Surprise! AT&T's network got very good

Dropped calls and spotty service, particularly for iPhone owners, made AT&T the most hated wireless carrier in America. Here's the surprise twist: widespread, under-the-radar improvements to the company's network have quietly helped AT&T move past its infamous struggles.

The nation's second-largest wireless carrier says it spent roughly $20 billion last year making 48,000 network enhancements across the country. That spending spree bought a 25% improvement in dropped-call performance on AT&T's 3G network, plus added capacity and faster speeds. In the process, the company turned on two new networks. They each offer significant improvements over AT&T's existing 3G network: one new network has speeds of up to four times faster than 3G, and the other brings a ten-fold improvement in speed.