If you find any technical terms on our site that require further explanation please check the glossary below.

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Analogue systems handle information which is represented by continuous change and flow, such as voltage or current. Digital information in contrast is either on or off..

Analogue to digital converter. A device that converts data from analogue to digital form, e.g. an audio CD is made by converting analogue sound signals into digital data.

The information-carrying capacity of a communications channel. Usually expressed in Hertz (cycles per second) for analogue circuits and in bits per second (bps) for digital circuits.

The central transmitter/receiver that maintains communications with a mobile device within a given range.

A radio technology that makes it possible to transmit signals over short distances between mobile phones, computers and other devices without the use of wires.

This is data transmission speed; the number of pieces of information transmitted per second.

A technology for digital transmission of radio signals between a mobile phone and a radio base station, for example. In CDMA, a frequency is divided into a number of codes.

CDMA2000 is a radio transmission technology for the evolution of narrowband cdmaOne/IS-95 to 3rd-generation adding up multiple carriers.

A digital overlay on AMPS analogue cellular networks, it reuses the unused channel capacity in a voice cellular network for packet switched data, either on dedicated data channels or hopping between idle voice channels.

A system where each geographic area is covered by a base station. This area is known as a cell. Each phone in the cell communicates with the base station. If the phone moves to another cell, the call is automatically transferred to the base station in the new cell location.

A switched circuit is only maintained while the sender and recipient are communicating, as opposed to a dedicated circuit which is held open regardless of whether data is being sent or not.

The geographical reach of a mobile phone network or system.

Information that is transmitted through a system or network by establishing a persistent and dedicated connection ('circuit').

Earlier designation of American standard for digital mobile telephony used primarily in North America, Latin America, Australia and parts of Russia and Asia. Now known as TFMA.

In digital wireless phone systems, voice sounds are converted (encoded) to a binary stream of data that "describes" the sound. On the other end, the digital signal is decoded and used to reconstruct the sound.

A technology that gives GSM and TDMA similar capacity to handle services for the third generation of mobile telephony. EDGE was developed to enable the transmission of large amounts of data at a high speed, 384 kilobits per second.

An operating system for mobile terminals, developed by Symbian (a joint-venture with Ericsson, Matsushita, Nokia, Motorola and Psion).

A system that electronically processes payments from a site to a company's main hub.

The European standardisation body for telecommunications.

Regulatory body governing communications technologies in the US.

3G stands for 3rd-generation. Analogue mobile phones were the first generation. Digital marked the second generation. 3G is loosely defined, but generally includes high data speeds, always-on data access, and greater voice capacity.

Gigahertz - A frequency measurement which equals one billion hertz. One hertz equals one cycle per second.

A packet-linked technology that enables high-speed (up to 115 kilobit per second) wireless Internet and other mobile data communications.

A satellite based positioning system which triangulates the position of a target to an accuracy of typically 20m or less.

Originally developed as a pan-European standard for digital mobile phones, GSM has become the world's most widely used mobile system. It is used on the 900 MHz and 1800 MHz frequencies in Europe, Asia and Australia, and the 1900 MHz frequency in North America and Latin America.

GSM technology with a cellular frequency band (800/850Mhz) operating mainly in the USA. Both the technology and the frequency have been around for a long time, but only in 2002 were they combined.

GSM 900, or just GSM, is the world's most widely used digital network and now operating in over 100 countries around the world, particularly in Europe and Asia Pacific.

Also known as DCS 1800 or PCN, GSM 1800 is a digital network working on a frequency of 1800 MHz. It is used in Europe, Asia-Pacific and Australia.

Also known as PCS 1900, GSM 1900 is a digital network working on a frequency of 1900 MHz. It is used in the US and Canada and is scheduled for parts of Latin America and Africa.

Handheld Device Markup Language. Based on HTTP, the underlying Web protocol, that allows for the display of text versions of web pages on wireless devices.

A circuit-linked technology for higher mobile transmission speeds - up to 57 kilobits per second - primarily within GSM networks.

A computer language devised to allow the creation of websites. It defines the structure and layout of a web document by using a variety of tags and attributes.

Hertz - radio frequency measurement (one hertz = one cycle per second).

A popular service in Japan for transferring packet based data to handheld devices. It is based on a compact version of HTML and does not use WAP standards. Created by NTT DoCoMo.

A term used by the International Telecommunication Union, a United Nations agency, to describe the third generation mobile telephony originally due to be ready in 2000. Can also be applied to mobile telephone standards that meet a number of requirements in terms of transmission speed and other factors.

The Internet protocol defines how information travels between systems across the Internet.

An IP number is often used when specifying the environmental protection afforded by enclosures around electronic equipment. The first number refers to the protection against solid objects and the second against liquids, ie. an IP67 rated BOX provides a level of protection that has total protection again dust (no ingress) and it can be immersed in water to a depth of 15cm - 1m.

A digital mobile phone standard based on CDMA technology.

A digital mobile phone standard based on TDMA technology.

A United Nations agency that deals with telecommunications issues.

A small data network covering a limited area, such as within a building or group of buildings.

Abbreviation of modular/demodulator, the modem converts digital computer signals into analogue form for transmission over analogue telephone systems.

A network (in telemetry terms) is typically the communications medium which is used to transmit data to and from a location, such as a mobile phone network.

A mobile phone network in the UK offering 2G, 2.5G (GPRS) & 3G connectivity

A mobile phone network in the UK offering 2G, 2.5G (GPRS) & 3G connectivity

A method of switching data in a network where individual packets of a set size and format are accepted by the network and delivered to their destinations. The sequence of the packets is maintained and the destination established by the exchange of control information (also contained in the packets) between the sending terminal and the network before the transmission starts.
The network is open to all users, all the time, with packets from the various nodes being interleaved throughout the network. The packets can be sent in any order, as the control information sent at the beginning of the transmission ensures they are interpreted in the correct order at the receiving end. Because each packet carries its own control instructions, it can use any route to reach its destination.

Personal Communications Network - also known as the DCS 1800 standard or GSM 1800. It is used in Europe and Asia Pacific.

Collective term for American mobile phone services in the 1900 MHz frequency band.

A Japanese standard for digital mobile phone telephony in the 800 MHz and 1500 MHz bands.

Digital mobile phone system according to Japanese standard in the frequency range 1900MHz.

Very small cell in a mobile network for boosting capacity within buildings.

A code used for all GSM-based mobile phones to establish authorisation for access to certain functions or information.

An industrial computer control system that continuously monitors the state of input devices and makes decisions based upon a custom program to control the state of output devices.

Generally for use within a defined user group such as the emergency services or by private enterprises such as taxi firms, couriers and security teams.

Public Switched Telecom Network - a system generally adopted by businesses within the UK for their office telephone system.

RFID first appeared in tracking and access applications during the 1980s. These wireless AIDC systems allow for non-contact reading and are effective in manufacturing and other hostile environments where bar code labels could not survive. RFID has established itself in a wide range of markets including livestock identification and automated vehicle identification (AVI) systems because of its ability to track moving objects.

A data switch that handles connections between different networks. A router identifies the addresses on data passing through the switch, determines which route the transmission should take and collects data in packets which are then sent to their destinations.

The forwarding of data packets in packet-switched networks, to the intended address.

Asmall printed circuit board that must be inserted in any GSM/GPRS/3G based mobile device. It contains subscriber details, security information and a variety of other functions such as memory storage etc.

Available on digital networks allowing messages of up to 160 characters to be sent and received via the network operator's message centre to your mobile device.

A mobile phone network in the UK offering 2G, 2.5G (GPRS) & 3G connectivity

A technology for digital transmission of radio signals between, for example, a mobile phone and a radio base station. In TDMA, the frequency band is split into a number of channels which in turn are stacked into short time units so that several calls can share a single channel without interfering with one another. TDMA is also the name of a digital technology based on the IS-136 standard.

A global cooperative project in which standardization bodies in Europe, Japan, South Korea and the United States as founders are coordinating WCDMA issues.

The name for the third generation mobile phone standard in Europe, standardised by ETSI.

Body of vendors and operators promoting and implementing the IS-136 digital standard. Also specifying the future development of the standard and facilitating roaming agreements between IS-136 operators.

A mobile phone network in the UK offering 2G, 2.5G (GPRS) & 3G connectivity

A technology for transmitting ordinary telephone calls over the Internet using packet-linked routes. Also called IP telephony.

A wireless version of the LAN. Provides access to the LAN even when the user is not in the office.

Private network facilities that link business network nodes, for example in different cities.

A free, unlicensed protocol for wireless communications that makes it possible to create advanced telecommunications services and to access Internet pages from a mobile phone. WAP is a de facto standard that is supported by a large number of suppliers.

A technology for wideband digital radio communications of Internet, multimedia, video and other capacity-demanding applications. WCDMA has been selected for the third generation of mobile phone systems in Europe, Japan and the United States. The technology is also the principal alternative being discussed in other parts of the world, notably Asia.

A new technology that uses optical signals on different wavelengths to increase the capacity of fibre optic networks in order to handle a number of services simultaneously.

A wireless connection of a telephone in a home or office to a fixed telephone network.

Wireless Markup Language. A version of HDML based on XML, it is the markup standard associated with WAP