My wife and I were listening to the TV this morning when the reporter mentioned the new iPhone and 3G technology.
"What the heck is 3G?" she asked. Good question. I bet a lot of people are wondering that.
3G stands for third-generation wireless technology. There was, in case you missed it, a 1G and 2G. 1G was the old analog cellular system that worked on radio frequencies.
The second generation is what we use on mobile phones now: digital encoding and packet routing. All of the data you send and receive now on second-generation wireless phones moves in packets -- little chunks of data.
3G has the potential to allow you to download stuff on your handheld device at about the same speed as you would expect from a broadband-connected computer in your home or office. Experts call the next step needed to go that fast "3.5G" -- not a whole new technology but an improvement in 3G as it stands now.
3.5G could be the tipping point that allows Web sites to deliver video and audio to handheld devices at speeds that makes them watchable instead of being a frustration.
3G hopes to keep you connected anywhere, all the time. 3G takes the packet method of 2G and speeds it up big time. 3G promises to allow you to talk and surf at the same time. That is how much data it can handle. 2G simply can not move that much information.
Apple explains by using a new term that you should know, HSDPA:
iPhone 3G uses a technology protocol called HSDPA (High-Speed Downlink Packet Access) to download data fast over UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System) networks. Email attachments and Web pages load twice as fast on 3G networks as on 2G EDGE networks. And since iPhone 3G seamlessly switches between EDGE, faster 3G, and even faster Wi-Fi, you always get the best speeds possible.
CNet.com explains
what 3G means for download speeds:
Simply put, 3G cellular technology will bring wireless broadband data services to your mobile phone. Boasting speeds from 144Kbps (roughly three times faster than a 56K dial-up modem connection) to 2.4Mbps (close to cable-modem speed), 3G networks let you speed through Web pages, enjoy streaming music video, watch on-demand video programming, download and play 3D games, and videoconference with your fellow chatterers. There's even an up-and-coming 3.5G standard called HSDPA that boosts speeds to as fast as 7.2 Mbps, (with promises of 14.4 Mbps speeds in the near future). While the interface is undoubtedly different on a cell phone, the experience of surfing, downloading, and streaming stands to be very close to that of a broadband connection on a computer.
iPhone AntennasWhere are the antennas on the iPhone? The iPhone has Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and G2 technology built in. But those usually need some sort of antenna. They are built in to the metal elements that you are already used to seeing. Apple explains:
iPhone 3G delivers UMTS, HSDPA, GSM, Wi-Fi, EDGE, GPS, and Bluetooth 2.0 + EDR in one compact device -- using only two antennas. Clever iPhone engineering integrates those antennas into a few unexpected places: the metal ring around the camera, the audio jack, the metal screen bezel, and the iPhone circuitry itself.
Geeks get happy. Android is about to launch - and...
