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Click here to learn about PCS IN THE CONTEXT OF OTHER TECHNOLOGIES. High speed circuit switched data technology (HSCSD) Current TDMA-based technologies (GSM and TDMA IS-136) use a single voice channel for data per user, which delivers data at a rate of 9.6Kbps. Very soon single-channel rates will be extended to 14.4Kbps. In addition, users will have the capability to use multiple channels together, extending data rates to 28.8Kbps and beyond, perhaps as high as 76.8 Kbps. Expect to start seeing these enhancements in the first half of 1999. These capabilities will be available on circuit-switched networks, and should not be confused with packet-switched technologies. The first HSCSD implementation is almost here! Read SingTel Mobile upgrades its data services to HSCSD.
Packet-switched data technologies such as GPRS for GSM Current technologies are primarily circuit-switched, meaning a continuous circuit transmission allows the network to route continuous data to a single location. Circuit-switched data requires a dedicated radio channel even when no data is being sent. Packet-switched data works quite differently from circuit-switched data. With packet-switched data, the computer that is connected to the cell phone sends and receives bursts, or packets, of data. A radio channel is occupied only for the duration of the data transmission instead of continuously, making it more efficient than circuit-switched. Since the phone never makes an actual "phone call," the channel becomes immediately available for other data users after the transmission. At the switching center, packet services interconnect with the Internet or directly with corporate intranets using traditional networking methods such as frame relay. Packet data service is not yet available for any PCS network because it requires significant additions to the network infrastructure. Once available, carriers are more likely to charge based on the amount of data communicated than on the time spent communicating. GPRS is one kind of packet-switched data technology which is being developed for GSM networks. This infrastructure will support third generation networks. Initial speeds for GSM will be up to 115K. It is expected to be implemented in the 1999-2000 time frame. Other packet-switched data technologies already exist but are mainly used for short transmission lengths. Click here for more information on packet-switched technologies.
Future mobile data applications The mobile data market has entered a rapid growth phase. In addition to what users can do today, ie. email, fax, internet/corporate network access, users can expect to be able to use their favorite application while on the move. The new generation of applications that link into corporate databases for such purposes as sales support functions and e-commerce are easily transferable to a mobile environment. Mobile data applications could potentially revolutionize the manner in which business is transacted, in the same way in which fixed data networks transformed businesses in the 1980s.
The third generation of digital cellular technologies Analog technology is considered to be the first generation of cellular technologies. The second generation of digital cellular technology is the current generation, plus the technologies which are almost here, including high speed circuit switched and GPRS. The third generation refers to much higher data transmission speeds in the range of 144,000 bps up to 2 megabytes per second. It will enable wireless multimedia applications such as video conferencing. The third generation will also have a new unified standard called UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System), which will be a combination of the current technologies along with new developments, and will be largely backwards-compatible with the current standards. The third generation technologies are expected to be implemented in a five year time frame. |
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