We talk about the FCC a lot here, but usually the ways ye olde Commission affects our lives are indirect. A little extra spectrum here, a nice leaked image there, that kind of thing. Not this time, though, as the FCC is getting involved directly with its own Consumer Broadband Test app, designed to probe network latencies and download speeds on your home connection or mobile device. Part of the hallowed National Broadband Plan , this will furnish the FCC will useful data to show the discrepancy between advertised and real world broadband speeds, and will also — more importantly perhaps — serve as a neat way for users to directly compare network performance in particular areas. It’s available on the App Market and App Store right now, with versions for other operating systems coming up, so why not get with the program and give it a test drive

This is exactly why the 3G model is the iPad to buy, unless you’re positive it’s never leaving your Wi-Fi-covered house. You can buy data and cancel at any time, right from the iPad. More

I never thought I’d forgive Time Warner for abominable service before I switched to FiOS—but I just might, if their plan to lease their pipes to AT&T and Verizon makes using an iPhone in NY actually tolerable. UPDATED . AT&T’s iPhone problems are two-fold. There’s the wireless aspect, which is having enough towers with enough spectrum for everybody—that’s probably what you’re familiar with. (The problem in really crowded areas is that there’s only so much wireless coverage you can provide before you run into issues like cross talk.

AT&T’s preaching about the mucho dinero it’s dropping into renovating its network to pretty much anyone who’ll listen these days, and a veritable cornucopia of press releases this week start to go into detail on some of the upgrades we’ll be seeing over the course of 2010. We’re counting at least a dozen here, covering everything from New York City to Florida to Oklahoma, but the message is basically the same in every one: more cell sites, more 3G coverage, more backhaul. AT&T liberally pimps its nine-figure investments in most states over the past several years, too — but of course, phones need spectrum to communicate, not blank checks and promises. Let’s see how we finish the year after those iPads, next-gen iPhones, and AT&T-compatible Nexus Ones (our fingers are crossed) have had a chance to slam the airwaves for a bit, shall we?

In his hundred-word inquiry to Steve Jobs as to whether or not the iPad will tether to the iPhone, Jezper Söderlund started by saying, “I’ll keep it short.” Steve’s response kept it really short: “No.” Updated: Is Jobs wrong? OK, Steve’s answer hardly comes as a surprise, but I’m always tickled when there’s a report of Steve Jobs responding personally to someone’s e-mail. I imagine him sitting on the can, flicking idly on his iPhone, and finally deciding to open that massive folder of his inbox where all the e-mail from the plebs gets redirected. Oh, what’s this?

We all know by now that AT&T has secured the rights to furnish US iPad owners with 3G connectivity, but apparently the market desire for that service won’t be quite as big as we might have expected. That comes straight from Randall Stephenson himself, AT&T CEO and eternal believer in the power of i-branded devices, so it may have some legitimacy to it. Surely Randall’s dearest wish would be to announce his network is about to be overwhelmed by new subscribers, and the rather cooler news has already caused a small dint in AT&T’s stock price. Then again, this is hardly shocking news given that 3G on the iPad can be had on a month-by-month basis without contract , and in truth any subscriptions related to it would have to be achieved by AT&T’s own ingenuity — which, judging by its CEO’s comments, won’t be suffering any undue exertions any time soon. Not only that, Randall’s also taken the opportunity to advise us that higher data rates are likely for intensive users of unlimited 3G data plans — whether on the iPad or on smartphones.

A leaked roadmap had previously indicated that Sprint would be launching a 4G WiMax handset sometime in 2010, and now the company has confirmed that we’ll be seeing the technology within the next few months. But is the network ready? Well, sort of. Sprint’s been working with Clearwire on building up a 4G WiMax network since 2007 , and while it’s taken longer than they thought they do have it up and running in 27 markets that serve 30 million people. But! Those markets currently don’t include biggies like New York, San Fransisco, and DC, and 4G WiMax hasn’t been put to the test by a wide audience. Still, they’ve got to do it sometime, and sooner is better than never for those who can use it

I think you’d have to nearly suicidal to attempt it—especially if you’re in NY or SF—but Apple’s doubled the max size of apps you can download over 3G to 20MB. [ 9to5Mac ]

Yes that’s right, you can now be a certified couch potato anywhere you find yourself with the new update to SlingPlayer Moblie, which can play back your DVR shows and control live TV from your iPhone or iPod Touch. Do you hear a faint fapping? That’s the sound of thousands of iPhone and iPod Touch users who have been hotly anticipating 3G SlingBox streaming for the some time now, finally able to control their home TVs on the go. Full channel-changing and PVR support is included. The app costs $30 or comes as a free upgrade for existing users and can be snatched up riiiiiight now on iTunes. [ iTunes - Thanks David! ]

We knew this was coming , and sure enough, Sling hasn’t kept us waiting for long. Our beloved readers have inundated our tip jar with the news that the 3G-enabled flavor of SlingPlayer Mobile is now live on the App Store, and from what we’re hearing works very well. The placeshifting app will set you back just under $30, but will allow you to finally take your cable, satellite or PVR content on the move with you. We say finally, 3G streaming has been available on other phones for a while now, but good to see AT&T and company see sense and enable the goodness for the iPhone. Get downloading and commenting — how does it compare to sliced bread?