If you’re thinking about getting a new phone soon - say, maybe next week - and you’re pondering the wonders of a phone with a snazzy touchscreen that can handle your pics, music, video, and more, then you may be thinking about Apple’s iPhone 3G (or HTC’s Touch Diamond, not that it’ll be available next week).

Of course, one thing these snazzy new phones have in common is their use of 3G - high-speed data connections, so you can browse the web and send emails in record time (especially compared to the current iPhone). That’s especially handy given that the cost of sending text messages is just going up, giving you even more incentive to use email on-the-go instead.

Unfortunately, though, you have to live in an area that not only has coverage by a cell phone provider, like AT&T, for the device you want, like the iPhone, but they have to provide separate 3G coverage, as it’s essentially a new network that has to be overlayed on top of the existing cell networks used by older phones (like yours :-p). So before you run out and buy a 3G (i)phone, hit up AT&T’s site to see whether or not you’ll be covered. I am, juuuust barely: