3. Future Technical Possibilities
In the previous chapter we've discussed technologies that are currently being used (GSM) or that is in the latest fase of development (GPRS). In this chapter, the focus will be more on future technologies that will have their own impact on mobile communication and thus on mobile internet and mobile internet devices. The topics of UMTS, EDGE and Bluetooth will be discussed in the same order.
3.1 UMTS
UMTS stands for Universal Mobile Telecommunications System and it is a Third Generation (3G; look at figure 2.1) mobile system being developed by ETSI within the (International Telecommunications Union) ITU's IMT-2000 framework. UMTS is a European System which is attempting to combine cellular, cordless, low-end wireless, local area network, private mobile radio, and paging system. UMTS will speed the convergence between telecommunications, IT, media and content industries to deliver new services and create fresh revenue-generating opportunities. The speed at which this will occur, will be 2 Mbit/s (2000 kbps) , which is astonishing when compared to the 9.6 kbps at which GSM transfers information at this moment.
UMTS will deliver pictures, graphics, video communications and other wide-band information as well as voice and data, direct to people who can be on the move. UMTS will build on and extend the capability of today's mobile technologies (like digital cellular and cordless) by providing increased capacity, data capability and a far greater range of services using an innovative radio access scheme and an enhanced, evolving core network.
The frequency bands that UMTS will be using are 1885 - 2025 Mhz and 2110 - 2200 Mhz for future IMT systems, with the bands 1980 - 2010 Mhz and 2170 - 2200 Mhz intended for the satellite part of these future systems.
3.2 EDGE
GPRS, which has been introducted in 1999, is a user-friendly service that makes it possible to transmit e-mail and other data communications via wireless systems at high speeds on existing bandwidth frequencies. Edge is a supplement to GPRS. During the year the operators agreed to merge GSM and TDMA, the dominant digital technology in North America and Latin America, among other regions, in a standard for packet data known as Edge. In this standard, which was created primarily for multimedia services, the speed is being further increased, to 384 kilobits per second (Kbps). During 1998 Ericsson, Motorola, Nokia and Unwired Planet (a Silicon Valley company) have presented a license-free Wireless Application Protocol (WAP). The protocol makes it possible to create advanced mobile telephone services and to read Internet pages from a mobile telephone. WAP is a de facto standard that is supported by a large number of suppliers. You can read about WAP further on in this paper.
Although EDGE certainly has advantages over GSM-technology and GPRS, of which speed is the most important, it is yet to be seen if EDGE isn't run over by UMTS. As we speak (December 2000) neither GPRS nor EDGE is used in large numbers and UMTS has been announced already, its technological capabilities outweigh both GPRS and EDGE by far.
3.3 Bluetooth
Before we discuss Bluetooth, we would like to attend you on a paper on this subject that is written by two of our colleagues. This paper is entirely devoted to Bluetooth and can be found online as well. At the moment we write this, that paper is not yet finished entirely so some overlap in our discussions can be possible.
In short, Bluetooth wireless technology is a low-cost, low-power, short-range radio link for mobile devices and for WAN/LAN access points. It offers fast and reliable digital transmissions of both voice and data over the globally available 2.4 GHz ISM (Industrial, Scientific and Medical) band. The technology will replace many of the proprietary cables we use in the home and office to connect devices together: Telephones, printers, PDA's, desktop and laptop computers, fax machines, keyboards, joysticks - almost any digital device that uses the Bluetooth wireless technology chip will be able to take advantage of the technology. At this moment, the first devices equiped with Bluetooth technology are already available to consumers. Figure 3.1 below shows how large a Bluetooth module actually is: a match is larger!
The Bluetooth Specification is a de facto standard containing the information required to ensure that diverse devices supporting the Bluetooth wireless technology can communicate with each other worldwide.Bluetooth radio uses a fast acknowledgement and frequency hopping scheme to make the link robust, even in noisy radio environments.
