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Mobile Phones - Technology - Revolution

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Mobile Phone Technology - Revolution

From the development since the first “modern� mobile phone’s launch, the industries has developed rapidly and changed a lot in the short 20 years. Here are the different stages of the mobile phone:

  • First Generation (1G)
    • The first generation mobile phone refers to the mobile phones that were developed in the 1980s.
  • Second Generation (2G)
    • GSM, CDMA and TDMA are the different protocols that brought the mobile phone into the second generation stage. The protocols of the 2G mobile phone are digitalised transmitted. SMS (Short Message Service) is also the services added for the 2G services. The 2G was introduced to the market basically in the early 1990s.
  • Second And a Half Generation (2.5G)
    • Still under the same network protocol, but provided services such as WAP (Wireless Application Protocol) and GPRS (General Packet Radio Service) enabling mobile phones to access on certain websites. Coloured screen with camera featured mobile phones were also introduced in this stage (not all phones are featured with these new functions).
  • Third Generation (3G)
    • A whole new network protocol launched in the twenty-first century. It is either under IMT-2000, UMTS or W-CDMA standards. The 3G protocol enables high speed connection (speed similar to broadband connection) to access through internet and also video calls.

Besides the convergence from the first generation to the third generation mobile phones, the functions featured in mobile phones are getting more sophisticated and more useful. Mobile phones now are not only for communication. The simple communication device now has converged into a multi function device. Many mobile phones now are developed into PDA-like (Personal Digital Assistant) phones with OS (Operating System) that enables the communication device to operate as if a mini computer(Dornan, 2000). Symbian is an OS specially developed for mobile phone. Software can be installed individual by the users into the phone in order to operate other functions. Besides Symbian, Linux, Microsoft (Smartphone and PDA phones) and PALM (PDA phones) are taking the share in this market.

Bluetooth, a form of wireless short range connection also changed the way mobile phone operates. Bluetooth is co-developed by mobile phone developers such as Sony Ericsson, Motorola, Nokia and some computer/electronic developers. Bluetooth enables mobile phones with Bluetooth to make wireless connection with Bluetooth headsets, connection to computers to swap data via Bluetooth dongle etc, providing the users to use the mobile phones much more easily and convenience.

Entertainment on mobile phones has also been a development for many developers. Mobile phone gaming (such as Java games, the most popular game platform), camera functions, media player (playing MP3 and short films) are now engaged among 2.5G and 3G mobile phones. Laptops can also get access to the internet using the 2.5G or 3G mobile phone as the modem. Emails can also be accessed via these mobile phones.

Mobile phones can also become an information centre. Information from weather reports, latest news, share market status etc can all be gathered from small mobile phones. Before WAP or GPRS were well developed, users can gather the above information from the system operator (depending on the system operator, not all provide these services). Users can also order of daily automatic updates via SMS. Later with the development on WAP and GPRS to the latest 3G, users will only have to log on to the system operator’s homepage on the phone to look for these information.


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Back To Mobile Phone Technology

Sunny Lin 17:10, 28 Oct 2004 (EST)

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