iPad now works with Sprint, sort of

Apple's still sticking with AT&T as the exclusive provider of 3G coverage, but that isn't stopping Sprint from providing its own solution.

The wireless carrier has launched an iPad carrying case that contains a holster for Sprint's Overdrive mobile WiMax hotspot. As long as the case comes with you, the iPad can get 4G or 3G coverage on Sprint's network, as the hotspot converts the signal into Wi-Fi that any device can use.

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The hotspot allows you to connect up to five devices, and it's obviously not limited to the iPad. Sprint notes that the 4G case also fits Barnes & Noble's Nook and "various other e-readers," though probably not as elegantly as Apple's iPad.

For a limited time, the case is free if you buy a $100 Overdrive and sign a two-year service contract, priced at $60 per month. Going this route is much more expensive than getting a 3G-enabled iPad, which costs $129 more than the Wi-Fi model, with no annual contract and plans at $15 and $30 per month. You'll definitely want to live in a 4G city before even considering a Sprint plan.

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Looking at the case, however, the design itself seems lacking. It's not like the official iPad case, which has a form-fitting skin that lets you use the device without removing it from the frame. And there's no firm spine for standing the iPad on its side or angling it upward for typing. Basically, Sprint's 4G case is just a glorified laptop sleeve, and you'd be no worse off with the case discarded and the hotspot in your pocket.

That's not to say Sprint isn't clever for jumping on the iPad craze with its own product.

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