appreciated by …

With hundreds of thousands of spectators, staff, and athletes expected in the densely populated city of London during the Olympics, questions have been raised over how well the Big Smoke is going to cope. Additional security scrutiny, restricted access to roads, added congestion and more traffic resulting from the Games are all being felt by London’s locals. But will the …

Sony’s next major Xperia smartphone release will ditch the hardware buttons on previous releases and use Google’s on-screen controls instead. The new, buttonless Sony Xperia, codenamed “Mint”. (Credit: mobile-review.com) Going by the codename Mint, images of the new phone have leaked, showing a softer design compared with the Xperia range we’ve seen so far this year. The phone shown in …