2.5G
2.5G is the transitional generation between the 2nd & 3rd generations of mobile phone technology. Predominately using GPRS for network access, they provide some audio and video with bandwidths up to 170Kbps.
3G
Third generation phones support more advanced network protocols than 2.5G phones. This allows them to use features such as video conferencing as well as simultaneous voice and data capabilities with bandwidths up to 2 Mbps. This also allows for better internet browsing and email.
APAC
Short for the Asia-Pacific region. This term is used a lot in the literature especially in the Telecommunications sector.
Bluetooth
This is a short-range wireless radio technology that allows devices to communicate with each other. It passes through walls and generally has a range of up to about 10 metres. It is useful for synchronisation services between handsets and PCs and is also used in a number of multi-user games.
CDMA
Stands for Code Division Multiple Access. This is a standard that dominates over GSM in the United States and Korea. In Australia, CDMA phones are often used in the rural areas in preference to GSM phones due to reliability.
CLDC
Connection Limited Device Configuration - part of the set of J2ME specifications produced to standardise the available features for mobile information devices.
Digital Certificates
A digital certificate is effectively a statement by a well known authority (such as VeriSign or Thawte) that a certain entity (person, company or organisation) has a certain identity. Specifically, certificates are used to sign software installations so that the user can choose whether to trust the software based on it's source.
EDGE
Stands for Enhance Data rates for GSM Evolution. It's a GSM-based protocol that is used in some cases in place of GPRS. It is a 2.5G technology that provides bandwidths of up to 384Kbps in theory.
Flashlite
A smaller version of Flash from Adobe. A client side technology that allows for the construction of feature-rich user interfaces.
GPRS
The General Packet Radio Service is a wireless technology that allows data transfer over the top of the GSM network. Bandwidths of up to 170Kbps are supported and connection setup/tear-down times are fast (no dialing required). It is a 2.5G technology.
GSM
GSM is a standard for digital communications throughout most of the world except for the United States where CDMA dominates. It stands for Global System for Mobile Communication and is used in the 900MHz, 1800MHz and 1900MHz frequency bands. For this reason, most devices are tri-band in order to have the largest coverage. GSM phones use SIM cards to gain network access.
IMEI
The International Mobile Equipment Identity number. This is usually found printed underneath the battery and is a globally unique identifier for the particular handset. The IMEI number can be found by entering the sequence *#06# into any phone.
IR
Infra-Red is a short range wireless technology supporting serial connections on a line-of-sight basis up to a minimum of 1m in range.
J2ME
That subset of Java technologies specifically aimed at resource-constrained device application development.
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JAR
A Jar file is a file in the Java Archive format. Java applications for mobile devices are delivered as Jar files and installed by the Application Manager software on the device.
MIDP
The Mobile Information Device Profile is a set of minimum hardware and software requirements for a mobile device that sit on top of a CLDC. It defines a minimal set of features software vendors can assume are present to use in application development.
MMS
The Multimedia Messaging Service is an extension to SMS that allows the exchange of images, audio and video as well as text.
OS
Short for Operating System. Examples of operating systems are Windows, Macintosh and Linux in the PC world and Symbian, Palm OS and Windows Mobile in the mobile phone space.
PDA
Personal Digital Assistants lie somewhere in between smartphones and PCs. They tend to have touch screens, GPS locators and a number of rich applications. A number of PDAs also adhere to MIDP specifications and some of the newer models can also be used as mobile phones as well.
PTT
Push-To-Talk allows the user to switch between voice reception and voice transmissions modes by pressing a button or key on the phone.
Signing
When a software vendor signs an application, it is a statement that the application actually originates from them. In addition, applications can be signed by trusted authorities to grant a level of trustworthiness to the software.
SIM
Subscriber Identification Module cards allow access to the GSM network. A SIM card contains user account information such as services allowed and is used to identify the user on the GSM network for the purposes of billing. SIM cards can also store personal information such as phone numbers and SMS messages.
SIS
A Symbian Installation System (SIS) file is an installation file format used for applications, upgrades or patches for Symbian OS phones.
SMS
The Short Messaging Service allows users to send messages up to 160 characters in lengths. Most devices allow for a minimum of three messages to be chained together to create a larger aggregate message. Messages can also consist of binary data and can be used as the communication medium between distributed applications.
T9
T9 technology is the predictive text feature found on most handsets today. It is used in message composition and application input. Adept users can create large messages extremely quickly leveraging this feature.
TDMA
Time Division Multiple Access allows handsets in the same geographic area to split a given frequency using timeslots.
UMTS
An acronym for Universal Mobile Telecommunications System. A 3G technology designed to replace the GSM network.
WAP
The Wireless Application Protocol was designed specifically for internet browsing on mobile devices. It leverages lightweight markup languages like WML and xHTML that allow the device to minimise the memory and processing power required to render web pages correctly.
W-CDMA
Wideband Code Division Multiple Access is a 3G technology designed by Japan's DTT DoCoMo that uses CDMA. Sometimes refered to as 3GSM, it is the transmission protocol for UMTS. |
